The Belgian government recently disclosed the results of an investigation carried out by the Commissioner-General for Refugees and Stateless Persons (CGRS) on cases of alleged torture in Sudan.

Liberties member the Belgian League of Human Rights (LDH) is not questioning the efforts of the CGRS to clarify the truth about events that occurred in Khartoum, Sudan, following Belgium's deportation of Sudanese nationals, carried out with the help of an official Sudanese delegation that had come to Belgium in order the identify the people who were to be deported.

Nevertheless, LDH believes that only an in-depth international investigation can definitively erase doubts on the repercussions of such deportations from Belgium. LDH believes doubts remain, as the CGRS itself cannot carry out such an in-depth investigation.

Regardless of the conclusions of the CGRS investigation, there is no question that the Sudanese regime is currently committing human rights violations. The fact that these violations occur is itself a sufficient reason to forbid any deportations to Sudan, so that people who are targeted by these deportations are not at risk of ill treatment and abuse upon return to their home country.

Article 3

It is worth repeating that, under Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), in cases where there is a risk of torture or inhuman and degrading treatment in a country of return, states have to comply with the principle of non-refoulement and cannot deport people to the country in question.

In its ruling, the Belgian Court of Cassation confirmed that the Belgium Aliens Office had not verified compliance of Article 3 of the ECHR before returning one of the Sudanese nationals.

In this context, LDH, which believes that the Belgian state violated Article 3 of the UN Convention against torture (principle of non-refoulement), sent a letter to the UN special rapporteur on torture, Nils Melzer, to draw his attention on the deportations to Sudan carried out by Belgian authorities.

LDH is calling on the UN special rapporteur on torture to open an in-depth investigation. LDH also believes that an injunction should be issued to force Belgian authorities to cease all collaboration with Sudanese authorities (including “technical” collaboration), pending the outcomes of such an investigation.