Sudan 2019 Constitution

Chapter 14. The Bill of Rights and Freedoms

42. The essence of the Bill of Rights

1. The Bill of Rights is a pact between all the people of Sudan, and between them and their governments at every level. It is in obligation on their part to respect the human rights and fundamental freedoms included in this Charter, and to work to advance them. The Bill of Rights is considered to be the cornerstone of social justice, equality and democracy in Sudan.
2. All rights and freedoms contained in international and regional human rights agreements, pacts, and charters ratified by the Republic of Sudan shall be considered an integral part of this Charter.
3. Legislation shall organize the rights and freedoms contained in this Charter but shall not confiscate them or reduce them. Legislation shall only restrict these freedoms as necessary in a democratic society.

43. The State’s Obligations

The state undertakes to protect and strengthen the rights contained in this Charter and to guarantee them for all without discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender, language, religion, political opinion, social status, or other reason.

44. Life and Human Dignity

Every person has a fundamental right to life, dignity, and personal safety, which shall be protected by law. No person may be deprived of life arbitrarily.

45. Citizenship and Nationality

1. Citizenship is the basis of equal rights and obligations for all Sudanese.
2. Anyone born to a Sudanese mother or father has an inalienable right to possess Sudanese nationality and citizenship.
3. The law shall organize citizenship and naturalization, and no one who has acquired citizenship by naturalization shall be deprived of nationality except by law.
4. Any Sudanese person may acquire the nationality of another country, as regulated by law.

46. Personal Freedom

1. Every person has the right to freedom and security. No one shall be subjected to arrest or detention, or deprived of freedom or restricted therefrom except for cause in accordance with procedures defined by law.
2. Every person who is deprived of freedom has the right to humane treatment and respect of their human dignity.

47. Prohibition of Slavery and Forced Labor

1. Slavery and human trafficking shall be prohibited in all forms. No person shall be enslaved or subjected to forced labor.
2. No person shall be compelled to perform work by force except as a punishment following conviction by a competent court.

48. Equality before the Law

People are equal before the law, and have the right to the protection of the law without discrimination between them on the basis of ethnicity, color, gender, language, religious faith, political opinion, racial or ethnic origin, or any other reason.

49. Women’s Rights

1. The state protects women’s rights as provided in international and regional agreements ratified by Sudan.
2. The state guarantees to both men and women the equal right to enjoy all civil, political, social, cultural, and economic rights, including the right to equal pay for equal work, and other professional benefits.
3. The state guarantees women’s rights in all fields and develops them through positive discrimination.
4. The state works to combat harmful customs and traditions that reduce the dignity and status of women.
5. The state provides free healthcare for motherhood, childhood and pregnant women.

50. Children’s Rights

The state protects the rights of the child as provided in international and regional agreements ratified by Sudan.

51. Protection from Torture

No one may be subjected to torture or harsh, inhumane, or degrading treatment or punishment, or debasement of human dignity.

52. Fair Trial

1. Accused persons are innocent until proven guilty in accordance with the law.
2. A person is informed of the reasons of arrest at the time of the arrest and shall be informed of the charge against him without delay.
3. Any person who has civil or criminal proceedings against him has the right to a fair and open hearing before a competent ordinary court in accordance with the procedures defined by law.
4. Charges may not be brought against any person because of an act or failure to act if such act or failure to act did not constitute a crime at the time of its occurrence.
5. Every person has the right to be tried in their presence without unjustified delay on any criminal charge. The law shall regulate trials in absentia.
6. The accused has the right to defend himself personally or through an attorney he selects. He has the right to be provided with legal assistance by the state when he is unable to defend himself in crimes of extreme gravity.

53. Right to Litigate

The right to litigate is guaranteed for all. No one shall be deprived of the right to resort to the justice system.

54. Restriction on the Death Penalty

1. The death penalty may only be inflicted as retribution (qasas), a hudud punishment, or as a penalty for crimes of extreme gravity, in accordance with the law.
2. The death penalty may not be inflicted on anyone who has not reached eighteen years of age at the time that the crime was committed.
3. The death penalty may not be inflicted on anyone who has reached seventy years of age, except in the case of qasas and hudud crimes.
4. The death penalty may only be inflicted on pregnant women and nursing mothers two years after [they have finished] breastfeeding.

55. Right to Privacy

No one’s privacy may be violated. It is not permissible to interfere in the private or family life of any person in his home or correspondence, except in accordance with the law.

56. Freedom of Belief and Worship

Every person has the right to freedom of religious belief and worship. They shall have the right to profess or express their religion or belief through worship, education, practice, performance of rituals, or celebrations, in accordance with the requirements of the law and public order. No one shall be compelled to convert to a religion they do not believe in or to practice rites or rituals they do not voluntarily accept.

57. Freedom of Expression and the Press

1. Every citizen has the unrestricted right to freedom of expression, to receive and publish information and publications, and to access the press, without prejudice to public order, safety and morals in accordance with what is determined by law.
2. Every citizen has the right to access the internet, without prejudice to public order, safety, and morals in accordance with what is determined by law.
3. The state guarantees freedom of the press and other media, in accordance with what is determined by law in a democratic, pluralistic society.
4. All media adhere to the profession’s ethics and shall not incite religious, ethnic, racial, or cultural hatred, or call for violence or war.

58. Freedom of Assembly and Organization

1. The right to peaceful assembly is guaranteed. Every individual has the right to free organization with others, including the right to form political parties, associations, organizations, syndicates and professional unions, or to join the same in order to protect their interests.
2. The law regulates the formation and registration of political parties, associations, organizations, syndicates and professional unions, in accordance with what is required by a democratic society.
3. No organization has the right to work as a political party, unless it has:
   1. Open membership for all Sudanese, regardless of religion, ethnic origin or place of birth;
   2. Democratically elected leadership and institutions;
   3. Transparent and declared sources of funding.

59. The right to Political Participation

Every citizen has the right to political participation in public affairs, in accordance with what is regulated by law.

60. Freedom of Travel and Residence

1. Every citizen has the right to freedom of travel and freedom to choose his place of residence, except for reasons required by public health or safety, in accordance with what is regulated by law.
2. Every citizen has the right to leave the country, in accordance with what is regulated by law, and has the right to return.

61. Right of Ownership

1. Every citizen has the right to acquire and own property in accordance with the law.
2. Private property shall not be appropriated except by virtue of a law and for the public interest, and in return for fair, and immediate compensation. Private funds may only be confiscated by virtue of a court ruling.

62. Right to Education

1. Education is a right for every citizen. The state guarantees access thereto without discrimination on the basis of religion, race, ethnicity, gender or disability.
2. Education at the general level is compulsory, and the state shall provide it free of charge.

63. Independence of Universities and Institutes of Higher Learning

The state guarantees the independence of universities and academic research centers, and freedom of thought and academic research.

64. Rights of Handicapped Persons and the Elderly

1. The state guarantees for handicapped persons all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Charter, in particular respect for their human dignity. It makes available appropriate education and work for them, and guarantee their full participation in society.
2. The state guarantees for the elderly the right to respect for their dignity, and provides them with the necessary medical care and services in accordance with what is regulated by law.

65. Right to health

The state undertakes to provide primary health care and emergency services free of charge for all citizens, to develop public health, and establish, develop and rehabilitate health and basic diagnostic institutions.

66. Ethnic and cultural groups

All ethnic and cultural groups have the right to enjoy their own private culture and develop it freely. The members of such groups have the right to exercise their beliefs, use their languages, observe their religions or customs, and raise their children in the framework of such cultures and customs.

67. Protection of rights and freedoms

Subject to Article 41 of this Charter, the rights and freedoms set forth in this Charter cannot be reduced. The Constitutional Court and other competent courts preserve, protect and apply this Charter, and the Human Rights Commission oversees its application in the state.