URGENT- Speak out for Sudanese Christian mother
sentenced to death
It’s very likely that you’ve heard about Meriam Yahia Ibrahim. Meriam is a heavily pregnant Sudanese Christian woman who has been unjustly sentenced to death for apostasy.
Meriam has been in prison with her 20 month old son since February. She has been charged with adultery for marrying a Christian man and apostasy for leaving Islam, despite being a Christian her entire life.
On 15 May her sentence of death by hanging was upheld by the court. This is a desperate situation – we must speak up for Meriam. Please find out how below.
Write to the Sudanese authorities
Please see below a sample letter for you to urgently send to the President of Sudan, the Minister of Justice and the Minister of Foreign Affairs. In addition you can send your letter to the Sudanese Ambassador to the UK and Ireland, copying in the Minister of Interior (contact details below).
We respectfully ask that you remain polite throughout, do not write anything disrespectful of Islam and do not mention Open Doors. Thank you for your compassion, faithfulness and God-given passion for justice.
Sample letter:
Your Excellency,
I am writing to express my great concern over the case of Sudanese citizen, Mrs. Meriam Yahia Ibrahim Ishag.
Mrs Ibrahim was born to an Ethiopian Christian mother and a Muslim Sudanese father, but she was raised by her mother. Mrs Ibrahim considers herself a life-long Christian and legally married a Christian man in a church ceremony which was accepted by the authorities. However, on February 17 this year, Mrs Ibrahim was arrested and charged with adultery under article 146 and apostasy under article 126 of the Criminal Code and taken into prison along with her infant child. She is in her ninth month of pregnancy. On May 11 she was sentenced to 100 lashes and to death by hanging by the Public Order Court in El Haj Yousif, Khartoum.
We are deeply concerned over the conditions the expecting Mrs Ibrahim is facing in prison and about the fact that her infant child is incarcerated with her and denied access to his father. We are also concerned over the fact that Mrs Ibrahim is denied medical attention and antenatal care for her unborn child.
According to international human rights law, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to which Sudan is a State Party, everyone has the right to freedom of religion. This includes the ‘freedom to have or to adopt a religion or belief of his choice, and freedom, either individually or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in worship, observance, practice and teaching’.
I respectfully petition your intervention in this case. I call upon the government of Sudan as State Party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to respect Mrs Ibrahim’s right to freedom of religion by allowing her to freely practise her Christian faith. I therefore appeal that you ensure that both sentences against Mrs Ibrahim be rescinded, and that she is freed immediately and unconditionally so that she and her child can be reunited with her husband.
I call upon your government to approach Mrs Ibrahim’s case with justice and compassion that is in keeping with the values of the Sudanese people.
Yours sincerely,
First Name, Last NameCountry
Contact details:
Minister of JusticeHis Excellency, Mr. Mohamed Bushara Dousa, Ministry of Justice, PO Box 302, Khartoum, Sudan Email: moj@moj.gov.sd
Minister of Foreign AffairsHis Excellency, Mr. Ali Ahmed Karti, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs/External Relations, PO Box 873, Khartoum, SudanEmail: ministry@mfa.gov.sd Fax: +249 183 764 168 / +249 183 770 883
Minister of InteriorHis Excellency, Mr. Ibrahim Mahmoud Ahmed, Minister of Internal Affairs, Ministry of Interior, PO Box 873, Khartoum, SudanEmail: mut@isoc.sd
President of SudanHis Excellency, Mr. President Omar Hassan Ahmad al-Bashir, Office of the President, People’s Palace, PO Box 281, Khartoum, Sudan, Fax: + 249 183 783223
Sudanese Embassy to the United Kingdom and IrelandHis Excellency, Mr Abdullahi Hamad Ali Alazreg, 3 Cleveland Row, St James's, London, UK, SW1A 1DDEmail: admin@sudanembassy.co.ukTelephone: 020 7839 8080
PrayIt’s very likely that you’ve heard about Meriam Yahia Ibrahim. Meriam is a heavily pregnant Sudanese Christian woman who has been unjustly sentenced to death for apostasy.
Meriam has been in prison with her 20 month old son since February. She has been charged with adultery for marrying a Christian man and apostasy for leaving Islam, despite being a Christian her entire life.
On 15 May her sentence of death by hanging was upheld by the court. This is a desperate situation – we must speak up for Meriam. Please find out how below.
Write to the Sudanese authorities
Please see below a sample letter for you to urgently send to the President of Sudan, the Minister of Justice and the Minister of Foreign Affairs. In addition you can send your letter to the Sudanese Ambassador to the UK and Ireland, copying in the Minister of Interior (contact details below).
We respectfully ask that you remain polite throughout, do not write anything disrespectful of Islam and do not mention Open Doors. Thank you for your compassion, faithfulness and God-given passion for justice.
Sample letter:
Your Excellency,
I am writing to express my great concern over the case of Sudanese citizen, Mrs. Meriam Yahia Ibrahim Ishag.
Mrs Ibrahim was born to an Ethiopian Christian mother and a Muslim Sudanese father, but she was raised by her mother. Mrs Ibrahim considers herself a life-long Christian and legally married a Christian man in a church ceremony which was accepted by the authorities. However, on February 17 this year, Mrs Ibrahim was arrested and charged with adultery under article 146 and apostasy under article 126 of the Criminal Code and taken into prison along with her infant child. She is in her ninth month of pregnancy. On May 11 she was sentenced to 100 lashes and to death by hanging by the Public Order Court in El Haj Yousif, Khartoum.
We are deeply concerned over the conditions the expecting Mrs Ibrahim is facing in prison and about the fact that her infant child is incarcerated with her and denied access to his father. We are also concerned over the fact that Mrs Ibrahim is denied medical attention and antenatal care for her unborn child.
According to international human rights law, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to which Sudan is a State Party, everyone has the right to freedom of religion. This includes the ‘freedom to have or to adopt a religion or belief of his choice, and freedom, either individually or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in worship, observance, practice and teaching’.
I respectfully petition your intervention in this case. I call upon the government of Sudan as State Party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to respect Mrs Ibrahim’s right to freedom of religion by allowing her to freely practise her Christian faith. I therefore appeal that you ensure that both sentences against Mrs Ibrahim be rescinded, and that she is freed immediately and unconditionally so that she and her child can be reunited with her husband.
I call upon your government to approach Mrs Ibrahim’s case with justice and compassion that is in keeping with the values of the Sudanese people.
Yours sincerely,
First Name, Last NameCountry
Contact details:
Minister of JusticeHis Excellency, Mr. Mohamed Bushara Dousa, Ministry of Justice, PO Box 302, Khartoum, Sudan Email: moj@moj.gov.sd
Minister of Foreign AffairsHis Excellency, Mr. Ali Ahmed Karti, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs/External Relations, PO Box 873, Khartoum, SudanEmail: ministry@mfa.gov.sd Fax: +249 183 764 168 / +249 183 770 883
Minister of InteriorHis Excellency, Mr. Ibrahim Mahmoud Ahmed, Minister of Internal Affairs, Ministry of Interior, PO Box 873, Khartoum, SudanEmail: mut@isoc.sd
President of SudanHis Excellency, Mr. President Omar Hassan Ahmad al-Bashir, Office of the President, People’s Palace, PO Box 281, Khartoum, Sudan, Fax: + 249 183 783223
Sudanese Embassy to the United Kingdom and IrelandHis Excellency, Mr Abdullahi Hamad Ali Alazreg, 3 Cleveland Row, St James's, London, UK, SW1A 1DDEmail: admin@sudanembassy.co.ukTelephone: 020 7839 8080
Please hold Meriam in your prayers:
- Ask the Holy Spirit to comfort Meriam and strengthen her physically and spiritually
- Pray for protection for her baby son and unborn child
- Pray that justice will be done and the sentence against her will be dropped. Advocacy.
