A Sudanese emergency court sentenced on Sunday the daughter of the leader of the opposition Umma Party to a week in jail for taking part in anti-government protests.
Mariam Sadiq al-Mahdi was also fined 2,000 pounds ($42). Should she be unable to pay it, she will be jailed for two additional weeks.
Mahdi was detained along with a number of demonstrators in Omdurman for organizing a protest called for by the opposition Freedom and Change Coalition.
“The emergency court in Omdurman had sentenced Mariam, Umma Party's vice president, to one week in prison and slapped her with a fine,” a leading member of the Umma Party told Asharq Al-Awsat.
He added that she refused to pay the fine, meaning she will spend a total of three weeks in prison.
“Goodbye, I have decided not to pay the fine, so see you after three weeks,” a message attributed to Mahdi on her Facebook page was quoted as saying.
Mariam’s sister, Rabah, and a number of other demonstrators were fined 500 Sudanese pounds ($12) and five Umma Party leaders were fined 1,000 pounds each.
They were sentenced for participating in the Sudanese Professionals Association’s (SPA) rally along with its allies, Freedom and Change Coalition, to challenge the state of emergency imposed nationwide by President Omar al-Bashir.
The latest rulings came a day after another emergency court in Khartoum sentenced nine women to 20 lashes and a month in prison for joining protests.
Different areas witnessed massive demonstrations that initially broke out on December 19 after a hike in prices. Since then, demonstrators have been demanding the resignation of Bashir and his government.
Bashir declared the state of emergency on February 22 after weeks of protests, the most sustained challenge to his rule since he came to power in a coup in 1989.
He has ordered a slew of tough measures to quell the protests, including banning all unauthorized rallies and setting up the emergency courts to probe offenses.
