A/HRC/14/41 the independent expert participated in the launching of a legal aid desk at Nyala Central Prison, marking the first time such a desk had been established in a prison in Darfur. I. Arbitrary arrest, detention and ill-treatment of civilians 67. Cases of arbitrary detentions and ill-treatment of civilians documented by UNAMID during the reporting period have shown that the NISS and Sudanese Military Intelligence are the governmental authorities most responsible for the violations in Darfur. Detainees are very often held without being informed of the reason for their arrest, and sometimes detained for prolonged periods without being charged. In some instances, detainees are held incommunicado and subjected to torture and other forms of ill-treatment. 68. From January 2009 to January 2010, UNAMID documented 68 cases involving 120 civilians arbitrarily or illegally detained in Nyala, South Darfur. In Malha, North Darfur, Military Intelligence arrested a 35 year old student on 10 January 2010 and detained him for five days for allegedly collecting signatures in support of the registration of a candidate in the election. The man was chained to a wall, beaten repeatedly and released without being charged. On 5 January 2010, in Ardamata, West Darfur, the NISS arrested and detained a staff member of an international non-governmental organization for 10 days. He was never charged nor informed of the reason for his arrest. He was questioned repeatedly about his affiliation with JEM. In Medina, West Darfur, UNAMID interviewed three people arrested in August 2009 by the police for murder. They were subjected to severe beatings and hanged from the ceiling of the cell with their hands and legs tied behind their backs. Their faces were covered with bags full of pepper, which asphyxiated them, and the beatings continued until they fell unconscious. Human rights monitors observed the three men chained together during court proceedings. 69. In the lead-up to the elections, there was a marked increase in the arrest of political activists. In August 2009, more than 27 SPLM members were arrested and detained in Nyala. Two other SPLM members, including a teacher and a policeman, were arrested on 15 December 2009 by the NISS in Nyala. None of the detainees was informed of the reasons for arrest. Concerns remain regarding the application of the 1997 Emergency and Public Safety Protection Act in Darfur. The law grants the State governors wide discretionary powers of arrest and detention without any effective judicial review. In North Darfur, 18 people suspected of involvement in the murder of a local community leader from the Abou Shok camp for internally displaced persons, were detained for more than five months under the Emergency Act without access to lawyers and without being brought before a judicial authority. Six of the detainees remain in detention and have not been charged with an offence, more than eight months after their arrest. 70. UNAMID Human Rights continues to be denied unfettered access to detention centres and prisons, including the NISS, Military Intelligence and police detention centres. Access to detainees, particularly those detained under the Emergency Act, has been extremely difficult. In 2009, access to Shalla prison, the largest prison facility in Darfur, was only granted once. In West Darfur, UNAMID has been granted access on an ad hoc basis to some facilities upon authorization from the Minister for the Interior. In South Darfur, human rights monitors have been denied systematic unfettered access to detention facilities in spite of numerous requests to the authorities. In some instances, limited access has been granted on a case-by-case basis, depending on the rapport between monitors and prison officials. In a positive development, on 21 February 2010, UNAMID signed a memorandum of understanding with the Sudanese prison authorities that is expected to pave the way for unrestricted access for UNAMID to all prisons in Darfur. GE.10-13648 17