Posts Tagged ‘detention’
August 13, 2012
On 12 August 2012 the Ahlul Bayt News Agency published a moving letter by Sumaya Rajab, the wife of the prominent Bahraini human rights defender,Nabeel Rajab, who is currently detained in Bahrain. Nabeel Rajab is one of the 3 MEA nominees for 2012. She writes this letter also in the name of their son Adam and daughter Malak to urge all of you to use your influence and act quickly to guarantee her husband’s immediate release.
for the full text of the letter see: Bahrain: An open letter from the family of Human Rights Defender Nabeel Rajab.
Posted in Human Rights Defenders | 2 Comments »
Tags: Bahrain, detention, human rights, Human Rights Defenders, human rights violations, Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders, MEA, Nabeel Rajab
August 10, 2012
As new cases of arbitrary arrests and ongoing judicial harassment have been reported in Bahrain, the Observatory for Human Rights Defenders – a joint project of OMCT and FIDH – remains extremely concerned with the very repressive climate faced by human rights defenders in that country, it appears from a press statement of 9 August 2012..
On August 2, 2012, Ms. Zainab Al-Khawaja was once again arrested while she was protesting alone at Al Qadam roundabout against the arbitrary detention of her father Mr. Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja,founder of the Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR), former President of the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights (BCHR), and former MENA Director at Front Line. While arresting Ms. Al-Khawaja, police officers verbally assaulted her and threatened her with reprisals as she was legitimately resisting their orders to give a blood sample. She was finally forcibly led to the Fort Prison Hospital before being transferred to Isa Town Detention Center, where she was kept handcuffed despite a serious leg injury sustained after security forces shot her with tear gas canisters at close range. On August 4, 2012, the Public Prosecution remanded her into custody for seven days.
The Observatory further recalls that Mr. Nabeel Rajab, President of the BCHR – which is one of the three nominees for the 2012 Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders – and FIDH Deputy Secretary General, has faced constant judicial harassment, as four cases have been brought against him since May 2012 in relation with his human rights activities. Mr. Rajab is still facing three of these cases. In particular, he has been detained since July 9, 2012 and sentenced to 3 months’ imprisonment for alleged libel after he tweeted the following on June 2: “Khalifa, leave the residents of Al Muharraq, its Sheikhs and its elderly. Everyone knows that you are not popular here, and if it wasn’t for the subsidies, they wouldn’t have gone out to welcome you. When will you step down?“
The Observatory is deeply concerned about constant postponements, as their only aim seems to be to keep Mr. Nabeel Rajab in detention as long as possible, by delaying the examination of the request filed by his lawyers against his 3-month imprisonment sentence. The Observatory reiterates its call on the Bahraini authorities to immediately and unconditionally release him as his detention is arbitrary and only aims at sanctioning his human rights activities.
Bahrain: Ongoing arbitrary arrests and judicial harassment of human rights defenders / August 9, 2012 / Urgent Interventions / Human rights defenders / OMCT.
Posted in FIDH, human rights, Human Rights Defenders, OMCT | 3 Comments »
Tags: Bahrain, detention, FIDH, Human Rights Defenders, human rights violations, Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders, MEA, Nabeel Rajab, Observatory for the Protection of HRDs, OMCT
June 19, 2012
A training workshop for human rights defenders organized by the East
and Horn of Africa Human Rights Defenders Project [EHAHRDP] has been interrupted
by uninvited media representatives and the police. Participants are
currently being questioned by the police.
EHAHRDP organized the training working on monitoring, documentation
and reporting of human rights violations for LGBTI defenders, which
opened this morning at Esella Country Hotel, Najjera, Kampala. The
workshop organisers, which brought together twenty HRDs from Uganda,
Rwanda, Tanzania and Kenya, as well as seven EHAHRDP staff members and
interns, stopped the meeting when they learned that the media was
coming to the hotel. Around ten journalists arrived at approximately
2.30pm, and two or three cameras were used to film the event. EHAHRDP
has not been able to establish who informed the media that the
training was taking place, although some of the journalists claimed to
have received the information via the Minister of Ethics and
Integrity, Rev. Simon Lokodo.
Soon afterwards, the police arrived and began to question
participants. Led by the head of the Kampala Metropolitan Criminal
Investigations Department, the police began by questioning Paul
Njogore from Freedom House, Jane Wothaya Thirikwa from Gay Kenya
Trust, Neil Blazevic (a Canadian citizen) and Tabitha Netuwa from
EHAHRDP, who were then held for some time in a police van and were
told they would be taken to the Kira Road police station. The police
are currently questioning all participants one-by-one, including by
forcibly entering their hotel rooms.
EHAHRDP calls on the Ugandan police to immediately release all
participants, and condemns this unjustified interruption of our
legitimate activities.
For more information, please contact:
Hassan Shire, Executive Director on executive@defenddefenders.org or
+41 793 375 875
Rachel Nicholson, Advocacy Officer on advocacy@defenddefenders.org or
+41 762 556 769
Posted in Human Rights Defenders | 2 Comments »
Tags: detention, EHAHRDP, Freedom House, gay right, harassment, Human Rights Defenders, Kampala, LGBT, Uganda
June 2, 2012
The Office for a Democratic Belarus came today with the following information:
Academic director of the Belarusian Institute for Strategic Studies (BISS) Aliaksei Pikulik was convicted today (June 1) by court of the Central district of Minks city to 5 days of imprisonment following his arrest on May 31 on the account of “hooliganism”.
Activist of the Govori Pravdu campaign Mikhas Pashkevich received 7 days of administrative arrest following the decision by the court in Svetlahorsk, Homiel region. He was detained on May 31 near the village of Yakimava Slabada after a meeting with local activists and journalists.
On June 1, a number of journalists were also temporarily detained in Minsk and Hrodna. Volha Chajchyc and Tacciana Belashova spent three hours at a police station following their arrest while preparing a reportage on the International day for protection of children. Volha works for the Poland-based Belsat TV, which repeatedly tries to receive ccreditation in Belarus but with no success.
In Hrodna, activist of the non-registered Union of Poles Ihar Bantsar, who was detained during a picket organised in defence of a local Polish school and severely beaten, is awaiting a court hearing. Eight other participants of the action were released and will be put on trial on June 4 for participation in a non-authorised action of protest. Over 100 people took part in the picket despite the refusal of local authorities to allow the demonstration to take place.
Sources: http://www.naviny.by <http://naviny.by> , http://www.svaboda.org <http://svaboda.org> , http://www.baj.by <http://baj.by> , Facebook
———————————————————
Office for a Democratic Belarus
Square de Meeûs 37, 4th floor
1000 Brussels
Phone: +32 (0)2 791 7505
info@democraticbelarus.eu <mailto:info@democraticbelarus.eu>
http://www.democraticbelarus.eu <http://www.democraticbelarus.eu>
Posted in Human Rights Defenders | Leave a Comment »
Tags: Belarus, BISS, detention, freedom of expression, harassment, Human Rights Defenders, journalists, Office for a Democratic Belarus
May 24, 2012
We have just learned that the Venerable Luon Savath been released and is now at the office of the NGO LICADHO. But not sure that this is the end of the story and will keep you posted.
Posted in human rights, Human Rights Defenders, MEA | Leave a Comment »
Tags: Cambodia, detention, human rights, LICADHO, Luon Savath, Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders, MEA, release
May 24, 2012
The 2012 nominee of the Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders, the ‘multimedia’ monk Luon Savath, was this morning ‘arrested’. In fact, senior members of the monastic community were involved in detaining him after he took photos of protesting Boeung Kak lake villagers outside Phnom Penh municipal court. As can be seen on http://youtu.be/0sG6iLwj95o, some monks, police and unidentified plain-clothed men forced him into a Land Cruiser and ushered him away from the scene as more than 60 protesters, flanked by about 100 police, called for the release of 13 Boeung Kak women who where being questioned inside. The Venerable Loun Savath was already banned from all pagodas in Phnom Penh last year by Supreme Patriarch Nun Nget. It seems that the Venerable Loun Savath was driven to Pagoda Botum, where police and officials from the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Cults and Religion barricaded him inside, sealing off entries so even pagoda boys could not enter. According to Buddhist internal rules, a committee of monks needs to meet and express whatever they think he has done wrong, then the monk in question is supposed to be able to respond to committee. Afterwards, the committee can decide to ‘advise’ him of ‘misconduct’ or ask ‘permission’ to defrock. With unusual and uncommon speed this has happened all within the same day! Luon Savath was able to make one call and then his mobile phone was cut off and no one has been able to reach him since. There is serious reason to worry and the international community should be mobilized.
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/index.php/2012052456374/National-news/activist-monk-loun-savath-detained.html
To stay up to date check with Twitter @witnessryan.
Posted in human rights | 1 Comment »
Tags: Asia, Buddhism, Cambodia, defrocking, detention, freedom of expression, Luon Savath, Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders, MEA, monk, Phnom Penh, unlawful arrest
May 8, 2012
On May 7, 2012, the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint programme of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), reports and protests the arbitrary arrest and judicial harassment of Mr. Nabeel Rajab, President of the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights (BCHR) and FIDH Deputy Secretary General. The Centre was announced only two weeks ago as one of the nominees of the Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders (for a short film on their work see http://www.martinennalsaward.org)
On May 5, 2012, Mr. Nabeel Rajab was arrested by plain clothes police officers upon arrival at Manama airport from Lebanon and transferred to Al Hawra police station. The police officers who proceeded to the arrest stated that they were following orders by the Public Prosecutor, however neither Mr. Rajab nor his lawyers were then informed of the reasons for his arrest.
Mr. Rajab had returned to Bahrain in order to attend a hearing for charges of “participating in an illegal assembly” and “calling others to join”, relating to a protest organised on March 31, 2012 in Manama to denounce the detention of human rights defender Abdulhadi Al Khawaja, former BCHR President and former MENA Director at Front Line.On May 6, Mr. Rajab was accordingly taken to court, where he denied the charges against him. The trial was postponed to May 22, 2012.
Later the same day, Mr. Rajab was presented before the Public Prosecutor, who informed him of the reasons for his arrest. According to Mr. Rajab’s lawyers, charges of “insulting the statutory bodies”, pursuant to Article 216 of the Penal Code, which carry an imprisonment for a term of up to three years and a fine, are pressed against him in relation to tweets he posted deemed “insulting” to the Ministry of Interior. Mr. Rajab replied that he was the author of tweets posted through his account and that he did not recognise the jurisdiction of the Court and the Prosecution due to their lack of independence from the Executive. The Public Prosecutor remanded Mr. Rajab to detention for seven days.
The Observatory firmly denounces the arbitrary detention as well as the judicial harassment of Mr. Nabeel Rajab, which seem to merely aim at sanctioning his legitimate human rights activities. It recalls that according to international standards pre-trial detention should only be used where other measures of restraint are not possible.
The Observatory recalls that these events occur within the context of an intensified crackdown against activists, including human rights defenders, who have supported or are alleged to have supported the protest movement which started in Bahrain in February 2011.
Bahrain: Arbitrary arrest and judicial harassment … – FIDH.
Posted in FIDH, Front Line, Human Rights Defenders, OMCT | Leave a Comment »
Tags: Abdulhadi Al Khawaja, Bahrain, detention, FIDH, Human rights defender, independence of the judiciary, International Federation for Human Rights, lawyers, MEA, Nabeel Rajab, Observatory for the Protection of HRDs, OMCT, World Organisation Against Torture
May 3, 2012
And the virtual ink on my previous post is hardly dry and I come across the case of Mohammed Ali Dadkhah, just but not justly sentenced to 9 year prison. Iran can hardly be surprised that it leads the table of HRDS honored in the context of the Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders.
A prominent lawyer who worked on the case of a Christian pastor on death row in Iran for apostasy, which made headlines around the world, Dadkhah has been sentenced to nine years in jail. “I have been convicted of acting against the national security, spreading propaganda against the regime and keeping banned books at home,” he said. Iranian authorities have used such vague charges in recent years to incriminate activists and lawyers in recent years. He had also been banned from teaching at universities or practicing law for an extra 10 years.
Dadkhah has represented several political and human rights activists jailed in the aftermath of the country’s 2009 disputed elections. He has also been the lawyer of the 32-year-old Yusuf Naderkhani, whose sentencing to death for apostasy triggered an international outcry.
Other prominent Iranian lawyers have also been sentenced to lengthy prison terms such as Abdolfattah Soltani, Nasrin Sotoudeh and recently Narges Mohammadi. Like them, Dadkhah worked for the DHRC of Iranian Nobel Peace laureate Shirin Ebadi who fled the country in 2009.
The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint programme of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) on Thursday condemned the sentencing of Dadkhah as well as the systematic harassment by the state against the DHRC members.
“We fear that the harassment against DHRC and attempts to silence its members will continue exponentially”, says Souhayr Belhassen, the FIDH President.
“The authorities in Iran are doing their utmost to stifle human rights defenders by imposing heavy sentences of imprisonment, exile, and ban on professional practice. All this is aimed at intimidating the whole society into a deadly silence”, adds secretary general of the OMCT, Gerald Staberock.
Iranian lawyer Mohammad Ali Dadkhah sentenced to nine years in jail | World news | guardian.co.uk.
Posted in human rights | Leave a Comment »
Tags: detention, FIDH, Human Rights Defenders, Iran, lawyers, Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders, Mohammed Ali Dadkhah, Narges Mohammadi, Observatory for the Protection of HRDs, OMCT, Shirin Ebadi, Soltani, Sotoudeh
Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards 