The Middle East

Jordan’s King Abdullah II Releases Prisoners

By Justin Dorman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

AMMAN, Jordan – On Monday, King Abdullah II instructed the government to work with the state prosecutor to release detained protestors. One hundred and sixteen detainees are said to be released. Only thirteen detainees who had committed crimes previously will remain incarcerated on other charges.

King Abdullah II ordered the release of 116 detainees earlier this week. (Photo Courtesy of Petra)

The detainees all took part in protests over the past couple of months which criticized King Abdullah II. Some of the most recent protests occurred when gas prices rose by fifty-four percent and oil derivatives rose by twenty-eight percent.

The oil and gas protests led to violence in which three people were killed and seventy-five more were injured. Of these seventy-five individuals who were hurt, fifty-eight of which were police officers.

The Minister of State for Media Affairs and Communications announced that, “the government reaffirms that freedom of expression and assembly is guaranteed by the constitution as a natural right of the human and considers these freedoms as one of the pillars of reform in general and political reform in particular.”

The minister went on to distinguish freedom of expression from violently attacking policemen and destroying property.

King Abdullah discussed his stance on protestors in late October when he stated that, “constructive opposition is a legitimate and required ambition. The negative movements, hollow slogans and attempts to foment sedition and chaos are unacceptable.”

He continued to say that “we must remember that catchy slogans are not the answer, and that extremist reactionary mentalities cannot be entrusted with the future of our children.”

Instead of protests, King Abdullah II advocated for citizens to come out and vote in the next parliamentary elections if they wanted to make changes.

These statements came shortly after he pardoned detainees in October after twenty individuals were incarcerated for what Amnesty International described as a peaceful demonstration calling for anti-corruption reforms.

In response to the king’s most recent pardon announcement, Amnesty International said that it was “too little, too late.” The human rights group was happy that the one hundred and sixteen detainees would be set free, and hoped that it would happen quickly so that those who desperately need medical treatment could receive it.

While Amnesty International was happy that all those prisoners would be set free, they worried that the King’s maneuver was a hallow gesture. “There’s a danger King Abdullah’s announcement will be seen as nothing more than a PR exercise because the reality is that dozens of people in 2012 have been detained solely for peacefully calling for economic and political reforms,” stated Deputy Director for the Middle East and North Africa, Ann Harrison.

Amnesty International will further investigate the charges of the thirteen individuals who continue to be detained.

For further information, please see:

Amnesty International – Jordan: Release of Detainees ‘too Little, too Late’ – 11 December 2012

Time – Jordan King Orders Release of Jailed Protesters – 11 December 2012

Petra – King Orders Government to Take Legal Measures to Release Detainees – 10 December 2012

Al Monito – Jordan King Releases Detainees who Protested, Urges all to Vote – 24 October 2012

Press Release: Human Rights Lawyers Incarcerated in Iran

10 December 2012 – On this year’s Human Rights Day, human rights lawyers like Nasrin Sotoudeh, Mohammad Ali Dadkhah, Mohammad Seifzadeh, Abdolfattah Soltani and others are incarcerated in the jails of the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) for their representation of clients in politically sensitive matters.  Threats to the independence of lawyers in the IRI have increased significantly in recent years, particularly with the passage of legislation designed to diminish the role of defense attorneys in the IRI’s legal system.  To provide a personalized view of these negative trends, IHRDC releases the witness testimony of Mahnaz Parakand, a renowned Iranian defense attorney who was forced to flee Iran on account of the pressures on her ability to do her job.  The full witness testimony can be read here.

Syrian May Be Gearing up to Use Chemical Weapons as U.S. Recognizes Opposition

By Emily Schneider
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

DAMASCUS, Syria– “The regime started to fall and deteriorate. It’s coming to its end,” said retired Major General Adnan Sillou in an interview in a hotel near Antakya, Turkey. Sillou, a former top general in President Bashar al-Assad’s Syrian forces, is now sharing what he believes might be President Assad’s next move.

Former Syrian Major-General Andan Sillou. (Photo courtesy of ABC)

“It’s highly possible that he’ll start using [chemical weapons] to kill his own people because this regime is a killer,” Sillou said.

Sillou told ABC News that he was the chief of staff on the defensive side of the chemical weapons program. In addition to his responsibilities in training soldiers in attacks and contact with chemical weapons, he procured safety equipment to help guard the forces against the weapons. In his most recent post, he was second in command to Said Ali Khalil, a member of Assad’s ruling Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shiite Islam.

Syria does not officially acknowledge its chemical weapon program, but Sillou says the military has weapons that employ mustard gas, sarin, VW and tabun nerve agents. U.S. intelligence reports confirmed the presence of sarin as recently as last week. In fact, according to U.S. intelligence officials, sarin had already been mixed with its catalyst agent and loaded into bombs to await the final order from President al-Assad.

Sarin is an extraordinarily lethal agent. In 1988, Iraqi President Saddam Hussein used sarin in a single attack, killing 5,000 Kurds

“They’re idiots, crazy. Simply they are killers,” Sillou said of the Syrian regime. He believes that if Aleppo, Syria’s most populous city, falls to the rebels President al-Assad won’t hesitate to deploy chemical weapons.

U.S. Secretary of State, Hilary Clintong, has warned President Assad that if he used chemical weapons, he would “cross a red line.”

Today, U.S. President Barak Obama took U.S. support of the opposition to the next level by announcing that the U.S. now recognizes the Syrian opposition as a legitimate representation of the country’s people.

“We’ve made a decision that the Syrian opposition coalition is now inclusive enough, is reflective and representative enough of the Syrian population that we consider them the legitimate representative of the Syrian people,” he told ABC’s Barbara Walters. Britain, France, Turkey, and the Gulf Cooperation Council already recognized the opposition as legitimate.

But, as one U.S. official put it, if President al-Assad chooses to use chemical weapons, “there’s little the outside world can do to stop it.”

 

For more information, please see:

Al Jazeera – U.S. Recognizes Syrian Opposition – 11 Dec. 2012

CNN – Obama Recognizes Syrian Opposition – 11 Dec. 2012

ABC – Syria’s Assad Will Use Chemical Weapons, Says Former General, Now Defector – 10 Dec. 2012

NBC – Syria Loads Chemical Weapons into Bombs; Military Awaits Assad’s Order – 6 Dec. 2012

Morsi Grants Army Temporary Arrest Powers

By Ali Al-Bassam
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

CAIRO, Egypt — On Wednesday, Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi issued a new decree granting the military the power to arrest anyone for a temporary period, in what is seen as a response to protests regarding the recent constitutional decree.

Morsi’s decree grants the army the power to arrest any civilian temporarily. (Photo Courtesy of Al Bawaba)

Last Saturday, Morsi participated in a national dialogue and rescinded the constitutional decree issued last November which received criticism for its granting of executive powers.  Morsi issued a new constitutional decree, which will be the subject of a referendum scheduled to proceed on December 15 despite protests demanding its cancellation.

Morsi’s intention in granting arresting powers to the army was to ensure “the protection of vital installations in the country.”  The army will have the right to arrest civilians until the results of the constitutional referendum are announced.

Opponents fear that the decree is an indication that Egypt may move back into military rule, but Morsi said that the intention of the decree is to assist the police force which is considered to have weakened considerably since the fall of former President Hosni Mubarak.  The decree itself  requests the military to coordinate with the police for the sake of keeping the peace until the referendum passes, stating that “[T]he armed forces must support the police service in complete cooperation in order to preserve security and protect vital state institutions for a temporary period…”

Mohamed Lofty from Amnesty International Egypt said that it is necessary to read the law in conjunction with the powers granted to the general prosecutor, which Lofty said, “allows detainees to be held for six months in an effort to “protect the revolution.”  Lofty believes that the crimes considered to harm the revolution “are broadly defined and therefore threaten the freedom of the media, the freedom to assemble, and the freedom of workers to strike.”  “Along with the new law for the military,” said Lofty, “it is a dangerous combination.”

Last Monday, the military increased their presence near the presidential palace,deploying tanks and building a concrete wall to seal off the palace, where a majority of the protesting has occurred.

Opposition groups remain unfazed, and have called for protests against the referendum to continue on Tuesday.  In an interview with the BBC, former Foreign Minister Amr Moussa  said that the opposition’s goal was to not topple Morsi, but to let him know their demands for a better constitution.  “The National Salvation Front announces its total rejection to the referendum and will not legitimize this referendum which will definitely lead to more strife,” said Same Ashour on behalf of the coalition of Opposition Parties.

For further information, please see:

Al Bawaba — Morsi’s Military Might Grants Egypt’s Army Power to Arrest Protesters — 10 December 2012

BBC News — Egypt Crisis: Morsi Gives Army Arrest Powers Before Vote — 10 December 2012

The Daily News Egypt — Army Officers can Temporarily Arrest Civilians — 10 December 2012

Foreign Policy — Morsi Gives the Egyptian Army the Authority to Make Arrests — 10 December 2012

The Statesman — Morsi Gives Army ‘Police Powers’ Ahead of Referendum — 10 December 2012

Muhammad Ibn al-Dheeb al-Ajami Jailed for Life in Qatar

By Justin Dorman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

DOHA, Qatar –  A week ago, the poet Muhammad Ibn al-Dheeb al-Ajami was handed a life sentence after a five-minute hearing in which no law was allegedly broken, Ajami was not present, and his lawyer was kept from entering any defense. Najib al-Nuaimi, Ajami’s attorney claims that the judge made the whole trial secret.

The poet Muhammad Ibn al-Dheeb al-Ajami has received a life sentence for offending the emir, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani. (Photo Courtesy of the Guardian)

Ajami was arrested in November 2011 and ultimately convicted for “insulting” Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani and “inciting to overthrow the ruling system.” These claims came after a video was posted on the internet of Ajami reciting his poem, Tunisian Jasmine.

The poem extols Tunisia’s uprising which kicked off the Arab Spring. One line of the poem stated that, “we are all Tunisia in the face of repressive coteries.”The poem further criticizes governments who restrict its people’s freedoms.

Qatar’s authorities interpreted the poem as criticizing the emir for not doing his job properly and encouraging attempts at a coup. Ajami contested this claim to the police whom arrested him, stating that if they had continued to read the poem they would see that he was thanking the emir.

Nevertheless, the police had Ajami arrested, and he’s been detained in solitary confinement since November 17, 2011.

Qatar holds itself out as a defender of human rights. It is a member of the Arab Charter on Human Rights and in Article 47 of Qatar’s constitution it guarantees freedom of expression. Furthermore, Qatar made efforts to establish a center for media freedom.

Despite the facade that Qatar is a safe haven for freedom of expression, Article 134 of Qatar’s penal code carries a five-year sentence for “anyone who challenged by any public means the exercise by the Emir of his rights or authorities or criticizes him.”Based on the sentence Ajami was given, it seems much more likely that he was convicted under Article 130 for trying “to overthrow the regime of the country.”

Deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch, Joe Stork, has said that “Qatar, after all its posturing as a supporter of freedom, turns out to be determined to keep its citizens quiet.”

He adds, “Ibn al-Dheeb’s alleged mockery of Qatar’s rulers can hardly compare to the mockery this judgment makes of the country’s posture as a regional center for media freedom.”

Al-Nuaimi has already filed an appeal, and Ajami’s case will be heard on December 30th. In the meantime, there will be pressure on the emir to pardon Ajami.

For further information, please see:

Democracy Now – Qatari Human Rights Official Defends Life Sentence for Poet who Praised Arab Spring Uprisings – 7 December 2012

Crescent – Muhammad ibn al-Dheeb al-Ajami and Sattar Beheshti: Agenda Driven Reporting – 4 December 2012

Human Rights Watch – Qatar: Poet’s Conviction Violates Free Expression – 4 December 2012

Guardian – Qatari Poet Jailed for Life After Writing Verse Inspired by Arab Spring – 29 November 2012