By Tyler Yates
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — For over two months the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have been holding five political activists in “preventative custody” without trial or official charges.

On June 14 a closed-door trial was finally begun in the Abu Dhabi Supreme Court for charges of undermining the public order and endangering national security.  There was virtually no pronouncement in the local press.   The trial is scheduled to resume in July.

The accused include Ahmad Mansoor, a well-known political blogger who runs the online forum Al-Hiwar al-Emarati,  Nasser bin Ghaith, a financial analyst, writer, and economics lecturer, as well as activists Fahid Salim Dalk, Hassan Ali Khamis, and Ahmed Abdul Khaleq.  They have all been detained without bail since April.

The main commonality between the five men is that they are all signers of a petition that circulated in March, calling for constitutional and parliamentary changes.

The petition contains two main propositions – to expand the right to vote in the Federal National Council (FNC) and to create within the FNC a right to legislate.

In the last election only 7,000 of the confederation’s 800,000 people were allowed to vote.  In the upcoming election this number is expected to grow to around 80,000, but that is still only ten percent of the population.  Currently, the power of the FNC is restricted to advising the UAE hereditary rulers.

The UAE is a confederation of seven Middle Eastern states, each ruled by an emir.  It is best known internationally for its skylines and its economic and cultural ambitions.  It is home to the world’s largest skyscraper, and many famous universities.

None of the emirates is ruled democratically, and the UAE has been ranked, by human rights watchdog agency Freedom House, among the world’s “not free” countries.   Freedom House’s 2011 report notes, among other things, that the UAE have banned political parties, that public meetings can only be held with governmental permission, and that journalists routinely censor their stories.  Such actions have led organizations like Human Rights Watch to question UAE citizen’s abilities to peacefully dissent.

Unlike most Middle Eastern countries the UAE have avoided much of the activism and opposition incited by the Arab Spring.  The countries are prosperous and well run, with most of the population remaining loyal to their traditional leaders.

Examples of instability in the Middle East brought on by the Arab Spring revolutions have proved ample reason for tighter crackdowns on subversive activity.  The UAE is attempting to stop the problem before it starts.  It is sending the message to any activists operating within its borders that anti-government actions will not be tolerated.

For more information, please see:

The Jerusalem Post – In Arab Spring chill, UAE tries bloggers – 20 June 2011

Agence France-Presse – Blogger tried for criticizing UAE government – 15 June 2011

Agence France-Presse – UAE urged to release 5 activists on trial – 15 June 2011

Committee to Protect Journalists – Beyond the Amina hoax: Real cases in the Middle East – 15 June 2011

Committee to Protect Journalists – UAE intent on punishing online dissent – 14 June 2011