UAE 94: Summary of Trial Observations

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Emirates Centre for Human Rights

United Arab Emirates and the Silencing of Human Rights

Trial observaon report (Federal Supreme Court; 4 March 2013)

June 2013

Trial ObservationReport


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Background

During the summer of 2012, the state security services of the United ArabEmirates (UAE) detained scores of people, including individuals with es to

al-Islah, a non-violent Islamist group. The detainees include prominent

human rights lawyers, judges and student leaders.

Many of the detainees were originally detained without charge. Eventually,

on 27 January 2013, they were charged with founding, organising and

administering an organisaon aimed at overthrowing the government,

contrary to Arcle 180 of the UAE penal code. On 4 March 2013, the

detainees appeared before the Federal Supreme Court. In total, there were

94 individuals subject to prosecuon at that point (referred to as the UAE

94 throughout this report).

The Emirates Centre for Human Rights sent a mission to the UAE on 4 March

2013 to observe the trial. The Mission team consisted of:

Geoffrey Robertson Q.C.Barrister and head of chambers at Doughty Street

Chambers. Mr Robertson has conducted many trial

observaons on behalf of other organisaons in the

past, including Amnesty Internaonal. He has also

worked for internaonal organisaons, such as sing as

an appeal judge at the UN Special Court for Sierra Leone

Catherine OborneBarrister at Tooks

Chambers

Graeme IrvinePartner and Solicitor

Advocate at Irvine

Thanvi Natas solicitors

Ravi NaikSolicitor at Irvine

Thanvi Natas solicitors

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Attending the trial

The Emirates Centre for Human Rights (ECHR) sent a Mission to the UAE on4 March 2013 to observe the trial. Delegates from other organisaons such

as the Internaonal Commission of Jurists, a delegaon of Turkish lawyers

and former government Minsters and the Gulf Centre for Human Rights also

aended to observe the trial. There were also members of the internaonal

media present. It was understand that delegates from Amnesty

Internaonal and Alkarama, a Geneva based human rights organisaon,

were denied entry to the UAE.

Despite complying with all the procedural requests, all trial observers,

including the delegates of the ECHR, were refused entry to the trial on 11

March 2013. However, the ECHR was able to meet individuals who had

aended the hearings to take tesmony about what had occurred. The

report is therefore made on the basis of:

What the delegates of the ECHR were able to gather from aempts to

access the Court

Interviews and tesmony from witnesses to the Court hearing

Reports from other human rights organisaons

Internaonal and local press reports

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Violations of international law

The UAE acceded to the Convenon against

Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman orDegrading Treatment (UNCAT) on 19 July

2012. In addion, the UAE has agreed to the

Arab Charter on Human Rights. The UAE

authories are under an obligaon to act in

compliance with the terms of these

instruments. However, the Mission observed

worrying trends suggesng that there are

systemic and on-going violaons of the most

basic human rights of the detainees thattarnish the enre Court process.


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Some fundamental fair trial guarantees were respected during the course of

the hearing, such as the right of the detainees to be present. However, any

veneer of a fair trial was severely undermined by the numerous breaches of

basic fair trial rights. This includes the right to equality of arms, right to a fair

and public hearing by a competent, independent and imparal tribunal and

the right to prepare a defence.

The absence of open jusce

The Court proceedings have been closed to all but local media accredited by

the government and family members of the detainees. Any respectable

jusce system is built upon openness, fairness and equality under the law.

Prevenng internaonal observers from entering the trial preventsaccountability and transparency in these proceedings. It also fosters

mistrust of the fairness of the proceedings and undermines the fairness of

the detainees trial.

Violang the right to equality before the law and courts

The Mission found numerous violaons to the rights to equality before the

law. For example, the defence lawyer of the detainees was prevented from

making legal submissions prior to the day of the trial. To compound this, the

defence lawyers were prevented from bringing any materials into the Court,

including case files. Furthermore, 76 detainees are represented by lawyer

Abdulhamid Alkomai. To aggravate this, Mr Alkomais assistants were not

allowed to aend the hearings with him, let alone to assist Mr Alkomai

during the trial. As a result, the detainees were severely jeopardised in the

submissions that could be made on their behalf. This undermines claims

that they have equality of arms during the Court process which in turn

compromises the integrity and fairness of the trial process.

A fair trial is founded on two main principles:

The right of all persons to equality before the law and the courts; and,

The right of all persons to a public hearing with all due guarantees

before a legally-constuted, competent, independent and imparal

tribunal.


No guarantees of a fair trial

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Violang the right to prepare a defence

The Mission is concerned by the manner in which the defence was provided

with the evidence in the trial. In parcular, the defence team were only

provided with the evidence a few days before the trial. With only one

defence lawyer represenng the interests of the vast majority of the UAE 94,

this le no me for the defence to take instrucons from their clients on the

evidence and curtailed any possibility of the defence preparing their case.

The Mission is parcularly concerned that the detainees lawyer reported

not knowing where the detainees in custody were being held and that he

was not able to have private consultaons with them. Such circumstances

severely restrict the ability of the detainees to give full and adequate

instrucons to their lawyer in the preparaon of their defence.

The lack of independence and imparality

The Mission is deeply concerned that the

tribunal, made up of Presiding Judge FalahAl-Hajiri, Judge Mohamed Ahmed Abdulqader

and Judge Adbulrassol Tantawy, will not be able

to act independently of the execuve and that

they are not free to administer jusce in the

proceedings. In parcular, the Mission is and

remains concerned by the use of contracted

Judges, which means that those Judges do not

have security of tenure and raises the concern

that the renewal of their contracts may dependon the outcome of the hearing.

Emirates Centre for Human Rights 4


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Torture, inhuman and degrading treatment

Arcle 1 of The Convenon Against Torture (UNCAT) defines torture as:

any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intenonally

inflicted on a person for such purposes as obtaining from him or a third person

informaon or a confessionor inmidang or coercing him or a third personwhen

such pain or suffering is inflicted by or at the insgaon of or acquiescence of a public

official or other person acng in an official capacity.

Internaonal law also prohibits mistreatment that does not meet the

definion of torture. It does so through the prohibion on cruel, inhuman ordegrading treatment. If these pracces are intense enough, prolonged in

duraon, or combined with other measures that result in severe pain or

suffering, they can amount to torture. The prohibion against torture as well

as cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment is not limited to acts causing

physical pain or injury. It includes acts that cause mental suffering.

The treatment of the detainees violates internaonal law. Firstly, the

Mission is concerned by the use of hooding in the context of the Court

proceedings. The use of hooding has been found to constute torture byboth internaonal and domesc authories.

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Hooding is the pracce of

fully covering the head of a

detainee, which prevents thedetainee from seeing.

Hooding disorients the

detainee and also to prevent

him from breathing freely.

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Secondly, the detainees reveal the use of abusive interrogaon techniques.

During the hearing, one of the UAE 94 showed the Judge the scars on his feet

that he had received during his interrogaons. This was indicave of the

abuse that the accused had suffered whilst they were detained. Witnessestesfied to the Mission about following abuses:


Confinement in inadequate size cells

Subjecon to extreme cold in their cells

Subject to sleep deprivaon, included the use of bright lights

Insufficient toilet facilies resulng on occasion to them soiling in the cells,

which were not cleaned

Detenon in solitary confinement, somemes for up to 15 days at a me

Suffocaon and asphyxiaon Severe beangs, including reports that some of the detainees have had

their fingernails were extracted

Blindfolded and interrogated over many hours throughout the day and

night

As well as physical mistreatment, the UAE 94 all display signs of severe

psychological trauma. The effect of the coercive interrogaon techniques is

to break the detainees, which was apparent from the manner in which the

detainees carried themselves in the Court room. The cumulave effect of

the techniques exercised by the UAE authories is undoubtedly tantamount

to torture, under the thresholds recognised by both internaonal and

domesc authories.

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Solitary confinement is a special form of

imprisonment in which a detainee or prisoner is

isolated from any human contact, oen except for

the guards, and has to remain in ones cell for

more than 22 hours daily.

Denailing is the forcible extracon of the

fingernails or toenails. Security services pulled of

the nails of Ahmed al-Zaabi, one of the detainees


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Violating the liberty and security of the person

The right to liberty and security of the personprotects individuals from arbitrary arrest and

detenon. Under Arcle 9(2) ICCPR, an

individual who is arrested should be informed

promptly of the charges against him. Arcle

9(3) ICCPR requires that those arrested or

detained should be brought before a judicial

authority promptly and are entled to a trial

within a reasonable me.

The Mission is concerned that the rights of

the UAE 94 to liberty and security of the

person are being infringed, parcularly for those detainees who are being

held in custody. The Mission is parcularly concerned that, although many

detainees were detained during the summer of 2012, they were not charged

unl January 2013 and their appearances before the court have been

intermient. Many detainees have spent significant periods of me in

custody without being brought before a court. Further, many detainees are

held in undisclosed locaons and cannot be visited by their family members

or legal representaves.

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Recommendations

The Emirates Centre for Human Rights calls on the UAE authories to:

Ensure that improvements are made to the trial process to guarantee the

fair trial rights of the detainees;

Prevent further mistreatment of the detainees and invesgate the claims

of torture that have been made to date;

Protect all of the detainees from arbitrary and prolonged periods of

detenon.


Freedom from torture, inhuman or degrading treatment

The Mission is deeply concerned by the clear evidence of mistreatment of

the detainees. The UAE authories therefore have the following obligaons

under internaonal law:

Immediately cease any torture and/or ill-treatment of the detainees

(Arcle 2 UNCAT);

Conduct an independent and imparal invesgaon into the torture

suffered by the detainees (Arcle 12 UNCAT);

Open criminal invesgaons into all those implicated by the mistreatment

of the detainees (Arcle 4 and 5 UNCAT).

Liberty and security of the person

The Mission is concerned that the rights of the UAE 94 to liberty and securityof the person are being infringed, parcularly for those detainees who are

being held in custody. The ECHR calls on the UAE to:

Disclose immediately the locaons in which all of the detainees are being

held;

Ensure that all individuals who are arrested and/or detained are informed

promptly of all charges against them;

Ensure that the detainees trials are heard within a reasonable me;

Ensure that the detainees have regular court hearings at which theirdetenon can be reviewed.

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twier.com/ECHRIGHTS [email protected]

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Copyright 2013 Emirates Centre for Human Rights

All rights reserved.

Based on the report Trial Observaon Report UAE 94 wrien by Geoffrey Robertson QC,

Graeme Irvine, Catherine Oborne and Ravi Naik.

w w w . e c h r . o r g . u k

Documents

UAE 94: Summary of Trial Observations