Tunisia: International day of action to free Mohammed Abbou.
International PEN Writers in Prison Committee Campaign: Defamation and Insult – Writers React
The Writers in Prison Committee of International PEN calls on all its members to take part in an international day of action to protest the continued detention of Tunisian lawyer and human rights defender Mohammed Abbou on 1 March 2007, the second anniversary of his imprisonment.
Mohammed Abbou was arrested on 1 March 2005 and sentenced to three and a half years in prison for his criticism of the Tunisian authorities. He was charged with “having published information that would disturb public order” and “insulting the judiciary” in an article posted on the Tunisnews website in August 2004, which compared torture committed against political prisoners in Tunisia to abuses carried out by US soldiers in Iraq’s Abu Ghraib prison. He was also convicted for an incident at a 2002 conference in which he allegedly physically attacked a colleague. However, there is said to be little supporting evidence for these charges and it is thought that his arrest was motivated by a 28 February 2005 article posted on the Tunisnews website in which he ironically compared Tunisian President Ben Ali to Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.
The sentences totalling three and a half years were upheld on appeal on 11 June 2005.
According to PEN’s information, there have been numerous reports of ill treatment of Abbou by prison guards and fellow prisoners since 2 March 2006. There are serious concerns about Abbou’s deteriorating conditions of detention and reports that his family is now also under sustained harassment by the Tunisian authorities. His wife and children have reportedly been harassed, physically attacked and placed under constant police surveillance.
International PEN considers Mohammed Abbou to have been targeted by the Tunisian authorities solely for peacefully exercising his right to freedom of expression as guaranteed by Article 19 of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, to which Tunisia is a signatory. International PEN therefore calls upon the Tunisian authorities to quash the prison sentences handed down to Mohammed Abbou and to release him immediately and without conditions.
RECOMMENDED ACTION
Please send appeals to arrive on 1 March 2007:
Protesting the continued detention of Mohammed Abbou solely for legitimately exercising his right to free expression by posting articles on the Internet;
Condemning the apparent lack of transparency of his trial during which no plea was taken by the defendant, nor any witnesses questioned;
Calling for Mohammed Abbou’s immediate and unconditional release, and the end to the harassment campaign against him and his family.
Appeals to:
Président Zine El Abidine Ben Ali
Président de la République
Palais Présidentiel
Tunis
Tunisie
Fax: +216 71 744 721
M. Rafik Belhaj Kacem
Ministre de l’Intérieur
Avenue Habib Bourguiba
1001 Tunis
Tunisie
Fax: +216 71 340 888
Email: mint@ministeres.tn
M. Bechir Takkari
Ministre de la Justice et des Droits de l’Homme
31, Av. Bab Benat
1006 Tunis La Kasbah
Tunisie
Fax: +216 71 568 106
Email: mju@ministeres.tn
Also send copies if possible to:
• The Tunisian representative in your country
• The Tunisia Desk officer at your government’s Foreign Office
• Your country official representative in Tunisia
For further details contact Cathy McCann, 50/51 Brownlow House, High Holborn, London WC1V 6ER, United Kingdom, Tel: +44 (0) 20 7405 0338, Fax: + (0) 20 7405 0339. Email: Cathy.McCann@internationalpen.org.uk
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