266370986

Revue de Presse-Press Review-Berhevoka ęape-Rivisła Stampa-Dentro de la Prensa-Basin ózeti

opened at the Tehran Revolutionary TribunaTs 26th Division on 24 February 2004 and is ongoing as of 30 June 2004. Held in Evin prison. *Abbas KAKAVAND: Freelance joumalist, formerly with the conserva-tive daily Ressalat. Reportedly detained on 7 June 2004 on charges of "disseminating false news" for a series of articles alleging official corruption published sińce February 2004 on the website www.&gpya.ęom and in several reformist dailies. Still detained as of 30 June 2004.

T\ika MALEKI (f), Banafsheh SAMGIS (f), Jaafar HOMAI: Writer, book critic and publisher respectively. Reportedly received prison terms (length not known) in August 2003 for their involvement in the publication of two books, The History ofWomen's Musie in Iran from Antiąuity to Present and Men in Armor, Women in Veil (see Maliheh Maghazei above). Both books had received official authorisation to publish from the Ministry of Islamie Guidance. Thought to remain free on bail pending appeal. WiPC seeking further details.

Hossein OAZIAN

Profession: Joumalist, doctor of sociology and researcher at the Ayandeh Research Institute. Datę of arrest: 4 November 2002. Sentence: Four years and six months in jail. Details of arrest:

Reportedly arrested with Abbas Abdi (see ‘main case’ above), details of charges against him not known. There was no publicity about his an-est until October 2003. WiPC seeking further details. Place of detention: Evin Prison.

Ali SULEYMANI: Joumalist with Shamsi-Tabriz. Arrested immediately after visiting Baku, Azerbaijan in November 2002. His writings and some bclongings were confiscated. He was detained for 28 days and was reported to have been tortured. He was rcleased on bail, and appeared before the Ardabil Revolutionary Court on 8 January 2003. His trial continucd on 21 January 2003 and was then postponed until 28 January 2003. It is thought to be likely that he will be imprisoned for an extended period. WiPC seeking an update.

SYRIA

Main case

•Aref DALILA

D.o.b.: 1943. Profession: Professor and Dean of the Faculty of Economics at Damascus University, also wrote for the banned weekly Al-Doumari. Has written many books on economics. politics and social history. Datę of arrest: 9 September 2001 Sentence: Ten years hard labour. Expires: 8 September 2011 Details of arrest: Reportedly arrested on 9 September 2001 for a lecture in which he called for democ-racy and transparency, and alleged official corruption. Arrested with nine other members of the Civil Society Movemcnt. Details of trial: Sentenced in early 2002 to 10 years in prison with hard labour. WiPC seeking further details of charges against him. Treatment in prison: Said to be held in solitary confinement and denied medical treatment. Health concerns: Said to be seriously ill with heart problems.

•Abdul Aziz AL-KHAYER

D.o.b.: 1951 Profession: Medical doctor and dissident writer. Datę of arrest: 1 February 1992 Sentence: 22 years’ imprisonment. Expires: 31 January 2014 Details of arrest: Arrested in Damascus for his membership of the Hizb al-‘Amal al-ShuyuT (Party for Communist Action). which is not known to have used or advocated violence. Details of trial: Convicted in August 1995 by the Syrian State Security Court (SSSC). Four others tried at the same time as Al-Khayer, including poet and former PEN main case Faraj Baraykdar with whom he shared a prison celi, were released in Deccmbcr 2001 under a presidential amnesty. It is not known why Al-Khayer was not included in the amnesty. He was not taken up by International PEN until now as he was not known to be a writer. His writings reportedly include many political essays, including ‘Nuptials of Dictatorship’, and a publication called The Black Book which reportedly alleged corruption in Assad’s regime. Place of detention: Sednaya prison, Damascus. Treatment in prison: Reported to be allowed greater freedom within the prison in recent years and to be able to provide medical carc to a great number of prisoners. Said to have been denied family visits for over a year.

‘Abdel Rahman al-SHAGOURI

D.o.b.: 1972 Profession: Internet activist. Datę of arrest: 23 February 2003 Sentence: Three years’ imprisonment, reduced to two-and-a-half years. Expires: 22 August 2005 Details of arrest: Reportedly arrested at

a checkpoint near Damascus for sending an email newsletter from the banned website www.thisissyria.net (Levant News), which posts polit-ical news, including reports about Syrian political prisoners. The author-ities reportedly consider materiał on the site to be “detrimental to the reputation and security of the nation” and “fuli of ideas and views opposed to the system of govemment in Syria". Details of trial:

Sentenced to three years’ imprisonment for “disseminating falsc information’’ by the Supreme State Security Court, a military court with no recourse for appeal, on 20 June 2004. The sentence was reportedly immediately reduced to two-and-half-years. Place of detention:

Saidnaya prison, near Damascus. Treatment in prison: Held incommu-nicado in solitary confinement sińce his arrrest. Other Information: He is married with two children. This is the first known jailing of an internet    ^v

dissident in Syria.

Nu’man ‘Ali ABDU

Profession: Joumalist for Lebanese monthly Al-Tarik. Datę of arrest:    *♦

1992 Sentence: 15 years Expires: 2007 Details of trial: Apparently sentenced in 1993 to fifteen years* imprisonment for his membership of the Party for Communist Action. Place of detention: Reportedly trans-ferred from Seydnaya prison to a detention centre in Damascus on 16 November 2000. Health concerns: He is said to suffer from a chronic open leg wound, according to reports from former prisoners.

lnvestigation

♦Habib ‘ISSA: Lawyer, joumalist and writer. Reportedly arrested in Septembcr 2001 and sentenced by the State Security Court to five years’ imprisonment for his activities with the Civil Society Movement (see Aref Dalila above). WiPC seeking further details.

*Aktham NU*AYSA: Lawyer and human rights defender. Head of the Committee for the Defence of Democratic Liberties and Human Rights (CDDLHR). Reportedly arrested on 13 April 2004 and believed to be facing charges of “carrying out activities contrary to the socialist system of the State” and “opposing the objectives of the revolution”, which carry a maximum penaity of 15 years’ imprisonment. The charges against him are thought to relate to his work with the CDDLHR, including an annual report on human rights violations in Syria published shortly before his arrest. Nu’Aysa is said to be in very poor health, suffering from kidney disease and a heart complaint. He is said to havc suffered a minor stroke following his arrest, and to have been taken to Tishrin Hospital. Now believed to be held in solitary confinement in Sednaya Prison. Reportcd to have started a hunger stike in June 2004.

♦Muhannad QUTAYSH, Haytham QUTAYSH and Yahia al-AWS:

Internet activists. Reportedly arrested around January 2003 for sending articles to an electronic newspaper in the United Arab Emirates. Said to be charged with ”receiving secret information on behalf of a forcign State which threatens the security of Syria" and “publishing false news outside of Syria". Haytham and Muhannad Qutaysh are both reportedly charged with "encouraging the transfer of secret information" and Haytham Qutaysh is additionally charged with "writing which threatens the security of Syria and her relations with foreign States”. They had reportedly been writing articles under pseudonyms about government corruption, politics, economics and human rights issues in Syria. Held in Sednaya prison without trial as of 30 June 2004.

Brief detention

'Mohammed GHANEM: D.o.b.: 1955. Writer and joumalist. Reportedly arrested by the Syrian military intelligence on 22 March 2004 in Ar-Raqah as he retumed home from the school where he works as a teacher.

His detention is be!ieved to have been connected with the publication of

an article They are murdering the Kurds’, in which Ghanem condemned the recent violent clashes between Kurds, Arab tribes and security forces in the Qamichli region, nonh-east Syria. The authorities reponedly saw his aniele as inciting ‘disunity’. Mohammed Ghanem has published two novels, The Death of Silence and al-Amili, and is a regular contributer to several Arabie newspapers, in particular Al-Khaleej and Al-Bayane. He is described as an "independent opposition figurę", and has been actively involved in campaigning for the rights of Kurds and Iraqis living in Syria. Released on 4 April 2004.

Released

Marwan OSMAN (‘UTHMAN): Kurdish writer and poet. leading member of the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Unity Party (SKDUP). Arrested on 15 December 2002 for his panicipation in a peaceful demon-stration held by the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Unity Party on 10 December 2002 demanding greater protection for the rights of Kurds living in Syria. Charged on 15 January 2003 with ‘inciting religious and ethnic discord.’ Acquitted by the Supreme State Security Court on 22 February 2004.

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