Human Rights Issues in the UAE reported at the UN Human Rights Council
Following the 33th regular Session of the Human Rights Council that was held in Geneva from 13 to 30 September 2016, the International Centre for Justice and Human Rights is pleased by the focus brought to the Gulf region through several well attended side events. The issues of statelessness, the shrinking civil society space, as well as reprisals against human rights defenders and journalists in the Gulf countries were some of the mains topics raised in the debates, which included some eminent panelists such as Ahmed Mansoor from the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Moreover, the issue of the rights of migrant workers through the kafalah system in the Gulf region, including the UAE, was highlighted in the Report of the Special Rapporteur on Contemporary Forms of Slavery (A/HRC/33/46).
The Special Procedures’ report (A/HRC/33/32) followed-up on the cases of Mr. Obaid Yousef al-Zaabi, a human rights defenders and online activist who was acquitted of the charges of posting critic tweets against the regime but currently remains under prisoner ward in a hospital, and the cases of the citizenship revocation of Mr. Mohammed Abdul Razzaq Al-Siddiq’s two daughters and son. The UAE authorities’ answer regarding their situation was however unsatisfactory as they provided no relief to their cases.
Furthermore, in a joint communication to the UAE, the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD), the Special Rapporteur on Freedom of expression, the Special Rapporteur on the protection of Human Rights Defenders, the Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers and the Special Rapporteur on Torture reiterated their concerns with regards to the situation of prominent human rights defender Mr. Nasser Bin Ghaith, who was arbitrary arrested, held incommunicado, tortured and denied his rights to a fair trial. In its response, the Emirati government denied Mr. Bin Ghaith’s incommunicado detention and any violation to his right to a fair trial.
The annual report of the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (A/HRC/33/50) showed that the working group intervened in the UAE by sending three urgent appeals to the government and adopting two opinions raising the cases of the arbitrary detention of Mr. Salim Alaradi, Mr. Kamal Ahmed Eldarrat, Mr. Momed Kamal Eldarrat, Mr. Moad Mohammed al-Hashmi, Mr. Adil Rajab Nasi (opinion No.51/2015) and Mr. Mahmoud Abdulrahman al-Jaidah (opinion No.35/2015), who was subsequently released. The WGAD was furthermore informed of the release of Mr. Nikola Milat (opinion No.14/2010), whose situation was pending since 2010.
The Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances has, according to its report (A/HRC/33/51), transmitted six urgent cases of disappearances to the UAE authorities in 2015. The Working Group especially deplored the lack of answer to the visit request that was extended in September 2013.
