Mohamed al-Roken enters a new year in UAE jails

The UAE authorities continue to arrest Dr. Mohamed al-Roken for the sixth consecutive year in total disregard to the ongoing appeals for his release.

Dr. Al-Roken is a leading human rights lawyer who provides legal assistance to victims of human rights abuses in the UAE, including to fellow human rights defenders.

Among those he has recently defended are the “UAE 5” human rights defenders who were convicted and sentenced to imprisonment by a UAE court for their human rights work in November 2011 and subsequently released as a result of a Presidential amnesty.

He was detained in 17 July 2012 and stood trial as part of the UAE94 group.

On 2 July 2013 the Federal Supreme Court of Abu Dhabi sentenced 56 people, including leading human rights lawyer Dr Al-Roken to 10 years in prison.

While in detention Dr Mohamed Al-Roken has been denied several of his basic rights including access to his lawyer. In addition to this it has been reported that the authorities have subjected him to psychological intimidation.

 In 2014 Mohamed Al-Roken was nominated as a finalist for the 2014 Front Line Defenders Award for Human Rights Defenders at Risk.