Rights group reports ongoing abuses, with some hope for change

While the Middle East was home to considerable human rights abuses in 2005, there were still some signs of improvement, according to an annual report by Amnesty International, released on Tuesday. “The pattern of widespread abuse that has long characterised human rights in the Middle East and North Africa remained firmly entrenched in 2005,” read the report. Nicole Choueiry, Amnesty International press officer for the Middle East and North Africa, noted that the US-led “war on terror” had served “as an excuse to certain countries to introduce repressive laws and continue repression”. Choueiry added: “We've seen ongoing abuses in Iraq, abuse by all parties to the conflict. However, we’ve also seen some positive changes on women's rights, such as the right to vote in Kuwait.” Other improvements cited by the report include the creation of the Arab world's first truth commission devoted to past human rights violations in Morocco, as well as a long-awaited investigation by Libya into the 1996 disappearance of hundreds of prisoners at Tripoli's Abu Selim Prison. The report goes on to point out that ousted Iraqi President Saddam Hussein has been brought to trial for past human rights abuses, while a UN probe has alleged that senior Syrian and Lebanese officials were involved in the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri. Despite these measured steps toward improvement, however, several incidents of human rights abuse in the region were reported this week. In Syria, authorities continued to clamp down on human rights activists. On 16 May, police arrested five activists, including Anwar al-Bunni, prominent human rights lawyer and member of the Human Rights Association in Syria; Mahmoud Issa, former political prisoner; and Khalil Hussein, leader of the Kurdish al-Mustaqbal group and former political prisoner. The five were charged on 21 May with “inciting sectarian conflict and vilifying the state”, according to one Syrian human rights activist. Four other pro-democracy activists – Mahmoud Marei, Nidal Darwish, Dr Safwan Tayfur and Ghaleb Amer – were also arrested this week. All nine remain in detention, and Amnesty International reported that at least two of them – al-Bunni and Darwish – had been beaten during interrogation. A week earlier, on 14 May, police also detained 66-year-old Michel Kilo, prominent writer, outspoken critic of the government and member of the Committees for Reviving Civil Society in Syria. Damascus has not officially confirmed the arrests, and has responded to European Union criticism by expressing its “astonishment” at EU attempts to “intervene in internal Syrian issues”. In Egypt, meanwhile, reformist judges have issued fresh calls for an independent judiciary, citing recent domestic developments as proof that a more balanced system of government is needed. “Genuine reform would act as a guarantee that the rights of all citizens are protected,” said Hisham al-Geneina, secretary-general of the outspoken Judges Club. “The lack of judicial independence is the root cause for the problems we're witnessing today.” The statements came shortly after hearings on 18 May before a disciplinary tribunal held by the Supreme Judicial Council, where two prominent judges were tried for allegedly slandering the council and for discussing domestic political issues with foreign media organisations. One of the judges, Mahmoud Mekki, was exonerated of the charges, while a second, Hisham al-Bastawisi, who suffered a heart attack on 17 May, was reprimanded by being denied a promotion. Meanwhile, demonstrations held in solidarity with the judges were met with what activists and witnesses described as “an excessive use of violence” by central security forces. On the morning of 18 May, the day of the hearings, protesters were beaten and over 500 were arrested. “This is another grim day for Egypt's supposed commitment to political reform,” commented Joe Stork, Human Rights Watch deputy director for the MENA region. The overwhelming majority of those arrested were members of the Muslim Brotherhood, including prominent members Essam al-Erian and Mohamed Morsi, both of whom currently remain in detention. “About 314 of our members were put in administrative detention for 15 days,” said Abdel Moneim Abul Futouh, a leading member of the banned-but-tolerated group, adding that another 255 brotherhood activists, arrested during an earlier protest on 11 May, also remain in detention. Activists from secular groups, too, such as the pro-democracy Kifaya movement – also heavily involved in the solidarity campaign with the judges – were also arrested. While the interior ministry reported the arrests of 14 Kifaya activists on 18 May, members of the group insist the number is much higher. “We believe that as many as 120 were detained,” said Kifaya General Coordinator George Ishaq. In a separate development, also on 18 May, a court of appeals upheld the conviction of Ayman Nour, a former opposition parliamentarian and presidential candidate in last year's election, on forgery charges. With the rejection of the appeal, it appears likely that Nour will see his jail term through to the end, despite his supporters’ claims that the conviction was politically motivated. The Amnesty International report, entitled, “The State of the World’s Human Rights 2005”, is available online at http://web.amnesty.org/