Mwatana for Human Rights documented as many as 69 arbitrary detention cases during 2017. Ansar Allah group (the Houthis) carried out such detentions in seven governorates- Sa’ada, Sana’a, Al-Jawf, Al Bayda, Taizz, Dhamar and Al Hudaydah. Fifty-one cases of detention were carried out by armed groups affiliated to the Saudi-Emirati-led Coalition and pro-Hadi forces in seven Yemeni governorates – Aden, Abyan, Lahj, Al Dhale’e, Marib, Taizz and Hadramaut. All arbitrary detention cases documented in this report took place in 2017; however, some victims remain arbitrarily detained until the time of writing this report.
During the reporting period, all parties to the conflict in Yemen: Ansar Allah group (the Houthis), armed groups affiliated to the Saudi-Emirati-led Coalition and pro-Hadi forces practiced arbitrary detention in the areas under their control. All parties to the conflict committed such violation against their political opponents or against civilians suspected of links with or sympathy for their opponents.
The Legal Framework
According to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights of which Yemen is a member State Party, “no one shall be deprived of his liberty except on such grounds and in accordance with such procedure as are established by law. Anyone who is arrested shall be informed, at the time of arrest, of the reasons for his arrest and shall be promptly informed of any charges against him. Anyone arrested or detained on a criminal charge shall be brought promptly before a judge or other officer authorized by law to exercise judicial power and shall be entitled to trial within a reasonable time or to release.”
International Law prohibits arbitrary arrest and detention. The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention regards deprivation of liberty as arbitrary when the authorities fail to invoke any legal basis justifying the deprivation of liberty. Such deprivation of liberty results from the exercise of the guaranteed rights or freedoms, like freedom of belief and freedom of expression; or when the non-observance of the international norms relating to the right to a fair trial is of such gravity as to give the deprivation of liberty an arbitrary character.
The UN Human Rights Committee, which monitors state compliance with the ICCPR and provides authoritative interpretation of the Covenant, has explained that: “‘arbitrariness’ is not to be equated with ‘against the law,’ but must be interpreted more broadly to include elements of inappropriateness, injustice, lack of predictability and due process of law.”
The Yemeni Constitution provides that “the state shall guarantee, for its citizens, their personal freedom, dignity, and safety.” It also stipulates that “nobody may be arrested, searched, or detained unless caught in the act; or in implementation of an order, issued by a judge or a prosecutor.” The Constitution which contains the basic elements of the procedures of criminal justice, also states that any person temporarily apprehended on suspicion of committing a crime shall be presented by the Public Prosecutor in front of a court within a maximum of 24 hours from the time of his detention. Only the court may order the release or extension of the period of detention of the accused beyond seven days. The Yemeni Penal Code also provides for “a penalty of up to five years’ imprisonment for officials who deprive people of their liberty by mistake”.
Incidents:
- In the evening of Tuesday, February 28, 2017, between 05: 00 pm and 06:00 pm, the Ansar Allah group (the Houthis) detained Basheer Mas’oud Ghaleb Al-Wosabi (23 years old) in the capital, Sana’a.
Fawaz Mas’oud Ghaleb Al-Wosabi, Basheer’s brother said: “My brother works at a Money Exchange outlet in Zaid Ben Sultan St., in Sana’a. I received a phone call from the owner of the outlet; he told me that a field operative from the Ansar Allah group came aboard a Hilux pick-up truck, along with two armed men in civilian uniforms, and took my brother.”[1]
According to the statement of Fawaz, Basheer was working as an escort guard for Sheikh Abdul Majeed Al-Zandani (leader in the Islah party), before the Houthis overrun Sana’a in 2014. The Ansar Allah group accuses Basheer of cashing out payments to sleeper cells affiliated to Al-Zandani, through his work at the Money Exchange outlet.[2]
Fawaz added: “I came to know that my brother was detained at the Security Headquarters of the Sixth Region. I tried to follow the case in an attempt to get him out of there. The Ansar Allah told me that the issue would just take three days for carrying out the investigation work. After 10 days, he was transferred to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID). My mother was able to visit him about three times (as of conducting this interview), after five days from being transferred to the CID. Later, the Specialized Penal Prosecution nullified the claim and instructed release. My brother was transferred to the Al-Thawrah reserve prison, and since then has never been released (as of conducting this interview)”.[3]
- On Tuesday, August 29, 2017, around 04:30 pm, the Security Belt forces detained Ibrahim Mahmoud Saeed Juamai’ (16 years old) in Khanfar District, in Abyan Governorate.
Speaking to Mwatana for Human Rights, Mahmoud Saeed Juamai’ said: “My son went out with his friends early in the evening as usual. Then someone I know came to me and said, ‘Mohamoud, I saw your son with the military, with tied hands and folded eyes; and one of them said, ‘Tell his father that his son is in the 7th October prison.’ I went there and made sure that my son was inside; they told me that visits were not allowed, but asked me to come back on Thursday morning. On Thursday August 31, 2017, at 09:00 am, I was allowed to visit my son. He told me that he was beaten and kicked with hands and sticks. He said: ‘Dad, get me out of here… I am innocent.’ He told me that they investigated with him as if he was a spy affiliated to al-Qaeda.”[4]
In his statement, the father said that he met with a leader from the Security Belt forces and asked him to release his son. But the leader replied, saying: “The son is with us; he will be out when after he has been disciplined.” Mahmoud Saeed Juamai’ also said that he visits his son every Thursday for thirty minutes, and that his son is not subjected to torture any more (as of conducting this interview).[5]