As the news about Al-Jasem's detention spread, a public campaign for his release was launched © Private
By Ghanim Alnajjar, human rights activist and Professor of Political Science at Kuwait University
Until Muhammad ‘Abd al-Qader Al-Jasem was detained on 11 May 2010, we in Kuwait had prided ourselves that we lived in a country that had no political prisoners. His arrest was a shock to many people, and his release on 28 June will certainly add to the pressure on the government to keep its record clean in a region of the world that, unfortunately, could be described as the “Empty Quarter” for political freedoms.
Al-Jasem, a lawyer and a blogger, who has been writing critically of the Prime Minister and other officials since 2005, was summoned to State Security Headquarters on 11 May 2010 and arrested.
He was later questioned by the Public Prosecutor, then detained for 21 days, the maximum period allowed to the Prosecutor. On 24 May, before the 21 days were over, he was taken to his first court hearing. He was charged with spreading false news, insulting the head of the state, and attempting to eradicate the foundation of the state.
As the news about Al-Jasem’s detention spread, a public campaign for his release was launched which included public meetings, petitions and writings in his support.
I took part in those campaigns and gave presentations which can be found on YouTube. Our main argument against his arrest and detention was that this represented an abuse of the law, violation of the Constitution, serious procedural irregularities in procedures and unlawful detention.
I attended all four court hearings each of which were thronged with supporters and family members. The first three hearings were mostly procedural. However, in the second hearing, the judge ordered the formation of a medical team to examine Al-Jasem and report on his health. In the third hearing on 21 June, the judge adjourned the case for a week to give time for the defence team to study the medical report, and then on 28 June ordered that Aljassem should be released – a decision which was greeted with jubilation.
Amnesty International and other international NGOs played a major role in obtaining Al-Jasem’s release by calling on the Kuwaiti government to stop undermining the principle of freedom of speech.
Almost all NGOs conveyed the same message reminding the Kuwaiti government that it should maintain its generally positive record of respect of human rights. These included Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Reporters without Borders, the Committee to Protect Journalists, International Federation for Human Rights and others. I can say without hesitation that without such support, the Al-Jasem case would have been weaker in profile and in prospect for how it may end.
As it stands now, although his release seems like a victory for human rights defenders, it is only a partial one.
The case is still open and it will resume on 20 September. Al-Jasem still faces more than 20 cases brought against him by the Prime Minister and some of his allies. Since the beginning of this year, the Prime Minister has started to bring legal cases against his critics and one of these has already resulted in Al-Jasem being sentenced to six months in prison, though he is bringing an appeal against this. Others, too, face similar charges.
The positive side of this story has been the public outcry here in Kuwait against any unlawful action in attacking freedom of speech. Already, the campaign has led some members of parliament to propose amendments to certain law provisions to restrict the attack on public freedoms.
This campaign will continue and continuing international support, as usual, will be one of the factors that determines whether or not it is successful.
If, as I hope, it is, then this success will mean that Kuwait will keep its reputation and image as a country where freedom of speech is respected.
This is very sad indeed to hear. We had long thought the kuwaiti government was somewhat more liberal compared to most of the arab dictators. Kuwait must surely come to realise that this can’t be tolerated, focusing on it’s somewhat clean record. It was indeed a positive step for the government releasing Mr Al-Jasem, most likely dure to internal pressures. Hopefully this could be a lesson well learnt for kuwait, something for them to reflect upon in the future & prevent these sort of thing’s for reoccuring. We certainly hope that a step towards democracy for the kuwaiti citicenz will be a not to distant reality.