2024-06-07 19:29:51
Regardless of the issues expressed by civil society and the worldwide neighborhood, ”the Algerian authorities proceed to show residents wishing to train their proper to freedom of expression, opinion, peaceable meeting or affiliation to prosecution. . And this, by resorting to judicial weapons to intimidate them, notably inside the framework of Hirak”, deplored Wednesday the Worldwide Observatory for Peace, Democracy and Human Rights (IOPDHR-Geneva) .
In a press launch, the Observatory underlines that the shortage of independence of the judiciary contributes to the state of siege imposed on these activists and human rights defenders, as evidenced by the handfuls of convictions handed down by the courts. in opposition to activists of the Hirak motion for ‘disturbing public order’, ‘insulting state establishments’ or the ‘president of the republic’.
”IOPDHR-Geneva deplores this oppression of basic freedoms in Algeria, which continues by amendments to the Penal Code and a number of other decrees and legal guidelines, geared toward diverting abuses and legitimizing them, particularly with the broadening the ‘definition’ of the crime of terrorism,” the press launch reads.
The Observatory recollects, on this sense, the case of ”political activist, Rachid Nekkaz, former presidential candidate, who was sentenced to five years in jail by the prison chamber of the Court docket of Attraction of Algiers” ‘, noting that ”Rachid Nekkaz has been in detention for his political actions since Could 15 in Chlef, alongside along with his nurse Mr. Hamza Djabr, each arrested throughout a rally in entrance of the jail, to demand the discharge of the 270 detained political prisoners and the opening of an investigation into the loss of life of Hakim Debazi, who died throughout his interval of incarceration, on Could 24 of this 12 months.
As a reminder, Rachid Nekkaz was beforehand sentenced in Algiers to 1 12 months in jail for ”inciting a gathering” and for ”attempting to stop residents from exercising their proper to vote”.
He was thus imprisoned for 443 days earlier than being launched on February 19, 2021. Additionally, IOPDHR-Geneva notes that ”Algeria just isn’t restricted to closing public area to Hirak activists , it continues its repression focusing on the legal professionals of those activists who’re, in flip, uncovered to jail sentences, as evidenced by the case of Abdelkader Chohra, lawyer of Rachid Nekkaz, prosecuted for his statements and his submitting of a grievance in opposition to the Algerian State within the case of the deceased, Hakim Debazi.
On this regard, the IOPDHR-Geneva considers the conviction of Rachid Nekkaz – taking into consideration his state of well being (affected by most cancers) – to five years in jail with prohibition of his civil and political rights as being a loss of life sentence. .
Confronted with this worrying state of affairs, the Observatory calls on the Algerian authorities to launch activist Rachid Nekkaz and dismiss all fees in opposition to him, to respect its obligations underneath worldwide regulation, to repeal or revise legal guidelines which can be in contradiction with freedom of expression, affiliation and meeting, and to stop the regulation from getting used to repress human rights defenders and limit their basic rights.
The Observatory additionally calls for an finish to the persecution of human rights defenders and journalists, and prosecutions based mostly on articles of laws proscribing freedom of expression. He additional requires the discharge of human rights defenders detained for terrorism with the costs in opposition to them dropped, and the discharge of all Hirak activists and the dismissal of the costs in opposition to them directly.
2024-06-07 19:29:51