“UAE94” detainee Ahmed Al Zaabi detained indefinitely under pretext of “rehabilitation needs”
Name(s):
Ahmed Al Zaabi
Status:
Arbitrarily detained
Year of birth:
1965
Profession:
Former judge and director of the Judicial Inspection in Abu Dhabi
Nationality:
Emirati
Date of arrest:
Ahmed Al Zaabi was arrested on March 26, 2012, on charges of falsifying his passport. He was sentenced to six months in prison. While in detention, he was further charged with founding, organising and administering an organisation aimed at overthrowing the government as part of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) authorities’ crackdown on intellectuals, activists, and human rights defenders who had openly criticised the Emirati government.” Following a controversial mass trial of 94 individuals commonly referred to as the “UAE94”, he was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment on July 2, 2013. He completed his sentence in March 2022 but remains detained. On March 30, 2023, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention issued an Opinion considering that his detention was arbitrary and in violation of international law.
In March 2011, the UAE’s State Security Apparatus (SSA) initiated a campaign of arrests against a group of 133 Emirati academics, judges, lawyers, students, and human rights defenders who signed a petition addressed to the President of the United Arab Emirates and the country’s Federal Supreme Council calling for democratic reforms.
Ahmed Al Zaabi is a former judge and director of the Judicial Inspection in Abu Dhabi. He was arrested by security forces on March 26, 2012 on charges of falsifying his passport, as he had not indicated in the “profession” section of his passport, that he was no longer a practicing judge.
He was detained in solitary confinement without a bed or blanket with constant night lighting. He was subjected to various forms of torture, including pulling his nails and severe beatings. His interrogation file from the public prosecution office stated that he was beaten but instead of being presented to a forensic doctor to have his injuries examined, the investigator informed the SSA of the allegations. This information was ignored by the court assessing his case, which did not open any investigation into his torture.
Although Al Zaabi was sentenced to six months imprisonment and a fine of 500 dirhams for impersonating a judge, he was further charged on January 27, 2013, along 93 co-defendants, with founding, organising and administering an organisation aimed at overthrowing the government, contrary to article 180 of the penal code.
On July 2, 2013, the Emirati authorities convicted 61 of the 94 defendants, in addition to eight individuals in absentia. Al Zaabi was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment.
In 2014, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention issued Opinion 60/2013, in which it found that the detention of the 61 individuals convicted in the UAE94 trial was arbitrary. Al Zaabi was among these 61 individuals who were arbitrarily detained.
Al Zaabi’s sentence ended in March 2022, but under the pretext of “rehabilitation needs”, pursuant to the UAE’s Counter-Terrorism Law and the Munasaha Centre Law, the authorities have extended his detention indefinitely. He suffers from ongoing violations, as he continues to be held arbitrarily to this day.
In view of his continued detention, on August 18, 2022, together with the Emirates Detainees Advocacy Center, MENA Rights Group requested the intervention of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders and the Special Rapporteur on counter-terrorism and human rights to urge Emirati authorities to release him unconditionally.
On September 7, 2022, MENA Rights Group and the Emirates Detainees Advocacy Center submitted Al Zaabi’s case to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD), asking them to issue an Opinion as to the arbitrary nature of his detention. In our Request for Opinion, we recalled that the UAE authorities kept Al Zaabi detained after the completion of his sentence on the basis of laws, namely the Counter-Terrorism Law and the Munasaha Centre Law, that contain imprecise and ambiguous provisions that defy the principle of legal certainty. We also pointed out that his detention in a Munasaha Centre was not the result of a court decision that respected fair trial standards. Finally, we argued that, beyond his original sentence, his placement under the Munasaha regime is directly linked to the exercise of his rights and freedoms.
On March 30, 2023, the WGAD adopted an Opinion concerning 12 prisoners in the UAE94 case, including al-Zaabi, who are detained under the Munasaha regime. It recognised that their detention is arbitrary, since the 12 individuals were held “owing to their status as human rights defenders and on the basis of their political or other opinion in seeking to hold the authorities to account.”
In addition, the WGAD’s Opinion considered that their detention is not justified by a valid legal basis because the Counter Terrorism Law “creates significant risks of overbroad application and is thereby incompatible with article 11 (2) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.”
The WGAD has therefore recommended the government of the UAE to “release all the 12 individuals immediately and accord them an enforceable right to compensation and other reparations.”
| Name(s): |
Ahmed Al Zaabi
|
| Status: |
Arbitrarily detained
|
| Year of birth: |
1965
|
| Profession: |
Former judge and director of the Judicial Inspection in Abu Dhabi
|
| Nationality: |
Emirati
|
| Date of arrest: |
|
In March 2011, the UAE’s State Security Apparatus (SSA) initiated a campaign of arrests against a group of 133 Emirati academics, judges, lawyers, students, and human rights defenders who signed a petition addressed to the President of the United Arab Emirates and the country’s Federal Supreme Council calling for democratic reforms.
Ahmed Al Zaabi is a former judge and director of the Judicial Inspection in Abu Dhabi. He was arrested by security forces on March 26, 2012 on charges of falsifying his passport, as he had not indicated in the “profession” section of his passport, that he was no longer a practicing judge.
He was detained in solitary confinement without a bed or blanket with constant night lighting. He was subjected to various forms of torture, including pulling his nails and severe beatings. His interrogation file from the public prosecution office stated that he was beaten but instead of being presented to a forensic doctor to have his injuries examined, the investigator informed the SSA of the allegations. This information was ignored by the court assessing his case, which did not open any investigation into his torture.
Although Al Zaabi was sentenced to six months imprisonment and a fine of 500 dirhams for impersonating a judge, he was further charged on January 27, 2013, along 93 co-defendants, with founding, organising and administering an organisation aimed at overthrowing the government, contrary to article 180 of the penal code.
On July 2, 2013, the Emirati authorities convicted 61 of the 94 defendants, in addition to eight individuals in absentia. Al Zaabi was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment.
In 2014, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention issued Opinion 60/2013, in which it found that the detention of the 61 individuals convicted in the UAE94 trial was arbitrary. Al Zaabi was among these 61 individuals who were arbitrarily detained.
Al Zaabi’s sentence ended in March 2022, but under the pretext of “rehabilitation needs”, pursuant to the UAE’s Counter-Terrorism Law and the Munasaha Centre Law, the authorities have extended his detention indefinitely. He suffers from ongoing violations, as he continues to be held arbitrarily to this day.
In view of his continued detention, on August 18, 2022, together with the Emirates Detainees Advocacy Center, MENA Rights Group requested the intervention of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders and the Special Rapporteur on counter-terrorism and human rights to urge Emirati authorities to release him unconditionally.
On September 7, 2022, MENA Rights Group and the Emirates Detainees Advocacy Center submitted Al Zaabi’s case to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD), asking them to issue an Opinion as to the arbitrary nature of his detention. In our Request for Opinion, we recalled that the UAE authorities kept Al Zaabi detained after the completion of his sentence on the basis of laws, namely the Counter-Terrorism Law and the Munasaha Centre Law, that contain imprecise and ambiguous provisions that defy the principle of legal certainty. We also pointed out that his detention in a Munasaha Centre was not the result of a court decision that respected fair trial standards. Finally, we argued that, beyond his original sentence, his placement under the Munasaha regime is directly linked to the exercise of his rights and freedoms.
On March 30, 2023, the WGAD adopted an Opinion concerning 12 prisoners in the UAE94 case, including al-Zaabi, who are detained under the Munasaha regime. It recognised that their detention is arbitrary, since the 12 individuals were held “owing to their status as human rights defenders and on the basis of their political or other opinion in seeking to hold the authorities to account.”
In addition, the WGAD’s Opinion considered that their detention is not justified by a valid legal basis because the Counter Terrorism Law “creates significant risks of overbroad application and is thereby incompatible with article 11 (2) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.”
The WGAD has therefore recommended the government of the UAE to “release all the 12 individuals immediately and accord them an enforceable right to compensation and other reparations.”