Your Excellency:
The Committee to Protect Journalists protests the imprisonment of Abdel
Karim al-Khaiwani, editor of the opposition weekly Al-Shoura,
who began serving a one-year prison sentence on September 5.
On September 5, al-Khaiwani was convicted of incitement, insulting the
president, publishing false news, and causing tribal and sectarian discrimination.
Al-Khaiwani's lawyer, Jamal al-Jaabi, told CPJ that al-Khaiwani was
charged under both Yemen's Press Law and Penal Code. The court also
suspended Al-Shoura for six months.
Al-Jaabi said the charges against al-Khaiwani stemmed from nine opinion
pieces published in the July 7 issue of the weekly, which was dedicated
to discussing the Yemeni government's fight against rebel cleric Hussein
Badreddin al-Hawthi, who led a three-month uprising against authorities
in the northern Yemeni region of Saada. Hundreds were reportedly killed
during the uprising, and government forces killed al-Hawthi on September
10.
The articles, which were written by other newspaper staff members, were
extremely critical of the government's conduct and questioned its motives
in engaging in an armed conflict against al-Hawthi and his supporters.
For example, one of the pieces claimed that the government was creating
terrorism with their actions, while another claimed that innocent people
were being killed in the conflict.
Al-Jaabi said that al-Khaiwani was detained at Al-Shoura's offices
late in the evening on September 5, the same day the court convicted
him. Al-Jaabi said that the officers who arrested al-Khaiwani were dressed
in plainclothes and did not provide a warrant when they came for him.
Al-Jaabi told CPJ that he has already filed an appeal.
CPJ views al-Khaiwani's imprisonment in retaliation for his newspapers'
published work as a flagrant violation of internationally recognized
norms for freedom of expression. Journalists should never be imprisoned
for what they write, even if their work offends authorities.
In June, Your Excellency announced that you would seek to end the penalty
of imprisonment for press offenses, which would be a major step forward
for press freedom in Yemen. We urge Your Excellency to fulfill that
promise and to do everything in your power to ensure that Abdel Karim
al-Khaiwani is immediately released from prison and that the charges
against him are dropped.
Sincerely,
Ann K. Cooper
Executive Director
