(HRW/IFEX) – The following is a 13 October 1999 Human Rights Watch press release: **Updates IFEX alert of 7 October 1999** IMPRISONED KUWAITI SCHOLAR Academic Leaders Demand Release (New York, October 13, 1999) — In an open letter today to the emir of Kuwait, Human Rights Watch’s Academic Freedom Committee called for the immediate release […]
(HRW/IFEX) – The following is a 13 October 1999 Human Rights Watch press
release:
**Updates IFEX alert of 7 October 1999**
IMPRISONED KUWAITI SCHOLAR
Academic Leaders Demand Release
(New York, October 13, 1999) — In an open letter today to the emir of
Kuwait, Human Rights Watch’s Academic Freedom Committee called for the
immediate release of imprisoned Kuwaiti academic Dr. Ahmad al-Baghdadi.
“This is a classic example of targeting the man to try to silence the
ideas,” said Joseph Saunders, academic freedom specialist at Human Rights
Watch. “It does not bode well for the future of independent thought in
Kuwait.”
Dr. al-Baghdadi, who chairs the political science department at the
University of Kuwait, was sentenced on October 4 under Kuwait’s Press and
Publications Law to one month in prison. The conviction was based on an
article he had written in 1996 for the university’s student magazine,
al-Shoula. In the article, al-Baghdadi contended that the prophet Mohammed
had failed to convert non-believers during his time in Mecca, an argument
that apparently angered some Kuwaiti clerics who faulted al-Baghdadi for
improperly associating the prophet with failure.
The action against the professor was the latest in a series of arrests of
journalists, commentators, and academics for expressing controversial views
on religious and political themes. The Academic Freedom Committee called for
repeal of those provisions of the Press and Publications Law that allow for
incarceration of individuals who
peacefully express their ideas and views.
Dr. al-Baghdadi, who suffers from a heart condition, was jailed on October
5, and immediately went on a hunger strike to protest his conviction and
sentence. Four days later, he was hospitalized, reportedly with an irregular
heartbeat. The letter also called on the Kuwaiti emir to immediately release
al-Baghdadi and allow him access to treatment by doctors of his own
choosing.
The letter was signed on behalf of the committee by Jonathan Fanton, who
recently completed a seventeen-year term as president of the New School
University in New York, and by Hanny Megally, who heads the Middle East and
North Africa Division at Human Rights Watch. In addition to Mr. Fanton, the
membership of the committee includes internationally prominent academic
leaders and scholars, including presidents of Harvard University, Columbia
University and over a dozen other universities in the United States, and
figures such as Krzysztof Michalski of the Institute for Human Sciences in
Vienna, Ariel Dorfman of Duke University, John Kenneth Galbraith of Harvard
University, and Fang Lizhi of the University of Arizona.
A copy of the letter follows (see annex).
Annex
October 13, 1999
Via Facsimile
His Highness Sheikh Jaber al-Ahmad Al Sabah
Emir, State of Kuwait
Your Highness:
We are writing this open letter on behalf of the Human Rights Watch Academic
Freedom Committee to protest the imprisonment of Kuwait University professor
Ahmad al-Baghdadi, and to express our grave concern over his recent
hospitalization.
On October 4, 1999, the Kuwait Court of Appeal ordered Dr. al-Baghdadi, a
professor of political science and chair of Kuwait University’s political
science department, to serve a one-month jail term for an article he had
written for the university’s student magazine, al-Shoula (“The Flame”) in
1996.
In the article, Dr. al-Baghdadi contended that the prophet Mohammed had
failed to convert non-believers during his time in Mecca, an argument that
apparently angered some Kuwaiti clerics who faulted al-Baghdadi for
improperly associating the prophet Mohammed with failure. In May, Dr.
al-Baghdadi had been found guilty of blaspheming Islam in violation of
Kuwait’s 1961 Press and Publications law, but was given a suspended
six-month sentence. The appellate court decision in early October, reducing
the sentence to one month but ordering his incarceration, is not appealable.
Instead of being permitted to surrender voluntarily, moreover, Dr.
al-Baghdadi was forcibly taken from his home and into custody at Talha
prison on October 5, preventing him from holding a planned news conference
to protest the verdict. In prison, Dr. al-Baghdadi, who has a history of
heart trouble, went on a hunger strike to protest his imprisonment. On
October 9 he was hospitalized with an irregular heartbeat.
Dr. al-Baghdadi has long been an outspoken critic of the rise of religious
fundamentalism in Kuwait and has accused the government of being afraid of
Islamists. He has been a regular contributor to the daily newspaper
al-Siyassa. Kuwaiti academics, journalists, and human rights activists have
requested his release and called for suspension of his sentence. The
government has declined, stating that the court’s verdict was competent.
The imprisonment of Dr. al-Baghdadi for peaceful expression of his ideas is
the latest in a series of attacks on free expression in Kuwait. To the
extent that authorities are now targeting campus publications, the case may
mark a new stage in the erosion of freedom of expression. In June 1998,
Mohammad Jassem al-Saqer, editor of the daily newspaper
al-Qabas, was also sentenced under provisions of the Press and Publications
Law to six months’ imprisonment by the Court of First Instance for
publishing a joke deemed offensive to Islam. In December 1998, Fu’ad
al-Hashem, a journalist for the newspaper al-Watan, was sentenced to three
months’ imprisonment for an article in which he
allegedly criticized the conduct of the Public Prosecutor. Khalaf al-Arbeed,
an Islamist candidate in July parliamentary elections, was sentenced to six
months in jail for slander of the government for statements he made at a
political rally.
Dr. al-Baghdadi’s conviction and imprisonment under Kuwait’s Press and
Publications Law constitutes a clear violation of Article 19 of the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (“ICCPR”). It also
appears to contradict the Kuwaiti Constitution, which includes an explicit
guarantee for freedom of expression. When Kuwait acceded to the ICCPR on May
21, 1996, it made a commitment to guarantee all individuals the “freedom to
seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds.” This
fundamental guarantee is directly contravened where, as here, a dissident
faculty member is imprisoned for expressing his thoughts. The freedom to
pursue research and scholarship unfettered by censorship and persecution
cannot be separated from the freedom to exercise basic civil and political
rights as set forth in international human rights law.
As academic leaders committed to defending the basic rights of all members
of the academic community, it is not our intention to support or dispute the
particular opinions, ideas, or research findings at issue in the cases we
work on. Defending the rights of academics to express their views and to
study, research, teach and publish without
interference, however, is integral to our work. We stand behind the human
rights principle that peaceful expression of opinion, no matter how
outrageous, should never be subject to criminal prosecution. To the extent
that the Press and Publications Law allows for the imprisonment of
individuals for the contents of their writings, it directly violates
this principle.
Imprisonment of individuals for peaceful expression can also have a
devastating impact on society. We understand that a local paper quoted Dr.
al-Baghdadi saying after he was imprisoned: “I will leave Kuwait and live
abroad, despite my love for her and her people.” Loss of a recognized
scholar and leader such as Dr. al-Baghdadi will have a direct impact on his
colleagues and on his students. International experience suggests that,
unless the sentence is reversed, the negative impact will be compounded by
the chilling effect of his imprisonment (others will be less willing to
express themselves openly in academic and other settings), and by the
likelihood that his departure will be followed by those of other valued
educators and scholars.
For the reasons set forth above, we respectfully urge, at the earliest
possible date, the repeal of those provisions of the Press and Publications
law that contravene international human rights norms and law as set forth in
the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the ICCPR. We also
respectfully urge Dr. al-Baghdadi’s immediate and unconditional release from
prison. Finally, we call on the government to guarantee that Dr. al-Baghdadi
be able to choose his own doctors and course of treatment for his heart
ailment.
Thank you for your consideration of this important matter. We look forward
to your reply.
Sincerely,
Jonathan F. Fanton
Co-Chair, Human Rights Watch Academic Freedom Committee
Hanny Megally
Executive Director, Human Rights Watch, Middle East and North Africa
Division.
cc: His Highness Sheikh Saad al-Abdalla al-Salem Al Sabah
Crown Prince & Prime Minister
His Excellency Dr. Saad Jassem Youssef Al Hashel
Minister of Justice
His Excellency Dr. Adel Khaled Al Sebeih
Minister of Awqaf & Islamic Affairs
His Excellency Dr. Youssef Hamad Al Ibrahim
Minister of Education & Higher Education
