Libyan Canadian Committee for Civic Liberties and Human Rights (LCC-CLHR)
 

Promoting Civil Liberties by Defending Human Rights

 

December 15, 2004

Mr. Khaled Elghul
LCC-CLHR
12 Queen St. Suite 206
St. Catharines, ON L2R 5G3

The Right Honourable Paul Martin
Office of the Prime Minister
80 Wellington Street
Ottawa
K1A 0A2
pm@pm.gc.ca


Dear Prime Minister:

At LCC-CLHR, we welcome your visit to Libya to improve relations between our two countries and to solicit contracts for Canadian companies. However, we have some concerns and would like to bring them to your attention before your visit. Muammar Qadhafi may show the world that he has abandoned terrorism but he is still terrorizing the Libyan people. Libyans are not able to practice democracy - they cannot voice their opinion, and they are not permitted to establish organizations that call for reform. The death penalty is still the law for any people who gather secretly or publicly, or who establish an organization that calls for reform. Many Libyan Canadians, who proudly and freely participate in the democratic process and civil society in Canada, are not able to go to Libya or to speak freely against the unjust Qadhafi government in fear of harm to their families.

On December 7, 2004, the Qadhafi government blocked a scheduled visit by a delegate from a Human Rights Watch research team by denying the necessary visa. In light of that action, Human Rights Watch issued a press release (copy and web Link included with this letter). In this press release they stated, “The United States and European Union have rewarded Libyan leader Muammar Qadhafi and the Libyan government for renouncing terrorism and weapons of mass destruction by lifting sanctions and trade embargoes. Heads of state and business leaders have flocked to Tripoli in recent months as the economy slowly reforms. But internal repression remains intense. Libyan law bans independent political parties, associations and media. Torture is common, and hundreds of political prisoners are behind bars after trials that were deeply flawed. “
To confirm that the Libyan government is unchanged towards Human Rights and Civil Liberty, Amnesty International, in their press release on December 1, 2004 titled, “Libya: Confirmation of sentencing of prisoners of conscience is a step backwards” said, “The decision by the People's Court of Appeal to uphold scores of sentences, including two death sentences, issued today is a new blow to freedom of _expression and association in Libya…… Death sentences against two university professors, Salem Abu Hanak and Abdullah Ahmed 'Izzedin, handed down at first instance in 2002, were upheld on appeal…... Some 83 prisoners of conscience, sentenced in the same case in 2002 to prison terms ranging between 10 years and life imprisonment, also had their sentences confirmed…. These men should not have been tried in the first place. We are shocked by the decision to uphold the sentences against these prisoners of conscience and call for their immediate and unconditional release." (Full copy of Amnesty International press release is included with letter).
We, Mr. Martin, believe the statements of Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International about Qadhafi policies in Libya are suffice to confirm human rights abuse in Libya.

We at Libyan Canadian committee for Human Civic Liberties and Human Rights (LCC-CLHR) call upon our Prime Minster Paul Martin to raise the following points during his visit to Libya and his meeting with Libyan leader Muammar Qadhafi:
1- To urge Qadhafi to release all prisoners of conscience, including all 83 people who the court upheld the sentences on December 1, 2004 as stated in the Amnesty International press release on December 1, 2004. (See Copy and web link after the end of the letter).
2- To release Fathi al-Jahmi who George Bush personally mentioned him in White House gathering. The release of Fathi al-Jahmi includes his freedom of _expression and his stand for democracy.
3- The release of Ali Sadegh Elhouni the father of two Canadian Citizens (at amnesty International report the name spelled as Ali Al-Sadiq Al-Huni).
4- The right of Libyans who opposed Qadhafi previously and who have taken political asylum in western countries, to return unconditionally without harm to Libya and to be allowed to practice their democratic rights that they enjoyed in the countries where they have resided.

Not including the above requests in your agenda, would be damaging to Canada’s reputation among Libyans and the rest of the world; would not reflect Canada’s principles, values and its commitment to protect universal human rights everywhere. However, including these points in your visit will be a strong step forward in cultivating human rights for Libyans and a minimum standard of human rights for all global citizens.

Sincerely yours,

Khaled Elghul
Chairperson, LCC-CLHR
Tel: 905-329-9460
Tel (Home) - 905-680-8720
Email: Kelghul@yahoo.ca








AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL PRESS RELEASE
AI Index: MDE 19/020/2004 (Public)
News Service No: 311
1 December 2004
http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGMDE190202004
Libya: Confirmation of sentencing of prisoners of conscience is a
step backwards

The decision by the People's Court of Appeal to uphold scores of sentences, including two death
sentences, issued today is a new blow to freedom of expression and association in Libya, Amnesty
International said.

Death sentences against two university professors, Salem Abu Hanak and Abdullah Ahmed
'Izzedin, handed down at first instance in 2002, were upheld on appeal. According to Libyan law, this
latest verdict must now be reviewed by the Supreme Court. If confirmed, it cannot be implemented without
the consent of the Supreme Council of Judicial Bodies, Libya's highest judicial body.

Some 83 prisoners of conscience, sentenced in the same case in 2002 to prison terms ranging
between 10 years and life imprisonment, also had their sentences confirmed. They have no further
chance to appeal. A further 66 men, also on trial, had their earlier acquittal confirmed.

"These men should not have been tried in the first place. We are shocked by the decision to
uphold the sentences against these prisoners of conscience and call for their immediate and unconditional
release," Amnesty International said.

The sentences were reportedly pronounced in absentia after the accused apparently refused to
attend today's hearing as a mark of protest. This followed earlier protests in the form of hunger strikes in
April and October 2004, calling for an end to their continued detention, among other things. Those on trial
were professionals and students, who were arrested in and after June 1998 on suspicion of supporting or
sympathizing with the banned Libyan Islamic Group - also known as the Muslim Brothers.

During their visit to Libya in February 2004, Amnesty International delegates had extensive
discussions with the Libyan authorities about the case of the Muslim Brothers. In all discussions, it was
confirmed that the men had not been charged with any activities relating to the use or advocacy of
violence. They faced charges under Law 71 of 1972 banning political parties solely for the peaceful
expression of their ideas and for meeting to discuss those ideas with others in secret.

In February 2004, Abdullah Ahmed 'Izzedin told Amnesty International, "I am not against the
regime, nor do I have any political aims. I just wanted to work towards reforming society and to making it a
better place".

Over the six-and-a-half years of their detention, the rights of those accused were flagrantly
violated, even in instances where these rights are guaranteed in Libyan law. They have been cut off from
the outside world, denied the right to appoint a lawyer of their own choosing and the right to trial within a
reasonable time. Their trial before an exceptional court known to try political cases fell short of
international standards for fair trial.
The men were held in incommunicado detention for almost three years. During this period, some
of the defendants alleged that they were tortured, including being beaten on the soles of the feet (falaqa),
after their arrest by members of the Internal Security Agency. Defendants were also reportedly forced to
sign confessions. Since the opening of the appeal in the summer of 2002, it has been repeatedly
adjourned, with hearings approximately every three months and reportedly lasting just a few minutes.
Amnesty International welcomes statements by the Libyan authorities since the organization's
visit in February, which point towards their intention to increase the protection of human rights, for
example by abolishing the death penalty and the People's Court. A draft law to abolish the People's Court
is apparently being examined by Libya's local and national legislative bodies.
"It is now time for the authorities to take concrete steps to put into effect those promises in order
to achieve a tangible improvement in the lives of all those residing in Libya without delay."
Public Document
****************************************

HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH PRESS RELEASE
Libya Blocks Visit by Rights Group
Torture, Political Trials, Treatment of Migrants Remain Major Concerns
http://hrw.org/english/docs/2004/12/06/libya9783.htm
(New York, December 7, 2004) The Libyan government has blocked a scheduled visit by a Human Rights Watch research team. The team was slated to begin a three-week fact-finding trip on Tuesday, but the Libyan government has withheld the visas, Human Rights Watch said today.
The Libyan government says it is opening to the world, but it behaves as if there is much to hide. They are letting in oil companies and tourists, but keeping out human rights groups.
Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East director at Human Rights Watch


“The Libyan government says it is opening to the world, but it behaves as if there is much to hide,” said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. “They are letting in oil companies and tourists, but keeping out human rights groups.”

The United States and European Union have rewarded Libyan leader Muammar Qadhafi and the Libyan government for renouncing terrorism and weapons of mass destruction by lifting sanctions and trade embargoes. Heads of state and business leaders have flocked to Tripoli in recent months as the economy slowly reforms.

But internal repression remains intense. Libyan law bans independent political parties, associations and media. Torture is common, and hundreds of political prisoners are behind bars after trials that were deeply flawed.

The visit would have been Human Rights Watch’s first to Libya, following more than six months of promises and delays by the Libyan government. Amnesty International spent two weeks in Libya in February, producing a report that criticized a pattern of human rights violations, a failure to investigate past abuses, and a climate of fear.

Human Rights Watch planned to investigate the cases of political prisoners, specifically the arrest and incommunicado detention of Fathi al-Jahmi and the 86 students and professionals imprisoned for supporting or sympathizing with the banned Libyan Islamic Group, also known as the Muslim Brotherhood, although they were reportedly not accused of planning or committing violent acts. On Wednesday, an appeals chamber of the special “People’s Court,” which tries political cases, upheld the sentences for the group, including for two university professors sentenced to death.

Two specialists from Human Rights Watch planned to investigate the human rights conditions of women and the government’s treatment of migrants and refugees. Asylum seekers and migrants living in or transiting through Libya—particularly those from sub-Saharan Africa—face police abuse, arbitrary detention and substandard detention conditions. Deportations and expulsions to countries like Eritrea and Somalia are common, where the returnees are at risk of serious abuse.

Some EU member states have proposed to establish offshore asylum processing centers in Libya, even though Libya has failed to ratify the 1951 Refugee Convention and has no functioning asylum system.

“Given Libya’s terrible treatment of migrants and asylum seekers, the EU’s offshore processing centers would likely violate the right to seek asylum,” Whitson said. “The EU would be shifting responsibility for migrants and asylum seekers to a developing country with a poor human rights record.”