UAE’s Trial of 84: A Disturbing Farce and Obstruction to Appeals for Prisoners of Conscience

Human rights organizations have reported that UAE authorities have deliberately obstructed prisoners of conscience from contesting recent unjust verdicts by blocking the transfer of case files to their lawyers in the “UAE 84” trial.

Sources familiar with the situation suggest that withholding the complete case files from defense attorneys impedes their ability to prepare a strong appeal, review the evidence thoroughly, and present it effectively to the accused.

There are grave concerns that the court may only release minimal information about the case at the last moment, potentially facilitating the dismissal of appeals.

In a joint statement obtained by Emirates Leaks, the UAE Detainees Advocacy Center and the Gulf Center for Human Rights urged UAE authorities to provide the case files to the defense lawyers to enable a fair appeal process.

The statement condemned the mass trial of 84 human rights defenders as fundamentally unjust and called for the immediate release of all prisoners of conscience.

On July 10, 2024, the Federal Court of Appeal in Abu Dhabi handed down sentences ranging from 10 years to life imprisonment for 53 defendants in the UAE’s second-largest unfair mass trial, referred to as the “UAE 84” case.

Informed sources provided more details about the sentences, including that two prominent human rights defenders were among five people sentenced to 15 years.

Several defendants from the earlier “UAE 94” mass trial were also sentenced to life imprisonment, including some who were still imprisoned despite having already completed their previous sentences.

In December 2023, during the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) hosted by the UAE, authorities charged at least 84 individuals who had been involved in forming an independent human rights group in 2010, many of whom were already serving prison sentences for similar offenses.

In January 2024, the UAE accused these 84 defendants of “creating and managing a secret terrorist organization” called the “Justice and Dignity Committee.”

These charges were filed under the Anti-Terrorism Law of 2014, which imposes severe penalties, including life imprisonment and even the death penalty, for anyone who establishes, organizes, or manages such an organization.

On July 10, 2024, prominent human rights defenders Abdul Salam Darwish Al Marzouqi, Sultan bin Kayed Al Qasimi, Dr. Mohammed Al Roken, Dr. Mohammed Al Mansouri, and Sheikh Mohammed Abdul Razzaq Al Siddiq were among 43 individuals sentenced to life imprisonment, equivalent to 25 years. They were convicted “for creating, establishing, and managing the ‘Justice and Dignity Committee’ to commit terrorist acts on state soil,” according to the official Emirates News Agency.

Dr. Al-Roken and Dr. Al-Mansouri are both human rights lawyers. All five are currently detained in prison after completing their sentences.

Human rights defenders Hamad Al Shamsi and Mohammed Saqr Al Zaabi were also sentenced in absentia to life imprisonment.

According to reliable sources, Ahmed Mansour, a board member of the Gulf Center for Human Rights and an advisory committee member for the Middle East and North Africa division at Human Rights Watch, along with academic Dr. Nasser bin Ghaith, were among five individuals sentenced to 15 years in prison. They were charged with “cooperating with the organization” and “supporting terrorist organizations through articles and tweets on social media, aware of their anti-state objectives.”

Both are currently serving unjust 10-year sentences for their human rights advocacy.

Additionally, five other defendants received 10-year prison terms and a fine of ten million dirhams for “money laundering crimes related to the establishment and financing of a terrorist organization.” One person was acquitted, and charges against 24 others were dropped.

Additionally, six companies and their officials were convicted. According to the Emirates News Agency, the court imposed fines totaling 20 million dirhams on the six companies, ordered the dissolution and closure of their headquarters, and mandated the confiscation of all their assets and rights, on charges of “money laundering” and “financing a terrorist organization.”

According to a report by the Emirates Center for Transitional Justice and the Gulf Center for Human Rights, the Public Prosecutor did not introduce any new evidence in the UAE 84 case. Instead, the evidence presented during the proceedings was entirely drawn from the UAE 94 trial, highlighting significant irregularities that plagued the trial.

During the UAE 94 trial, which took place in 2013, at least 60 defendants, including Al Marzouqi and Al Qasimi, were convicted for their association with the Justice and Dignity Commission, according to the Emirates Center for Transitional Justice.

In a statement issued on July 30, 2024, 13 UN experts noted that the UAE authorities claimed the latest charges were “fundamentally different” from those filed in 2013.

The experts highlighted further concerns, noting that defendants continue to be held in solitary confinement, which contravenes the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (the Nelson Mandela Rules).

The trial has revealed troubling conditions, with defendants reporting severe mistreatment, including physical assaults, inadequate medical care, continuous loud music, and forced nudity.

Additionally, the defendants remain barred from communicating with their families or lawyers. Defense lawyers have been prohibited from disclosing details about the charges, further compounding the lack of transparency in the case.

Accordingly, the UAE Detainees Advocacy Center and the Gulf Center for Human Rights called on the UAE authorities to hand over the case files to the defendants’ lawyers so that they can appeal the charges.

The two human rights centers also called on the Emirati authorities to immediately and unconditionally release all those sentenced in this case, which was not conducted by international fair trial standards, to investigate the abusive conditions of their detention, and to hold those responsible accountable for any illegal acts.

The two centers emphasized that, while the defendants remain imprisoned, they must be released from solitary confinement, granted the right to communicate with their lawyers and families, and provided with adequate medical care, in accordance with the Nelson Mandela Rules established by the United Nations.