Source: Amnesty International –
Ahead of the trial of prominent lawyer and human rights defender Ahmed Souab starting on 31October in Tunis, Heba Morayef, Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa at Amnesty International, said:
“Ahmed Souab is facing unfounded charges that carry heavy prison sentences, including ‘forming a terrorist organization’ and ‘spreading fake news,’ solely for peacefully exercising his right to freedom of expression and carrying out his professional duties as a human rights lawyer. His arrest and subsequent prosecution are in retaliation for his criticism of the lack of due process and independence of the court regarding the ‘conspiracy case’ in which he was representing three defendants.
Ahmed Souab should never have been detained in the first place, let alone be prosecuted.
Heba Morayef
“Ahmed Souab should never have been detained in the first place, let alone be prosecuted. His case is a chilling example of the Tunisian authorities’ broader authoritarian practices to target critics, lawyers, and human rights defenders who dare to speak out against persistent violations of judicial independence and the rule of law and executive overreach. Authorities are using bogus “terrorism” charges as a pretext to crackdown on peaceful dissent and severely restrict the right to a fair trial and create a pervasive climate of fear. This travesty of justice must stop.
“The Tunisian authorities must immediately and unconditionally release Ahmed Souab and drop all the baseless charges against him. They must uphold their international human rights obligations and cease the targeting of lawyers for defending their clients or criticizing the judiciary. Authorities must uphold the rule of law including judicial independence and allow lawyers to freely carry out their professional functions without any harassment, intimidation or improper interference.”