Front Line is concerned with regard to a de facto travel ban placed on the human rights defender Mohamed Abbou. Mohamed Abbou has attempted to travel outside Tunisia on two separate occasions and has been prevented by the Tunisian authorities both times.
Further Information
On 22 October 2007, Mohamed Abbou was prevented from travelling to Egypt where he was due to attend and monitor the trial of Ibrahim Essa, editor in chief of the independent Egyptian newspaper Al-Dustur. The Arabic Network for Human Rights Information had invited Mohamed Abbou to observe the trial as a representative of the Conseil National pour les Libertés en Tunisie – CNLT, (National Council for Liberties in Tunisia).
Tunisian border police prevented Mohamed Abbou from boarding a plane for Egypt at Tunis-Carthage International Airport. The Tunisian border police informed him that his release on parole on 24 July 2007, was conditional and that the tribunal which had originally sentenced him had not given permission to travel. However, Front Line has been informed by Tunisian lawyers that Mohamed Abbou‘s release does not carry any such conditions or restrictions on his freedom of movement.
On 24 August 2007, Mohamed Abbou was prevented from travelling to the United Kingdom, where he was due to give an interview with the television channel Al-Jazeera. At Tunis-Carthage International Airport Mohamed Abbou was informed by the authorities that he would not be given permission to leave Tunisia.
Mohamed Abbou is a lawyer and a member of the CNLT. He is the former director of the Association of Young Lawyers of Tunisia and is a member of the International Association for the Support of Political Prisoners (AISPP). Mohamed Abbou was arbitrarily arrested in Tunis on 1 March 2005, and was sentenced at an unfair trail to three and a half years in prison in April 2005. He was prosecuted because he published an online article, in which he criticised Tunisian prisons, comparing them to Abu Ghraib. Mohamed Abbou was ill treated while imprisoned and denied appropriate medical attention. Those close to him, especially his wife Samia Abbou, have been the subject to continuous harassment including intrusive surveillance. On 7 December 2006, Samia Abbou and a number of other human rights defenders were physically attacked outside el Kef prison by a group of people dressed in civilian clothes while Samia was trying to visit her husband. Mohamed Abbou was released on 24 July 2007, following an international campaign for his release.
Since his release, Mohamed Abbou has faced restrictions that are not in conformity with the legal conditions or restrictions relating to his conditional release. On 18 August 2007, an unknown person withdrew the sum of 3700 Tunisian Dinars (approximately 2,200 Euros) from a Western Union agent, which Front Line had sent to Mohamed and Samia Abbou. This sum was intended to cover the cost of his family’s journey to Paris. The money was subsequently returned to Western Union. Front Line has been informed that Samia Abbou is being prevented from receiving monies through Western Union by the Tunisian authorities.
Front Line is of the opinion that the de facto travel ban and other forms of harassment placed on Mohamed Abbou and his family is an attempt by the authorities to prevent him from carrying out his peaceful and legitimate human rights activities.
Action Finished:
This Urgent Appeal has now ended. No further action is requested at this point. Thank you for taking action on this case.
Front Line issues Urgent Appeals on behalf of human rights defenders at risk on a daily basis. These Appeals normally remain active on our web site for a period of up to six weeks, depending on the situation. After this time they will be archived. Front Line maintains a watching brief on all these cases but no further action is requested after the six weeks, unless there is a significant development in the case.
