Before receiving news regarding his arbitrary detention in Political Security custody, al-Wazir's family had taken various steps to find out where he was, including by writing letters to the President of the Republic and other actions in cooperation with Yemeni NGOs.

Since re-appearing, Mr al-Wazir has been able to receive weekly 10-minute visits. He has informed his family that he was originally detained by State Security forces and held at the State Security Prison in Sana'a - where he was tortured - before being transferred to the Political Security Prison, also in Sana'a.

Yasser Abdulwahab Mohammed al-Wazir is a member of the Governing Council of the Yemeni Organization for Defending Rights and Democratic Freedom. He was an active member of the Yemeni human rights community and campaigned regularly for the protection of the rights of detainees in Yemen, particularly those related to the conflict in Sa'ada.

Unfair trial

Mr al-Wazir is currently undergoing trial in the Specialised Primary Criminal Court in Sana'a. Mr al-Wazir was denied legal counsel and was never previously informed of the charges of "forming an armed group" - now put against him. In reaction to this, al-Wazir's family along with the Yemeni Organization for Defending Rights and Democratic Freedoms appointed him a lawyer, however due to a lack of guarantees of a fair trial they were forced to abandon the cause. As is often the case in Yemen, the only source of information concerning Mr al-Wazir's trial stems from SABA (www.sabanews.net) - the Yemeni State-owned news agency.

Nevertheless, his first hearing took place in a closed session on 1 November 2009. Mr al-Wazir was never informed of the hearing before it took place - rather, he was charged alongside 9 others, whom he reportedly did not know. However, a second hearing took place on 8 November 2009, during which the detainees' indictment were read and which the detainees were then asked to comment. A third hearing took place on 15 November 2009, during which the Prosecutor postponed the trial until 6 December 2009, to "prepare a list of the martyrs' names who were killed because of the detainees".

Current concerns are that Mr al-Wazir may be judged and sentenced in an extremely punitive manner on false charges, with the use of confessions extracted torture. It is clear that Mr al-Wazir was arrested and put on trial in retaliation for his work exposing human rights violations by the Yemeni Government, particularly in the context of the conflict against the Houthi movement in the north of Yemen.

Alkarama sent an urgent appeal to the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders on 20 November 2009, asking her to intervene with the Yemeni authorities to prevent the negative outcome of an unfair trial for Mr al-Wazir.

We are reminided that the Committee against Torture (CAT), on 3 November 2009, held a second periodic review with regards to Yemen. The CAT was particularly concerned with the systematic nature of human rights violations in Yemen. The Committee has recommend that the appropriate mesaures be taken to establish and guarantee the indepedence and impartiality of the judicial powers. The role of judges and prosecutors should be reinforced by the opening of independent investigations into the cases of torture and ill-treatment, as well as those of arbitrary detentions. The CAT also recommended the dissolution of the Special Penal Tribunal.