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| Ban on foreign travel imposed on Dr. Moncef Marzouki | Date: 26-10-2000 |
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Open Letter to the Tunisian President Ben Ali concerning the ban on foreign travel imposed on Dr. Moncef Marzouki, 26.10.2000 Copenhagen/ Paris Mr. President, The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Network (EMHRN) and the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) express their dismay at the ban on foreign travel that has newly been imposed on Dr. Moncef Marzouki. According to our information, Dr. Marzouki, spokesperson for the National Council of Liberties in Tunisia, former president of the Tunisiasn League of Human Rights and a member of the EMHRN, appeared before the senior magistrate on 23rd October 2000, who charged him with 'being a member of an unrecognized association', 'spreading false information', 'defaming justice', and 'distributing tracts of a nature likely to disrupt public order and incite citizens to revolt against the laws of the land', accusations which can result in penal sanctions to the order of 20 years in prison. During the hearing, Dr. Marzouki was informed of the magistrate's decision forbidding him to leave Tunisian territory. Earlier, on 19th October, Dr. Marzouki had been prevented from boarding a flight to Barcelona, where he was due to take part in an evaluation of liberties in the Mediterranean at a seminar being held by the Green Group in the European Parliament, in preparation for the foreign ministers' meeting in Marseille on the 16th and17th November. Dr. Marzouki has only recently had his passport returned, after not being able to travel outside Tunisia for four years. The ban on Dr. Marzouki, forbidding him leave the territory, and the accusations held against him are examples of the harrassment he has been subjected to for years. It appears that the accusations are based on an internal document distributed at the congress of the Movement of Arab Defenders of Human Rights, which took place in Rabat from 8th to 11th October last. The EMHRN and FIDH deplore the gap between the repressive attitude of the Tunisian authorities vis-a-vis human rights defenders, and specifically Dr. Marzouki, and the position flaunted by Tunisia on the international scene. A few months ago, in front of the United Nations Human Rights Commission, Tunisia supported the appointment of a special representative to the secretary general for the defenders of human rights. The EMHRN and FIDH wishes to emphasize the seriousness of the situation, two weeks before its General Assembly in Marseille (7th and 8th November) and the Civil Forum (10th-12th November) both of which Dr. Marzouki has been invited to participate in. The actions carried out against Dr. Marzouki run counter to the human rights obligations contracted to by the State of Tunisia both on the international community plane and within the framework of the Barcelona Declaration and the Association Agreement between Tunisia and the European Union. As a result, we respectfully ask you, Mr President, to take the necessary steps to ensure that Dr. Moncef Marzouki's rights are fully reinstated. Patrick Baudouin, Abdelaziz Bennani President of the FIDH President of the EMHRN Contact points: EMHRN Secretariat: +45 33 30 88 27/28 FIDH Press Office: +33 1 43 55 25 18 |
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