The International League Against Arbitrary Detention urges the Government of Iraq to take all necessary actions to implement the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention Opinion No. 57/2023 concerning Ahmad Abdulrazzak Basha Kazim asking the Government of Iraq to immediately release Ahmad Abdulrazzak Basha Kazim and accord him enforceable rights to compensation and other reparations in accordance with international law.
Read the full WGAD Opinion concerning Ahmad Abdulrazzak Basha Kazim (Iraq): Opinion No. 57/2023.
ARRESTED WITHOUT LEGAL BASIS AND UNDER FALSE ACCUSATIONS
On 28 September 2012, Mr. Kazim was arrested at his home by members of the Anti-Crime Directorate of the Ministry of the Interior. It is alleged this arrest was based on information obtained through the torture of a detainee, as well as for having already been arrested in 2007 by coalition forces during mass arrests in Iraq. Since his arrest in 2012, Mr. Kazim was detained in different locations, the last and current one at the time of the source's communication being Nasiriyah prison.
In 2016 and 2018, Mr. Kazim was allegedly subjected to acts of torture, which led him to confess his alleged crimes. Namely, having set up explosives devices with other individuals, notably the above-mentioned other detainee. In 2020, both this other detainee and Mr. Kazim were accused and sentenced for these crimes. At the time of the source's communication, Mr. Kazim suffered from inflammation of the kidneys and from hearing loss, without being provided with appropriate medical treatment.
The Government was given the opportunity to contest these allegations, which it did not.
Firstly, on the day of his arrest, Mr Kazim was not presented with a legal warrant, nor informed of the reasons for his arrest, or of the charges held against him. Thus, the Working Ground found a violation of article 9(1) and (2) of the Covenant. Additionally, he was only presented before a judicial authoroity three days following his arrest, when he was presented with the charges. Thus, the Working Group found that Mr. Kazim's rights to be promptly brought before a judge and to challenge the legality of his detention without delay, enshrined in article 9(3) and (4) of the Covenant, had both been violated.
Moreover, during the first month following his arrest, Mr. Kazim was held incommunicado and placed in solitary confinement. The Working Group found this situation further violated Mr. Kazim's right to challenge the legality of his detention, in a breach of article 9(3) and (4) of the Covenant. Besides, considering these circumstances, the Working Group found that Mr. Kazim's rights to an effective remedy, enshrined in article 8 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and article 2(3) of the Covenant, and to be recognised as a person before the law, enshrined in article 6 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and 16 of the Covenant, had been violated.
Therefore, considering all the above, the Working Group concluded that the arrest and detention of Mr. Kazim were arbitrary under category I.
MULTIPLE VIOLATIONS OF THEIR RIGHT TO A FAIR TRIAL
First, Mr. Kazim was denied prompt access to a legal counsel, and to one of his choice, since it is the Court which appointed his lawyer. He was not able to communicate confidentially with his lawyer, either prior to his first appearance in front of the judge following his arrest, or over the course of his trial. His lawyer could never met him at his detention centres or prisons. Thus, the Working Group found that the right of Mr. Kazim to legal assistance at all times, enshrined in article 14(3)(b), had been violated. This right is inherent to the rights to liberty and security of person, guaranteed by article 9 of the Covenant and articles 3 and 9 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and to a fair and public hearing by a competent, independent and impartial tribunal, guaranteed by articles article 14 of the Covenant and articles 10 and 11(1) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. As such, the Working Ground considered these rights were also violated.
To continue, Mr. Kazim's lawyer had no access to his case file. The Working Group declared that case files should be accessible from the outset of the detention, in the case no ground would justify a restricted access. Considering no such ground existed in this case, the Working Group found that Mr. Kazim's rights to a fair hearing, enshrined in article 14(1) of the Covenant and articles 10 and 11(1) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and to adequate time and facilities for the preparation of a defence and to communicate with his chosen lawyer, enshrined in article 14(3(b) of the Covenant, had been even further violated. The Working Group also established Mr. Kazim's right to equality of arms, protected by article 14(3)(e) of the Covenant, has been violated.
Besides, at different occasions, Mr. Kazim was subjected to torture and other ill-treatment, which negatively impacted his ability to prepare his defense. Notably, Mr. Kazim was forced to sign confession. The Working Group concluded this situation had thus violated Mr. Kazim's rights to defend himself, under article 14 of the Covenant, as well as the right not to be compelled to confess guilt, under article 14(3)(g) of the Covenant and 5 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Similarly, the Working Group also found his right to be presumed innocent had been violated, under article 11(1) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Eventually, the Working Group also established the admission by the Court of evidences obtained through torture was a further violation of article 14(3)(g) of the Covenant.
Lastly, Mr. Kazim and his lawyer could not challenge or cross-examine evidence during his trial. As such, the Working Group found that his right to equality of arms had been denied, in violation of article 14(3)(e) of the Covenant. Furthermore, at the time of the source's communication, the trial of Mr. Kazim had been ongoing for more than 5 years. Considering the Government did not provide any justification to explain this delay, the Working Group found it unacceptably long, and thus in violation of Mr. Kazim's right to be tried without undue delay, under articles 9(3) and 14(3)(c) of the Covenant.
As a consequence, the Working Group established that his detention was arbitrary under category III.
CONCLUSIONS OF THE UN WORKING GROUP AGAINST ARBITRARY DETENTION
In the light of the foregoing, the UN Working Group Against Arbitrary Detention considered that the deprivation of liberty of Ahmad Abdulrazzak Basha Kazim was arbitrary under categories I and III, as it contravenes articles 3, 6, 8, 9, 10, and 11 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and articles 2, 9, 14 and 16 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
The Working Group considered that, taking into account all the circumstances of the case, the appropriate remedy would be to immediately release him and accord him an enforceable right to compensation and other reparations, in accordance with international law.
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