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April 06, 2006
IRAQ: Writer Dr. Kamal Sayid Qadir (also known Kamal Karim) was sentenced on March 26, 2006 to eighteen months in prison for defamation.
See below for Sample Letter of Appeal and full story from International PEN
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FULL STORY FROM INTERNATIONAL PEN:
RAPID ACTION NETWORK
30 March 2006
Update #2 to RAN 53/05
IRAQ: Writer Kamal Sayid Qadir (aka Kamal Karim) sentenced to eighteen
months in prison
The Writers in Prison Committee of International PEN protests the
eighteen-month prison sentence handed down to writer Kamal Sayid Qadir (aka
Kamal Karim) on 26 March 2006 on defamation charges for articles critical
of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) authorities. International PEN
considers Kamal Qadir to be detained in violation of Article 19 of the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Iraq is a
signatory, and calls for his immediate and unconditional release.
According to PEN’s information, writer Kamal Sayid Qadir, aged 48, was
arrested on 26 October 2005 by members of Parastin, the security
intelligence service of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), one of two
parties holding power in the Kurdish-dominated region. Dr Qadir, an Iraqi
Kurd who now lives in Vienna, was on a visit to Iraqi Kurdistan at the time
of his arrest. He was reportedly on his way to a meeting with KDP officials
at a hotel in the city of Erbil when he was arrested. KDP intelligence
agents are believed to have seized him because of articles that he had
published on the Internet in the weeks before he returned to Iraqi
Kurdistan which were critical of the KDP authorities, including Mas’ud
Barzani. Dr Qadir is known for his critical writings about the political
leadership of the Kurdish territories of Iraq.
Kamal Qadir was sentenced by a state security court in Erbil on 19 December
2005 to thirty years in prison for defamation. This sentence was quashed by
an appeals court in January 2006, but he remained detained and was re-tried
by a lower court.
Amnesty International gives the following background information:
“Since 1991 some areas of northern Iraq have been controlled by the KDP and
the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK). These Kurdish-controlled areas
enjoyed substantial autonomy even while Saddam Hussein was in power, and
have continued to do so after the 30 January 2005 elections in Iraq for
both the National Assembly and a Kurdish Assembly. PUK Secretary General
Jalal Talabani was selected by the National Assembly as President of Iraq
on 7 April, and KDP leader Mas’ud Barzani was selected by the Kurdish
Assembly as President of the Kurdistan region.”
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Please send appeals:
- Protesting the detention of writer Kamal Sayid Qadir, and calling
for his immediate and unconditional release in accordance with Article 19
of the United Nations International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,
to which Iraq is a signatory;
Appeals to:
Please send appeals via the KDP offices abroad, asking for them to be
forwarded to President Barzani:
KDP International Relations Bureau, London, United Kingdom
Fax: 011 44 20 7498 2531
e-mail: kdpinternational@yahoo.com
KDP Europe, Berlin, Germany
Fax: 011 49 30 797 437 46
e-mail: kdpeurope@t-online-.de
KDP Office, Washington, USA
e-mail: pdk7usa@aol.com
KDP Office, Ankara, Turkey
Fax: 011 90 312 447 3532
e-mail: info@kdp-ankara.org.tr
Salutation: Your Excellency
If possible please send a copy of your appeal to the diplomatic
representative for Iraq in your country.
For further details contact Cathy McCann at the Writers in Prison Committee
London Office: 9-10 Charterhouse Buildings, London EC1M 7AT UK Tel: + 44
(0) 20 72 53 32 26 Fax: + 44 (0) 20 72 53 57 11 e-mail: cmccann@wipcpen.org