2017-04-23

Ramallah

West Bank

His Excellency the Attorney General
Dr. Ahmad Barrak,

Subject: Failure to Implement Judicial Decisions

MUSAWA – The Palestinian Center for the Independence of the Judiciary and the Legal Profession received a written complaint on April 18, 2017 from the citizen Maamoon Azzam Al-Hassan, who is originally from Qalqilya and resides in the United Arab Emirates, in his capacity as the brother of the detainee Abdel Fattah Azzam Al-Hassan, who has been detained since May 25, 2009 until the date of the filed complaint, and who was transferred on July 4, 2015 to Jericho’s Correction and Rehabilitation Center after being detained in Qalqilya. The complaint added: the detainee Abdel Fattah Azzam Al-Hassan is a civilian who was arrested by the Preventive Security Forces following an arrest warrant issued by the Chief of the Military Justice Commission.

Mr. Al-Hassan added that on December 10, 2009 the detainee, represented by his attorney Mohammad Shadid, appealed against the decision of his arrest to the High Court of Justice, caliming that the challenged decision is unlawful. On March 2, 2010, he obtained a decision to rescind the detention order that was issued by the Chief of the Military Justice Commission. However, the decision of the High Court of Justice remains unimplemented.

MUSAWA sees in this complaint, if its facts are true, what indicates a serious violation of and deviation from the provisions of the Basic Law by the Military Justice Commission, particularly Article 101/2 which states that: “Military courts shall be established by special laws. Such courts may not have any jurisdiction beyond military affairs”. According to the complaint, the detainee Abdel Fattah Al-Hassan is a civilian and not a military person to be detained by the Chief of the Military Justice Commission. This detention violates the accused’s right to fair trial guarantees, guaranteed by the Palestinian laws as well as the international conventions, most importantly the right to seek redress in the judicial system, as stipulated in Article 30 of the Basic Law.

We believe that this complaint, if its facts are true, requires legal accountability in accordance with Article 106 of the Palestinian Basic Law, which clearly and explicitly states that “judicial rulings shall be implemented. Refraining from or obstructing the implementation of a judicial ruling in any manner whatsoever shall be considered a crime carrying a penalty of imprisonment or dismissal from position if the accused individual is a public official or assigned to public service. The aggrieved party may file a case directly to the competent court and the National Authority shall guarantee a fair remedy for him”. 

Accordingly, we hope that this complaint is addressed carefully, and the appropriate legal action is taken to implement the decision of the High Court of Justice to rescind the decision to detain the detainee, Abdel Fattah Al-Hassan, which was issued by the Chief of the Military Justice Commission, ensuring his immediate release and guaranteeing his right to a fair remedy.

With all due respect,

Issued on April 23, 2017 

           
Chairman of MUSAWA’s Board of Directors 
                            Advocate Yasser Jaber              

-    Copy to:
His Excellency the Chief of the Military Justice Commission, Major General Ismail Farraj.

-    Attachments:
A copy of the complaint.