This page summarizes cases raised with Jordan by the Special Rapporteur between May 1, 2011, (when the Special Rapporteur took up his functions) and February 28, 2017 (the date of the last public release of communications). Communications are released to the public once per year. This page also contains observations on these communications and on responses received from Jordan. Communications and observations are divided into sections based upon which observation report they originally appeared. Each communication is referenced as urgent appeal (UA), allegation letter (AL), joint urgent appeal (JUA) and joint allegation letter (JAL) - the hyperlinks lead to these documents. This is followed by the date the communication was issued, as well as the case number and the State reply (also hyperlinked if available). Summaries and communications are published only in the language of submission (in the case of Jordan, English). First Report (May 1, 2011 to March 15, 2012) None Second Report (March 16, 2012 to February 28, 2013) Joint allegation letter, 31/08/2012. Case no. JOR 1/2012. State Reply: 01/10/2012. Alleged arbitrary rejection of a human rights association's application to receive foreign funding. Observations The Special Rapporteur would like to thank the Government of Jordan for its... Continue reading →
Issue No. 23 of the Assembly and Association Briefing, the newsletter of Maina Kiai, UN Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association. In this issue: • Kiai to present final report to UN General Assembly, examining assembly and association rights in the workplace • The 10 principles checklist: rate your country’s management of assemblies • South Korea: Kiai calls for investigation into lethal use of water cannon • Jordan: UN rights expert Kaye condemns killing of journalist Nahed Hattar • Sudan: Charges against rights activists could bring death penalty • DR Congo: UN experts deeply condemn new violent repression of protests • Ecuador: UN rights experts condemn ‘legal death’ of prominent teachers association UNE • USA: “Indigenous peoples must be consulted prior to pipeline construction” • Assembly & association rights: By the numbers • Special Rapporteur news in brief: September-October 2016 • World briefing: Assembly & association rights in the news For a link to the newsletter, click on the image at right or click here (5MB file). To subscribe to our newsletter, please drop us a line at info@freeassembly.net with the subject line “subscribe to newsletter.” For other recent... Continue reading →
GENEVA – The United Nations Special Rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression, David Kaye, today condemned the killing of Nahed Hattar, a prominent Jordanian journalist and writer who was well-known for his opposition to both the Government and to radical Islam. Mr. Hattar was shot dead on 25 September 2016 as he was about to enter the court in Amman where he was on trial for sharing on social media a caricature deemed blasphemous by the authorities. Mr. Hattar was arrested a number of times in the 1990s, and survived an assassination attempt in 1998. “The killing of Mr. Hattar is appalling, and it is unacceptable that no protection measures had been put in place to ensure his safety, particularly when the threats against him were well known to the authorities,” the expert said. “I am also concerned to hear reports that the authorities have banned the sharing of information about Mr. Hattar’s murder.” Nahed Hattar turned himself in to the police on 13 August 2016, a day after the authorities issued an arrest warrant against him. He was later charged with the crime of ‘insulting religion’ and ‘causing sectarian strife and racism’. In a recent communication to the Jordanian authorities, a group of UN human rights experts raised concern about Mr. Hattar’s arrest and the... Continue reading →