Women Protection Behind Bars

Mwatana role on providing legal support :

The ongoing conflict and resulting instability across the country have exacerbated pre-existing challenges to the rule of law and the administration of justice, of which citizens in need of justice bear the brunt.All parties to the conflict have undermined the rule of law. This has led many citizens to believe in primitive ways to assert their violated rights. Due to the nature of the conflict and the proliferation of armed groups in Yemen, there has been a wave of arbitrary detentions, disappearances, and torture. Mwatnan has a legal support unit, which consists of 28 female and male lawyers (55% of whom are female) in Mwatana’s central office in Sana’a and in the field and covers 16 Yemeni governorates, identifies violations committed by the warring parties and provides legal support and follow-up services to civilian victims who have been subjected to arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances, and other types of violations related to detention, such as ill-treatment and torture. The central and field lawyers put pressure on the parties to the conflict, in most Yemeni governorates, to comply with the best standards of applicable domestic and international law.

Throughout the work of the Legal Support Unit, since 2015 until now, it has become clear that the parties to the conflict are expanding their violations, in terms of patterns and geographical area, without any form of accountability and control. Since its establishment, the Legal Support Unit has identified around three thousand victims of arbitrary detention, enforced disappearance, and torture.

People have been detained without regard to any legal procedures, even in their minimal form. They have subsequently been disappeared, leaving their families in the dark about the fate of their sons and daughters. We have seen families and lawyers pursue these cases, and mothers, fathers, sisters, and brothers chase security officials for many years to let them see their sons, daughters, and siblings, most of whom have been subjected to violent torture.

All the above has led to a clear deterioration of the rule of law and its enforcement. Ensuring justice and equality – which underly all rights and freedoms to which all human beings are entitled regardless of their gender, social origin, race, religion, and political orientation – has become difficult for Yemenis, in particular for women.Mwatana continues to pursue many thorny cases related to women, such as the case of Intisar Al-Hammadi.

Activity Progress:

Mwatana Provides legal support to many victims of violations such as arbitrary detained, enforced disappearance and torture, and vulnerable groups. Mwatana, during this reporting period, provided legal support to a woman, an actress and model, who was detained on February 2021; she was accused of drug abuse and prostitution.

First, she was disappeared, then was moved to the central prison, she was investigated and referred to court. Mwatana’s field lawyer documented the case with the victim’s mother.  After that, a Mwatana’s filed lawyer followed up with the prosecution office that was investigating the case, she was present at the investigation sessions and filled several legal memorandums to change the faulty procedures. Based on insufficient evidence, an indictment against Intisar was made.

After the indictment was issued and the case entered the trial stage, Mwatana Organization for Human Rights delegated attorney Saqr Al-Samawi for the case, while Mwatana’s field lawyer continued to attend the sessions and monitor the legal procedures of trail. The first instance ruling in the case was issued on November,2021, with conviction and imprisonment for five years, starting from the date of arrest. After the issuance of the initial judgment, the victim, through the Mwatana-appointed lawyer asked to appeal the judgment. Then the appeal sessions started, that were delayed at several times using several illegal excuses.

On February 12, 2023, the session was held and the verdict was pronounced, the judiciary committee upheld the preliminary ruling of imprisoning Intisar for five years, starting from the date of arrest. Mwatana's efforts did not stop there, the case was appealed again before the Supreme Court and to continue contracting with lawyer Al-Samawi to continue the case and appeal the court decision.