Yemen: Editor disappears after publishing critical material

SANA'A -- A Yemeni editor was abducted almost two weeks ago after he criticized the government over continuing armed clashes in Sa'ada, and his whereabouts are still unknown.

Mohammed Al-Mqaleh, a 49-year-old father of seven, and the editor of the Aleshteraki Web site, which is affiliated with the opposition Socialist Party, was abducted from the streets of Sana'a at 11 p.m. on Sept. 17.

Eyewitnesses told his family that he was taken by a group of men who arrived in a white minibus with obscured license plates. The men took Al-Maqleh and deflated one of the tires on his car, which was parked nearby. There has been no credible news of him since.

"Our contacts confirmed that he is detained at the Political Prison in Sana'a," said Saeed Thabet, the executive director of the Yemeni Journalist Syndicate. "Though we contacted the Interior Ministry, the Political Prison and other concerned authorities to clarify the circumstances of the disappearance and current whereabouts of Al-Mqaleh, we had no reply."

Al-Mqaleh's disappearance came after Aleshteraki posted a graphic picture of civilian victims of air strikes in the Sa'ada region where the military has been battling Houthi militants. The website reported that Yemeni military air strikes caused civilian casualties near the city of Sa'ada.

"However, our sources confirmed he is at the political prison. This source also said that Al-Mqaleh has been arrested for issues not related to publishing or press," said Thabet.

He did not rule out the possibility that there may be an attempt to fabricate criminal accusations against Al-Mqaleh.

"We don't exclude that, as this has happened before," he said. He also condemned the way the authorities deal with journalists, including Al-Mqaleh.

"The way that Al-Mqaleh was taken is completely wrong. If the authorities have any accusations or suspicions against him, they should follow the proper way, like arresting him according to the law. Kidnapping him like that is like gang practices," Thabet commented.

The Aleshteraki site, among many others, has been blocked frequently in Yemen.

In April 2008, Al-Mqaleh was imprisoned for several months for "disrespecting the judiciary" after he laughed during a particularly absurd moment during the trial of Abdulkarim Al-Khaiwani, who was charged with subversion for writing about an earlier round of the Sa'ada war.

Amnesty International noted that abduction of political opponents and critics and journalists by security agents has become a known practice in Yemen, particularly during political crises such as the clashes in Sa'ada. Those abducted are often tortured or otherwise ill-treated.

Amnesty International called for the release of Al-Mqaleh, adding that AI considers him to be a prisoner of conscience.

The organization urged the Yemeni authorities to protect him from torture and other ill-treatment, and allowed prompt and regular access to lawyers of his choosing, his family and any medical treatment that he may require.

Yemeni journalists fear that Al-Mqaleh may be subjected to abuse, as there have been many reports of psychological torture, severe beatings, sexual assaults, whipping and other forms of violence used again prisoners in Yemen.

Last week, journalists in Sana'a staged a third sit-in protest, demanding authorities disclose the fate of Al-Mqaleh. The sit-ins were organized by the Yemeni Journalists Syndicate.

In addition, Facebook users have formed groups calling for journalists and human rights activists to join the sit-ins and marching in Sana'a streets. They did not define the time and the location of the protests.

"Yemeni authorities must realize that the suppression of an independent media will hinder public understanding of internal conflicts, making it more difficult to resolve those conflicts in the future," said the director of the International Press Institute.

"We call upon the Yemeni authorities to immediately make public the whereabouts of the missing journalists. No government should be allowed to make journalists with critical views simply disappear," he said.

By Amel Al- Ariqi