We contacted His Holiness Pope Benedict to intervene to stop the UAE violations

We call upon all parties to the crisis to establish a joint, transparent and credible mechanism for the implementation of the decision of the “International court of Justice”

The NHRC monitored 745 violations of the rights dealt with by the ICJ’s decision of a total of 1090 UAE violations

The NHRC raises 13 recommendations to 4 different parties to end the violations of the UAE

505 violations of the right of access to courts and tribunals

153 violations of the right to education

87 violations of the right to family reunification

– The report on violations will be raised to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, the High Commissioner and 400 international organizations

– UAE officials continue to disseminate hate speech, incite to violence and discredit Qatar

– UAE measures violate the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination that it has ratified

– Victims have not been able to access justice and exercise their right to litigation

– Only a very small number of issues have been resolved

– The UAE has not adopted a clear mechanism for implementing the ICJ’s decision

– We call on the International Court of Justice to compel Abu Dhabi to comply with its obligations under the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination

– We call on the Government of Qatar to provide the International Court and the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination with UAE violations

– We call on the Government of Qatar to request the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination to adopt interim measures of protection to prevent any irreparable harm to the rights of protected persons

Geneva Day: 23 January 2019

Dr. Ali bin Samikh Al Marri, Chairman of the National Human Rights Committee in Qatar, announced the publication the first report prepared by the NHRC, which documents the figures and testimonies of the victims. The UAE refrains from complying with the decision issued by the International Court of Justice, pointing out that the report documents 745 cases of violations until mid-January, which are committed by the UAE authorities against citizens and residents of the State of Qatar within six months of the issuance of the ICJ’s decision.

Al-Marri calls on His Holiness Pope Benedict to intervene to stop UAE violations

Dr. Ali Ben Smaikh Al Marri said that he had contacted His Holiness Pope Francis to intervene to stop human rights violations against citizens and residents of the State of Qatar by the authorities in the United Arab Emirates. In a press conference held on Wednesday, January 23, 2019 at the Geneva Press Club, in the presence of the Swiss media and the correspondents of the Arab and international media, Dr. Ali Ben Smaikh Al Marri discussed the UAE’s violations following the ICJ’s decision and the repercussions of the blockade imposed on Qatar; asking His Holiness to intervene to stop these violations immediately. Al Marri expressed his appreciation for the efforts exerted by His Holiness Pope Francis to defend human rights and his emphasis on the importance of establishing peace and security in the world in his various statements and visits across the world. Al Marri also confirmed that the report on the UAE violations will be sent to the International Court of Justice and more than 400 international organizations and bodies, including the Secretary-General of the United Nations, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, the International Court of Justice and the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.

Dr. Ali Bin Smaikh Al-Marri, said that the report covers the period following the issuance of the ICJ’s decision from July 23, 2018 to January 15, 2019. The report examines the extent to which the United Arab Emirates has implemented the International Court of Justice’s decision No. 172 of July 23, 2018, entitled “The International Court of Justice Ruling of the State of Qatar against the United Arab Emirates”, and Its obligations under the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, in respect of practices and actions that violate the human rights of citizens and residents of the State of Qatar. The National Human Rights Committee welcomes the decision of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which has two obligations: First, it reminds the UAE of its obligation to comply with its obligations under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination by taking interim measures to preserve specific rights such as the right to family reunification, the right to education and the right to access other courts and tribunals in the United Arab Emirates. Secondly, it urges the parties to stop the escalation of the Gulf crisis in order to ensure that the worsening of their dispute.

Mechanism for monitoring violations

Dr. Ali Bin Smaikh pointed out that the report “aims to monitor the UAE’s commitment to the decision of the International Court of Justice on interim measures in the case brought before it by the State of Qatar in accordance with article 22 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. The information contained in the report was based mainly on the violations received by the National Human Rights Committee in person at the NHRC’s headquarters, through the hotline established specifically to follow up on the implementation of the resolution or by e-mail of the Committee since 5 June 2017.

Al Marri said: The National Human Rights Committee has asked every affected person who wishes to file a complaint to attend the headquarters to open a file and provide the necessary documents and necessary evidence, and communicate with the committee in the event of any developments. Following the announcement of the International Court of Justice’s decision, the NHRC has set up two hotlines for the purpose of receiving concerns on issues relating to the commitment of the United Arab Emirates following the issuance of the decision of the International Court of Justice. The renewed contact with all victims by telephone during the first week of September 2018 to seek update on their cases and other developments. Complainants were also requested to hand over any additional documents, either in person or through the Committee’s e-mail, with original copies of their files.

UAE violations in figures

Dr. Al Marri explained that the report highlights the continuing violations by the United Arab Emirates because of the unilateral measures taken against the State of Qatar even after the decision of the International Court of Justice. The report also monitors statistics on human rights violations due to arbitrary measures taken by the UAE against citizens and residents of the State of Qatar. The report also discusses the continued escalation of the Gulf crisis through the dissemination of hate speech and incitement to violence and against the State of Qatar and its residents. The total number of UAE violations monitored by the National Human Rights Committee amounted to 1,099 violations of the fundamental rights of citizens and residents of the State of Qatar, but present report only revealed the total violations of the UAE within the decision of the International Court of Justice; Of the 745 violations of fundamental rights addressed in the ICJ decision, the report referred to 505 violations of the right to litigation (including 498 violations of the right to property and 7 violations of the right to work), as well as 153 violations of the right to education and 87 violations of the right to Family reunification.

Addressing 6 cases out of 159 complaints relating to violations of the right to education

On the violations of the right to education, the report prepared by the National Human Rights Committee states: “Despite the decision of the International Court of Justice, which affirms that Qatari students have the opportunity to complete their education in the UAE or to obtain their educational records if they wish to continue their studies elsewhere, the National Human Rights Committee has documented 159 complaints of Qatari students. the UAE has resolved only 6 cases, because they were presented as individual complaints in international mechanisms such as UNESCO The UAE rushed to resolve to avoid international condemnation, pointing out that It is clear that the UAE authorities have not taken the necessary measures and mechanisms, and their educational institutions have not been able to implement the ICJ’s decision, as they are still obliged not to cooperate with expelled Qatari students according to the testimonies documented by the NHRC. The National Human Rights Committee explained that “expulsion and suspension of students without legal justification and preventing them from completing the study not only violate their right to education but extends to violate their right guaranteed to freedom of movement and residence, which is guaranteed by all international laws and conventions.”

Violation of the right to access to courts and tribunals

The report of the National Human Rights Committee has documented 505 cases of violations of the right to access to courts and tribunals as of January 2019. Despite the decision of the International Court of Justice. As of January 2019, seven months after the ICJ’s decision, the United Arab Emirates did not take any action or establish a clear mechanism to allow access to this right.
The report concluded that “violations of the right to access to the courts and other tribunals is related to the right to private property and the right to work. According to the National Human Rights Committee, owners of private property and investors, from citizens and residents of the State of Qatar, were deprived of the right to access and dispose of their property.

Report Conclusions

The report of the National Human Rights committee indicated that The NHRC further emphasizes the following:

1- The UAE continues to have no consideration to the rights of the most vulnerable groups including women, children, persons with disabilities and the elderly. Its arbitrary measures has resulted in violations of the rights of thousands of people particularly those groups in the areas of education, family reunification, work and health.

2- The continued failure of victims to access justice in the UAE and the exercise of their right to access courts and other tribunals and related rights, such as the right to litigation. This has prevented the redress and compensation of these victims and the restoration of their rights despite their numerous attempts. Furthermore, the UAE authorities on June 7, 2007 issued a law criminalizing sympathy with Qatar and considering it a punishable crime. This has impeded the implementation of this right where many of the law firms in the UAE refused to hire lawyers for Qataris due to the penalties prescribed in the law.

3- Human rights violations continue to happen due to measures taken by the UAE on June 5, 2007, and only a very small number of cases of those affected have been resolved.

4- The UAE has not established a clear mechanism for the implementation of the ICJ’s decision by defining or publicizing any mechanism to which victims may resort to settle their situation, in addition to not establishing hotlines for this purpose.

Recommendations to the concerned authorities

The report included a set of recommendations To the ICJ:

1- Respectfully requesting the Court to order the UAE to take all necessary measures to comply with their obligations under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination,

2- To oblige all parties to establish a clear and transparent joint working mechanism for all the victims and to monitor the implementation of such mechanism.

3- To take into account the contents of this report issued by the NHRC and to make it an official document in this case.

With regard to recommendations to the UAE, the report included a set of recommendations as follows:

1- Promptly and positively comply with the ICJ’s decision;

2- Establish a clear and transparent mechanisms in cooperation with the Qatari Government in order to guarantee their full compliance with the ICJ’s decision;

3- Immediately refrain from any escalation of the crisis.

With regard to recommendations to the Qatari Government, the report included a set of recommendations as follows:

1- Communicate with the UAE to discuss the establishment of a joint mechanism to implement the ICJ’s decision;

2- To monitor all violations committed after this decision and to provide information about such violations to the ICJ; and

3- To submit a detailed report on the extent of the UAE’s commitment to the ICJ’s decisions to:

President of the ICJ.

Secretary-General of the United Nations.

Security Council.

Human Rights Council.