• Jordan: Publisher, Journalist Charged in State Security Court
    Press release
    Apr 25, 2012
    The charges by Jordan’s military prosecutor against a journalist and publisher of a news website apparently violate their free speech rights. The two were charged on April 23, 2012, with “subverting the system of government” for an article concerning the king’s supposed intervention in a corruption investigation.
  • Jordan: Demonstrators Beaten in Custody
    Press release
    Apr 3, 2012

    Police beat close to 30 demonstrators at a police station this week, two of whom fainted from the ill-treatment, Human Rights Watch said today after interviewing six witnesses to the March 31, 2012 arrests, including two detainees who were later freed. Military prosecutors charged 13 of them with crimes related to their exercise of freedom of speech to criticize the authorities, but no inquiry into ill-treatment has been announced.

  • Letter to Arab League on Syrian Refugees
    Letter
    Mar 15, 2012
    Human Rights Watch welcomes the Council of the League of Arab States’ February 12 call on Syria to end all forms of violence against Syrian civilians and to grant access to Arab and international relief organizations to bring humanitarian assistance to affected populations, and respectfully urges the ministers of the LAS Council to adopt a further resolution that calls upon all member states to provide at least temporary asylum to Syrian civilians fleeing conflict and persecution.
  • Jordan: Advocate of a Republic Jailed
    Press release
    Feb 26, 2012
    The criminal charges against a man who has peacefully advocated making Jordan a republic violate freedom of expression and should be dropped immediately. Jordan’s military prosecutor at the State Security Court ordered the detention of and brought criminal charges against Dr. Ahmad al-Oweidi al-‘Abbadi, a prominent opponent of King Abdullah, because al-‘Abbadi peacefully argued in a media interview for making Jordan a republic rather than a monarchy.
  • Abu Qatada: No More Paper Promises
    Commentary
    Feb 20, 2012
    Torture occupies a special place in international law – it is banned at all times and in all places, no exceptions. Most countries, including the UK and Jordan, have signed up to the UN Convention Against Torture, which means they agree not only to the absolute ban on torture, and inhuman and degrading treatment, but also to refrain from any complicity in the crime. They cannot send people to a country where there is a real risk of torture, or use evidence in court obtained through torture.
  • Jordan: Drop Charges for ‘Undermining Royal Dignity’
    Press release
    Jan 19, 2012

    Jordan’s military prosecutor should drop charges of “undermining his majesty’s dignity” against a youth who burned the king’s image on January 11, 2012. Although prosecutions for general criminal damage of other people's property may be permissible, criminalizing insults against a head of state is not compatible with international human rights standards protecting the right to freedom of expression.

  • UK: European Court Ruling Sends Mixed Message on Torture
    Press release
    Jan 18, 2012
    The European Court of Human Rights ruling on January 17, 2012, against the deportation of a Jordanian national from the United Kingdom could have serious consequences for human rights protection in Europe, said three nongovernmental organizations that intervened in the case.
  • Letter to Prime Minister Urging Inquiry into Death in Custody
    Letter
    Dec 20, 2011
    Human Rights Watch urges you to set up an independent inquiry into the death of Najm al-Din Ahmad Ali ‘Azayiza (al-Zu’bi), a 20-year-old man from Ramtha, when in detention at the Military Intelligence offices in the Rashid Suburb area of Amman, on November 16, 2011.
  • The Flaws of Jordan’s Largest Terrorism Trial
    Commentary
    Nov 21, 2011

    The trial of 150 Jordanians on charges of terrorism is the largest of its kind in Jordan’s recent history and shows exactly what is wrong with the State Security Court. The acts in question stem from an April 15 brawl among government supporters, opponents, and police in Zarqa’, an impoverished town northeast of Amman. Only members of the opposition face prosecution. The trial, taking place inside a corridor of Muwaqqar 2, Jordan’s maximum security prison in the desert east of Amman, is seriously flawed. It singles out Islamists on charges of terrorism and casts doubts on the kingdom’s path towards genuine political reform, its commitment to the rule of law, and its stated desire to protect the rights of freedom of expression and assembly.

  • Migrant Domestic Workers in Jordan
    Commentary
    Oct 12, 2011

    The fate of millions of migrant workers in the Middle East has been all but forgotten amid the Arab Spring. Migrant domestic workers, the nannies and housekeepers from Sri Lanka, the Philippines, and Indonesia, desperately need another revolution.