RESOLUTIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
SUBMITTED TO THE ASSEMBLY OF DELEGATES OF
INTERNATIONAL PEN
MEETING IN TROMSØ, NORWAY, SEPTEMBER 2004
(a)
Amending Resolution on Article
31 of the Regulations of International PEN, submitted by
the
Cuban Writers in Exile, Danish, Guadalajaran, Mexican, Nicaraguan,
Panamanian, Paraguayan, Salta, San Miguel, Spanish and Venezuelan
Centres
The
Assembly of Delegates of International PEN, meeting at its 70th
Congress in Tromsø, Norway, 6th – 12th
September 2004,
Considering
the stipulations of Rule 19 (b) of the Rules of Procedure of the
Assembly of Delegates of International PEN:
‘At all meetings of the Assembly of Delegates the Host
Centre shall arrange for simultaneous
interpretation
in the working languages.’
And calling to mind Article 31 (a) of the Regulations of
International PEN, which states under ‘Languages’:
‘French, English and Spanish shall be the working
languages of International PEN. However,
concerning
Spanish, its use as a working language shall be contingent upon
appropriate funds being available.’
While
understanding
the situation which prevailed in 1997 which let to the acceptance
of this compromise;
Remembering that the Latin American PEN Foundation, which
is today the Iberian American PEN Foundation, has since then paid
for Spanish interpretation in all the international congresses and
some regional meetings of this organization;
Interpreting the wording of Article 31 (a) in the light of
the Universal Declaration of Linguistic Rights, of which
International PEN is one of the principal architects and to which
it is a signatory, which prohibits discrimination against any
language for economic reasons;
Considering that it is essential that in all World
Congresses, Rule 19 (b) be observed, as demanded by the Rules
of Procedure approved in Helsinki in 1997;
Proposes that the final sentence of Article 31 (a) be
deleted, so that the clause reads as follows:
‘French, English and Spanish shall be the working languages of
International PEN.’
(b)
Amending Resolution to Article
31 of the Regulations of International PEN, submitted by the
French and Italian Centres
The
Assembly of Delegates of International PEN, meeting at its 70th
Congress in Tromsø, Norway, 6th – 12th
September 2004,
Considering
that it is very important for all Latin Centres to receive
correspondence and reports in Spanish;
Also
bearing in mind
that Spanish interpretation during meetings is very important for
all Latin American and European Centres to permit the better
understanding of the discussions and to establish a bridge between
Europe and Latin America;
Decides
to amend Article 31(a) of the Regulations of International PEN as
follows:
Delete:
‘However, concerning Spanish, its use as a working language
shall be contingent upon appropriate funds being made
available.’
And
replace with:
‘The appropriate funds for the translations of these languages
are a priority of International PEN.’
Further
decides to
establish a Committee or Working Group for
Romance-language Centres, whose remit will be:
1.
to provide support to Romance-language Centres that
otherwise would be unable to carry out their activities;
2.
to assist contact and communication between Latin America,
Europe and the International Secretariat.
(c) Amending
Resolution on the Rules of Procedure, submitted by the Board
The
Assembly of Delegates of International PEN, meeting at its 70th
Congress in Tromsø, Norway, 6th – 12th
September 2004,
Recalling
the decision of the Assembly of Delegates, meeting at the 69th
World Congress of International PEN in Mexico City, to request the
Board to revise the Rules of Procedure in accordance with the
agreed amendments to the Regulations;
Noting
Article 14 (b) of the Regulations, which reads:
‘The Rules of Procedure shall be adopted and may be amended by the Assembly of Delegates. Any such amendment shall be submitted as a regular resolution in accordance with Rule 7 of the rules of Procedure [pertaining to the requirements for submitting and voting on Regular Resolutions]’;
Further
noting
Rule 23 (b) of the Rules of Procedure, which reads:
‘In
case of any discrepancy between the Regulations and the Rules of
Procedure, the Regulations shall be followed’:
Decides
to
adopt the revised Rules of Procedure as presented here.
The
Assembly of Delegates of International PEN, meeting at its 70th
Congress in Tromsø, Norway, 6th – 12th
September 2004,
Having
discussed
the Russian PEN Centre's information of the current
situation in Chechnya,
States
that despite the repeated statements of the Russian
governing bodies on normalisation and
stabilisation of the situation in
that region, no actual improvement is achieved, and the undeclared
war continues with the same intensity;
Concludes
that the use of force with the purpose of
coming out of the protracted political crisis which has taken away
the lives of thousands of people is
still accompanied by violation of human
rights;
Points out
that those guilty of the crimes against
the civil population remain
unpunished, which leads to escalation of new crimes;
Further points out
that the ample humanitarian aid rendered
to Chechnya's
population by various international organisations, in
the majority of cases does not
reach the target communities and gets instead
into the hands of bureaucracy and corrupted people;
Insists on
the strictest observance in Chechnya
of the national and international
laws by representatives and bodies of government
of any level and their making public any case of their violation;
Calls
on the Russian
authorities to
admit the international observers
into Chechnya and guarantee their
free movement therein and maximum
safety;
Urgently
requests all
the government and non-government organisations
of the world to use all the available means to exert
influence on the Russian authorities with the aim of urging them
to observe the human rights and freedoms
in Chechnya.
The
Assembly of Delegates of International PEN, meeting at its 70th
Congress in Tromsø, Norway, 6th – 12th
September 2004,
Learning
in
recent months of the detention of the Iranian journalist and poet
Hassan Hakimi on the island of Nauru, by agreement with the
Australian government, after he was intercepted on
his way to Australia seeking asylum without 'proper
documentation';
Deeply
concerned
at reports that Hassan has fled persecution as a result of the
publication of his writing for the reformist Eman weekly
newspaper in Ghom, Iran, and yet has had his
initial application for asylum rejected,
And
at the reportedly primitive conditions asylum seekers are held in
Nauru and in particular the limited access to
telecommunications at this detention centre and the inability
to be contacted by telephone by people outside of Nauru, including
lawyers, relatives and refugee supporters;
Alarmed
and profoundly disappointed
to learn that following their release from detention at least
three writers have received “tax invoices” from the Australian
government for the costs of their detention and other related
expenses, said writers including:
And
that these invoices contain a warning that the “failure to pay
may affect an individual’s ability to leave and re-enter
Australia”;
Hereby
condemns
the Australian government’s treatment of Hassan Hakimi in
violating his freedom of expression under Article 19 of the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which
Australia is a signatory, and the Australian government’s
punitive actions against asylum seekers by charging them enormous
costs for their incarceration under mandatory detention policies;
And
calls on the Australian government to:
Ensure
that the complete circumstances of Hassan Hakimi's
case are given full and fair consideration and he is
appropriately assessed, including through a fair appeals
process, with regard to his request for refugee status;
End
punitive measures that impede the freedom of expression
of asylum seekers, as outlined in International PEN’s November
2003 resolution, by, among other measures, allowing asylum seekers
to contact and be contacted by their legal representatives,
family, refugee support organisations and to freely give
interviews to interested journalists;
End
mandatory detention, and the so-called “Pacific Solution”
by transferring all detainees on Nauru to Australia, allowing
easier access by and communication with friends, supporters,
immigration lawyers and refugee advocates; and until such time, ensure
that the conditions in the Nauruan detention centre are of a high
standard and that refugees have access to appropriate facilities
and services.
Cease
the practice of invoicing asylum seekers for expenses related to
their detention, and immediately revoke the invoices presented to our
colleagues Cheikh Kone, Lam Khi Try and Mohsen Soltany Zand.
The
Assembly of Delegates of International PEN, meeting at its 70th
Congress in Tromsø, Norway, 6th – 12th
September 2004,
Alarmed
by
several recent freedom of expression cases in the country,
including most notably:
Urges
the government of Canada to:
Take
steps to confront
the ease with which police can obtain search warrants in cases in
which they are trying to track down whistleblowers and discover
the sources for stories and books that criticize and embarrass
governments, police and judicial authorities;
Recognise
the groundbreaking ruling from the Superior Court of Ontario in
January 2004, concerning the McIntosh case, in which Justice Mary
Lou Benotto stated, “Society’s interest here, in protecting
the confidentiality he promised, outweighs the benefits of
disclosing the document…. The ability of the public to know what
its elected leaders are doing is fundamental to our democracy. We
rely on the news media to provide us with this information. The
expectation that a source will remain confidential is often the
very reason people feel free to go to the press”;
Refrain
from introducing legislation containing ill-defined concepts open
to abuse as tools to restrict freedom of expression.
The
Assembly of Delegates of International PEN, meeting at its 70th
Congress in Tromsø, Norway, 6th – 12th
September 2004,
Considering
the on-going and widespread crackdown of free expression rights of
Chinese citizens and those in the autonomous regions of Tibet and
Xinjiang;
Alarmed
by the detention of some 40 journalists in Chinese prisons, making
the country the largest jailer of writers and journalists in the
world;
Opposing
the escalation of state-ordered assaults on independent-minded
media in China, in which editors are arrested, publications closed
and news blackouts imposed on politically sensitive events;
Concerned
by evidence of growing threats to press freedom in Hong Kong;
Further
concerned
by the Chinese government’s continued imposition of repressive
measures in Tibet that limit any display of support for an
independent Tibet, human rights or religious and cultural
expression of Tibetan identity;
Fearing
a growing trend in which state authorities particularly target
on-line writers (‘cyber-dissidents’) who speak freely and
critically on the Internet;
Urges
the government to:
Release
all imprisoned journalists and writers in China, including:
·
Release
all prisoners in autonomous Tibet who are detained in violation of
their right to freedom of expression, including:
Release
all prisoners in the autonomous region of Xinjiang who are
detained in violation of their right to freedom of expression,
including:
Cease
its efforts to censor cyberspace and to release immediately all
writers jailed for peacefully expressing their opinions over the
Internet;
Engage
in a complete and meaningful reform of the Chinese legal system so
that it guarantees fair trials, the full right of defence and
appeal and a prison system that ensures the health and safety of
inmates in accordance with international standards; and,
End
crackdowns on those advocating rights in Tibet and Xinjiang.
(h) Resolution
on Cuba, submitted by the Canadian, Czech, Danish, English,
Finnish, Italian, Norwegian and Quebecois Centres
The
Assembly of Delegates of International PEN, meeting at its 70th
Congress in Tromsø, Norway, 6th – 12th
September 2004,
Alarmed
by the repression undertaken by the Cuban government since March
2003 against 34 writers, independent journalists and librarians on
whom prison sentences of up to 27 years have been imposed. The
majority were tried under Law 88 and Article 91 of the Penal Code.
Law 88, introduced in 1999, is a catch-all piece of legislation
that has often been used as a means for sending writers and
journalists to prison. It allows for prison sentences of up to
twenty years. Article 91 deals with charges of acting against
“the independence of the territorial integrity of the state”,
the maximum penalty for which is death.
Among
those imprisoned are:
§
Raúl
Rivero Castañeda:
poet, director of CubaPress, co-founder of Manuel Márquez
Sterling Journalists Society, and librarian – sentenced to 20
years;
§
Ricardo
Severino González Alfonso:
short story writer, president of Manuel Márquez Sterling
Journalists Society, director of De Cuba magazine and librarian
– sentenced to 20 years;
§
Marta
Beatriz Roque Cabello:
author and economist – sentenced to 20 years;
Appalled
by the lack of adequate medical attention being received by
several of the detainees and the fact that many prisoners are
detained in towns far from their homes and families thereby
limiting their visits.
Deeply
concerned
about the adoption of the new Information Security Law
which further restricts the ability of Cuban citizens
to access to the Internet;
Welcoming
the
release of Manuel Vázquez
Portal, novelist, poet and journalist with Grupo de Trabajo
Decoro and correspondent for the Miami-based website CubaNet; and Carmelo Díaz Fernández, editor of Agencia de Prensa
Sindical Independiente de Cuba and CubaNet correspondent;
Aware
that
the United States’ embargo creates an atmosphere of fear that
serves as a pretext for the Cuban authorities to repress
independent and critical voices;
Urges
the Cuban government to release unconditionally the 32 remaining
journalists, writers and librarians, imprisoned after trials that
were neither fair nor open for exercising their right to freedom
of expression;
Calls
upon
the Cuban government to strike Law 88, Articles 91, 144
and 200-1 from the Cuban Penal Code and the newly adopted
Information Security Law, and to ratify the International Covenant
on Civil and Political Rights which guarantees the right to
freedom of expression and information.
(i)
Resolution on Egypt, submitted by the Finnish and
Norwegian Centres
The
Assembly of Delegates of International PEN, meeting at its 70th
Congress in Tromsø, Norway, 6th – 12th
September 2004,
Learning
that
the novel "The Fall of the Imam", by the Egyptian writer
and psychiatrist Nawal el-Saadawi, has been banned from
republication in Egypt, on the grounds that the novel is allegedly
contrary to "islamic values";
Considering
that
the banning of books is contrary to the International Convention
on Civil and Political Rights, to which Egypt is a party;
Further
considering
that the banning of "The Fall of the Imam" is an
absurdity, since the novel -
which
was partly written while its author was imprisoned for her earlier
writings - already was published in Egypt in 1987, and has been
translated into and published in 14 foreign languages;
Also
considering that there
seems to be a more or less continuous campaign of harassment going
on
against the writer Nawal el-Saadawi in her home country, resulting
in frequent arrests for her writings, in her books being banned
and in 2001 also in the government trying to divorce her from her
husband by force;
Urges
the government of Egypt to immediately lift the ban on the
republication of Nawal el-Saadawi's novel "The Fall of the
Imam" and on all other books;
Further
urges
the government of Egypt to immediately stop all harassment against
Nawal el-Saadawi and all other writers, and to respect the
international conventions to which Egypt is
a
party.
(j)
Resolution on
Eritrea, submitted by the Danish, Norwegian and Swedish Centres
The
Assembly of Delegates of International PEN, meeting at its 70th
Congress in Tromsø, Norway, 6th – 12th
September 2004,
Concerned
by the
fact that Yusuf Mohamed Ali (editor-in-chief of Tsigenay),
Mattewos Habteab (editor-in-chief of Meqaleh),
Emanuel Asrat (Zemen),
Temesken Ghebreyesus (Keste
Debena), Dawit Isaac (Setit),
Fesshaye Yohannes (Setit),
and Said Abdelkader (editor of Admas)
were arrested in September 2001. Dawit Isaac, a Swedish
citizen, is hospitalised under strict security. His ill health is
believed to have been caused by his treatment in prison.
Deeply
disturbed by the
arrests of the journalists, which followed shortly after the 18
September 2001 closure of all eight private newspapers in Eritrea,
leaving the country with no independent press.
Shocked
by the
fact that the journalists are still in custody in communicado, and
by the repeated insistence of the Eritrean government that they
have not been arrested but are carrying out their military
service. Although the journalists are known to have been
transferred from their original places of detention, it is
believed that they are currently being held at secret
security sections of the 2nd and 6th police
stations in Asmara.
Therefore
urges the
Eritrean Government to release the journalists immediately or
bring them to trial by a fair and transparent legal process.
Furthermore
calls upon the
Eritrean Government to allow Dawit Isaac proper medical care, and
to guarantee him visits from Swedish diplomatic personnel.
(k)
Resolution on Iran, submitted
by the Canadian, Danish, Italian and Norwegian Centres
The
Assembly of Delegates of International PEN, meeting at its 70th
Congress in Tromsø, Norway, 6th – 12th
September 2004,
Alarmed
by
the systematic suppression of public dissent in Iran;
Noting
that hundreds of student protesters have been summoned to court
around the country or sent to university disciplinary committees
for punishment, and that a number of political detainees received
harsh prison sentences for articles they had published;
Further
noting
that Iran’s judiciary has shut down an increasing number of
independent newspapers and that numerous journalists and
intellectuals have been prosecuted under the provisions of the
Press Law and Penal Code;
Concerned
that political detainees have been tortured in the presence of
judges, held for weeks in solitary confinement and denied basic
due process rights;
Worried
about the growing trend of Internet censorship in the country, in
which thousands of Web sites considered “un-Islamic” are
censored, on-line journalists harassed and privately-owned
Internet service providers (ISPs) ordered to shut down or put
themselves under government control;
Extremely
concerned
about the lack of progress in identifying and prosecuting those
responsible for the torture and subsequent murder of
Iranian-Canadian photojournalist Zahra Kazemi;
Urges
the government of Iran to:
Release
all political prisoners currently held for the legal exercise of
their right to free expression, association and assembly,
including Siamak Pourzand, Akbar Ganji, Hojjatoleslam Hassan Eshkevari,
Khalil Rostamkhani, Ensafali
Hedayat, Amir Abbas Fakhravar,
Ali-Reza Jabari
and Nasser Zarafshan;
Create
enforcement
mechanisms for its recently adopted anti-torture laws, including
accountability for judges and interrogators who torture detainees;
Conduct
a
thorough investigation of its secret prisons, granting full access
to international observers;
Take
concrete steps to ensure the full and unhindered access to the
right to freedom of expression in Iran.
(l)
Resolution
on Mexico, submitted by the American, Canadian, Guadalajaran,
Mexican, Salta and San Miguel Centres.
The
Assembly of Delegates of International PEN, meeting at its 70th
Congress in Tromsø, Norway, 6th – 12th
September 2004,
Considering
the principles and rights established in the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights, especially articles 3, 5 and 19;
Considering
the principles and rights established in the Declaration
of Fundamental Principles Relating to the Contribution of the Mass
Communication Media for the Empowerment of Peace and International
Understanding, for the Promotion of Human Rights and the Fight
against Racism, Apartheid, and Incitement
to War, especially articles 2.1, 2.4, 9, 10.1 and 10.2;
Considering
the principles established in the Teheran
Proclamation, especially principles 1 and 11:
Considering
the
guarantees and rights established in the
Political Constitution of the United Mexican States,
especially articles 1, 6, 7 and 133;
Considering
the terms of Article 6 of the Press
Law, in effect since April 15, 1917;
Considering
the terms of the Federal Law
to Prevent and Eliminate
Discrimination, published in the Official
Journal of the Federation on June 11, 2003, especially
articles 2,3, and 4;
Noting
the repression of freedom of expression prevailing especially in
the northern border zone of Mexico, which recently claimed as
victims the editor and journalist of the El
Mañana newspaper Roberto Mora, of Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas
(murdered on March 19, 2004) and the journalist Francisco. J.
Ortiz Franco, staff member of the weekly newspaper Zeta,
from Tijuana, Baja California, (gunned down on June 22, 2004,) and
less recently, as the victim of an attempted murder, its editor,
the journalist and editor of Zeta, Jesús Blancocornelas;
Observing
that the persecution of journalists takes place in an atmosphere
of impunity and an absence of the Rule of Law:
1.
Condemns
the climate of impunity, insecurity and absence of Rule of Law in
Mexico, especially in the northern zone;
2.
Demands
that the Mexican government resolve the murders of Roberto Mora
and Francisco J. Ortiz Franco, as well as all the unsolved cases
of journalists murdered in their exercise of freedom of
expression, among them the murders of Héctor Félix Miranda and
Manuel Buendía.
3.
Urges
the Federal Government of Mexico as well as the state governments
to offer special guarantees to journalists, in order to permit
them to carry out their work with freedom of expression and
security, and without reprisals.
(m)
Resolution on Myanmar (Burma)
submitted by the American, English, Italian, Melbourne, Nepalese,
Perth, San Miguel, Sydney and Vietnamese Writers Abroad Centres
The
Assembly of Delegates of International PEN, meeting at its 70th
Congress in Tromsø, Norway, 6th – 12th
September 2004,
Considering
that since the Myanmar government's
crackdown on the National League for Democracy (NLD) in 1988, the
ongoing systematic violation of human
rights of the people of Myanmar, and the detention and
ill-treatment of numerous writers and journalists, has remained
largely unchanged;
Noting
that Daw
Aung San Suu Kyi, leader of the NLD, has spent the large part of
the past sixteen years in detention and presently remains so
again, her basic rights of freedom of movement and expression
denied;
Recognizing
that the
writers Aung Myint, Ko Aung Tun, U Myo Htun, Khin Zaw Win, Kyaw
Sein Oo, U Ohn Kyaing, U Sein Hla Oo, and Win Tin are all serving
prison sentences of between seven and twenty-one years for the
peaceful expression of their opinions;
Recalling
that in
his report to the 59th session of the United Nations Commission on
Human Rights, published in March 2003, the UN Secretary-General
concluded, "I am concerned that the national reconciliation
process could be reversed unless some tangible progress is quickly
made in the near future";
Disturbed
that
Myanmar's State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) has remained
impervious to sustained international pressure for its gross
violations of human rights;
Calls
upon the
SPDC to cease its ongoing and systematic violation of the civil,
political, economic, social and cultural rights of the people of
Myanmar;
Cease
the arbitrary arrest and prolonged detention of writers,
journalists, and peaceful political activists;
Discontinue
their torture and ill-treatment in prison, particularly during
pre-trial Detention;
Release
Aung Myint, Ko Aung Tun, U Myo Htun, Khin Zaw Win, Kyaw Sein Oo, U
Ohn Kyaing, U Sein Hla Oo, Win Tin and all writers and journalists
held merely for the peaceful expression of their views;
Release
Daw Aung San Suu Kyi immediately and unconditionally from house
detention and fully restore her rights of movement and free
expression;
Restore
democracy and respect the results of the 1990 elections by
releasing immediately and unconditionally the leadership of the
National League for Democracy, and allow them to play a full role
in bringing about national reconciliation and the transition
towards democracy.
(n)
Resolution on Russia, submitted by the Russian Centre
The
Assembly of Delegates of International PEN, meeting at its 70th
Congress in Tromsø, Norway, 6th – 12th
September 2004,
Expresses
concern about
the assault on freedom of speech and
self-expression
caused
by the absence of
any
independent
media in Russia
resulting in the
holding of
presidential
elections
in the Russian Federation where
the general public had no access to alternative sources of
information other than that provided by the government in power, a
contradiction of the concept of democracy;
Points
out
with utmost alarm that contrary to the Constitution of the
Russian
Federation,
writer
Bayan Shirianov
is currently before the courts on charges of “pornography” for
his books that are widely considered to be works of critical
realism, independent thinking, non-standard
aesthetics,
which offer
an important diversion from
the average statistical commercial
literature;
Is
indignant
at the judgment of the Russian Court concerning the case
of
Igor Sutiaghin, a scholar of American studies sentenced to 15-year
imprisonment
on
charges of “espionage” despite
the fact that he had made use only of the
materials
found in the open press. This
judgement contradicts
not only the laws
of
the Russian Federation but also to the United
Nations Declaration on Human Rights Article
19
that guarantees the right to freedom of expression and
information;
Calls
upon
all
Centres of International
PEN to urge their won governments to protest at an
inter-governmental
level about the
above-mentioned abuses of the right to seek and impart
information;
Calls
upon
the
President
and the Government of the Russian Federation to
guarantee
by deeds,
and
not
only
in words, Russian citizen’s rights as pronounced in
international human rights standard to which Russia is committed,
most notably the rights to freedom of speech and information,
alongside judicial and legislative
powers
that are truly
independent
of government influence.
(o)
Resolution on Spain, submitted
by the Danish and Finnish Centres
The
Assembly of Delegates of International PEN, meeting at its 70th
Congress in Tromsø, Norway, 6th – 12th
September 2004,
Considering that all
forms of acts of “terrorism” are to be denounced as
unacceptable and hinder all moves towards achieving real peace,
whether carried out by individuals, groups or governments;
Further considering that
freedom of the press is an essential part of freedom of expression
in general particularly at times of conflict;
Alarmed by the fact
that the Spanish authorities have closed down the Basque-language
newspaper Egunkaria, which is accused of being controlled by the
Basque group Euskadi Ta Askatasuna (ETA) which has carried out a
policy of bombings and assassinations to further its demands for
Basque independence;
Also
alarmed
about the reports that the editor-in-chief Martxelo Otamendi of Egunkaria and others working for the newspaper were
mistreated or tortured during detention after the newspaper was
forcibly closed;
Refers
to
the international standards that prohibit the use of cruel,
inhuman or degrading treatment and to which the Spanish government
is committed;
Notes
that the
investigation against Egunkaria
is still under way over eighteen months after it has been
banned, and that one staff person – Iñaki Uria – remains in
detention;
Shares
concerns that
the links between the newspaper and ETA appear to be tenuous;
Calls
upon
the Spanish government to hasten the investigations into the case
against Egunkaria and to
summon an impartial and international board of inquiry to
investigate the case of Martxelo Otamendi and other similar cases.
(p)
Resolution on Turkey submitted
by the Ghanaian, Italian, Netherlands, San Miguel and Scottish
Centres
The
Assembly of Delegates of International PEN, meeting at its 70th
Congress in Tromsø, Norway, 6th – 12th
September 2004,
Welcoming
the release on bail of MP and writer Leyla Zana, imprisoned since
December 1994 on a 15-year sentence for her legitimate activism
around the Kurdish question; and the release of her co-defendants,
MPs Orhan Dogan, Hatip Dicle and Selim Sadak;
Hopeful that the
implementation of political reforms in Turkey, introduced over the
past two years, the redress of its previously poor human rights
records through legislative reforms, will continue to move
forward;
Disturbed, however
by the 15 month prison sentence handed down on 20 May to the
journalist Hakan Albayrak for "insults to the memory of
Ataturk" in an article published in 2001; and to Mehmet
Terzi, the newspaper's then editor-in-chief, his sentence reduced
to a fine;
Calls for the
immediate and unconditional release of Hakan Albayrak from prison;
Further urges a further
review of Turkish legislation with the aim of removing from
Turkish law any remaining laws that can lead to the imprisonment
of writers and journalists solely for the practice of their right
to freedom of expression, and embeds unequivocally into law full
respect for the right to freedom of expression.
(q)
Resolution on Uzbekistan, submitted by the Danish and
English Centres
The
Assembly of Delegates of International PEN, meeting at its 70th
Congress in Tromsø, Norway, 6th – 12th
September 2004,
Appalled by the
government of Uzbekistan’s disregard for the rights of its
citizens to protection against human rights abuses including not
to be subjected to torture or arbitrary detention, to be granted
fair trial, and to be able to speak out without fear of reprisal;
Brings
to attention
once again the fact that writers and journalists are held in Uzbek
prisons convicted of “crimes” that are clearly linked to their
legitimately expressed opposition to the authorities, following
trials that have been condemned for falling foul of international
standards of fairness, and in some cases despite evidence that the
prisoners had been subjected to threat and torture, and inhumane
prison conditions;
Further
appalled
by the fact that many prisoners are detained in towns far from
their homes and families thereby limiting their visits.
Referring
in particular to:
- Mamadali MAKHMUDOV, a
noted author sentenced in February 1999 to 14 years in prison for
his links to the exiled opposition activist, Muhammed Salih,
himself a writer;
- Muhammad BEKJANOV and
Yusif RUZIMURADOV,
journalists, arrested and tried alongside Mamadali Makhmudov, and
serving 14 years and eight years respectively;
- Ruslan SHARIPOV, a
human rights activist and journalist who in July 2003 was
sentenced to five and a half years in prison, ostensibly on
charges related to his homosexuality, but which are apparently in
retaliation for his role as one of Uzbekistan’s most outstanding
campaigners for free speech.
This despite
reports that Sharipov was eligible for release on 11 June, the
appeal commission recommended that he be required to serve his
full term.