[From the diaries by susanhbu.] A possibly innocent woman has lost her husband and one child, been imprisoned from the age of 14-21 where she was reportedly raped by a guard, and come within moments of a firing squad twice.
Will Yemen orphan her two remaining children ending the chain of impossible tragedy that is this woman’s life? If investigations currently under way by the government of Yemen come to the right conclusions over the next few days, the answer appears to be no!
I just spoke with her attorney, Shada Nasser, and I’ve got some updates. The story, the laws, and the updates below the flip.
(Cross-posted at Kos. Please recommend.)
First, a little background
The case of Amina Ali Abduladif, a young woman apparently tortured into confessing the murder of her husband, found guilty, and scheduled for execution contrary to Yemeni law due to her tender years at the time of the crime (14 years), has been diaried by georgia10, SusanHu, and Welshman.
The story here, here, and here is one of heartbreak and unbelievable errors that have made the woman’s life a horror.
She was reportedly married at 11, gave birth to two girls, was tried for the murder of her husband at 14, found guilty on the confession tortured out of her, raped in prison, given a last minute execution reprieve (pregnant or nursing mothers are not executed in Yemen) for two years to raise the resulting son, and rescheduled for execution on Monday May 2.
In the meantime, the victim’s cousin, Muhammad Ali Said Qaba’il, was convicted of the same crime on the testimony of witnesses.
The key laws involved
Fortunately, Shada Nasser came onto the scene a few months ago as Amina’s attorney, and got another reprieve. “Under Article 31 of Yemen’s punishment law, Amina is not responsible for this crime because she was under 18,” Nasser said.
You see, Yemen has ratified The Convention on the Rights of the Child, a UN standard ratified by 192 countries, excluding United States and Somalia. (nice).
Article 37 of said Convention reads:
(a) No child shall be subjected to torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. Neither capital punishment nor life imprisonment without possibility of release shall be imposed for offences committed by persons below eighteen years of age;
(b) No child shall be deprived of his or her liberty unlawfully or arbitrarily. The arrest, detention or imprisonment of a child shall be in conformity with the law and shall be used only as a measure of last resort and for the shortest appropriate period of time;
(c) Every child deprived of liberty shall be treated with humanity and respect for the inherent dignity of the human person and in a manner which takes into account the needs of persons of his or her age. In particular, every child deprived of liberty shall be separated from adults unless it is considered in the child’s best interest not to do so and shall have the right to maintain contact with his or her family through correspondence and visits, save in exceptional circumstances;
(d) Every child deprived of his or her liberty shall have the right to prompt access to legal and other appropriate assistance, as well as the right to challenge the legality of the deprivation of his or her liberty before a court or other competent, independent and impartial authority and to a prompt decision on any such action.
Further details on Yemeni law (at www.arabhumanrights.org/countries/ yemen/crc/crc-c-sr262-96e.pdf – I’m having trouble linking, take the top link from this google search)
Article 31 of the Penal Code provided that children under seven years of age were not responsible for any offences they committed. In the case of children from seven to 14 years of age, judges applied the provisions of the Minors’ Code. Every effort was also made to reintegrate the child into society. If the offender was between 15 and 18 years of age, he was liable to a penalty equivalent to half the penalty applicable to an adult. For crimes which carried the death penalty if committed by an adult, a minor was sentenced to a prison term of 3 to 10 years, and was not held in a prison for adults.
None of this appears to have been applied in Amina’s case, though it seemingly must. It appears that if she were guilty, the maximum penalty should have been a 10 year sentence. She has been in prison for seven years already.
The Updates
Shada Nasser met this morning with Yemeni officials. She is happy to report that the investigation called for by His Excellency General ´Ali ´Abdullah Saleh, President of the Republic of Yemen, into Amina’s age is still active. It seems birth records outside of the major cities are sparse at best, so the question requires some investigation. She expects the investigation to reach a resolution in a few days.
Ms. Nasser is grateful for all the kind attention the people of the world are showing in this matter. All the work seems to have given Amina a chance. At this critical point, it may be best to avoid excessive pressuring of the government of Yemen.
Showing our thanks to His Excellency General ´Ali ´Abdullah Saleh, President of the Republic of Yemen would be better.
You can FAX a letter to:
His Excellency General ´Ali ´Abdullah Saleh
President of the Republic of Yemen
Sana’a
REPUBLIC OF YEMEN
Faxes: 00 967 127 4147
Salutation:Your Excellency
Writing articles to let people know about the story is best. Progress is being made, so please, let’s keep it respectful!
There is reason in deed to be hopeful that the truth will come out and the death sentence will be commuted. Thanks of course to georgia10, SusanHu, and Welshman for their diaries, Allison in Seattle for behind the scenes genius energy, Nadia Al-Sakkaf of the Yemen Times and all the reporters telling the tale, and the ocean of people who have been writing, phoning, and faxing everyone they could think of to get attention to this tragic case.