Soccer Player Imprisoned on Red Notice
The red notice against al-Araibi was first issued by Bahrain, on accounts that the soccer player had been convicted and sentenced in abstentia on accounts of "terrorism-related offenses." The Bahraini government has also been cited by Human Rights Watch as having a zero-tolerance policy towards political dissidents and free media. It's possible that al-Araibi has spoken out against the government, considering that he resides in Australia under refugee status. Considering the trend in countries abusing red notices against athletes, what does your country believe are the next steps that can be taken?
You can read the article here! https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/feb/05/hakeem-al-araibi-case-bahrain-is-emboldened-to-take-human-rights-abuse-beyond-its-borders
We're excited to see you all in less than a week!
The State of Israel expresses its regrets in the unjust arrest, detainment, and torture of Mr. Hakeem al-Araibi under what was undoubtedly a politically-motivated red notice. It is abuse like this that deeply concerns Israel, especially given that the overwhelming increase in red notices has lead to a decrease in the quality of the General Secretariat's approval capabilities. If Interpol fails to act quickly, member states will not only continue to abuse individuals, but political enemies as well. At the coming conference, Israel hopes that the ICPO will work to establish a method by which to efficiently and effectively check red notices for constitutional violations to prevent such tragedies.
ReplyDelete- The State of Israel
The delegation of Peru is incredibly disheartened at the prevalence of red notice abuse among athletes. We would like to highlight the usage of the trial in absentia that aided in the abuse of Hakeem al-Araibi. Peru believes that these types of trials do not provide the subject of red notices a fair chance and could have been a large factor that led to the case of Hakeem al-Araibi. Peru strongly believes that trials in absentia should be discussed during the conference as they do not provide the accused individual a fair chance to defend the allegations against them. Thank you, and we look forward to discussing this issue more.
ReplyDeleteThe Delegation of Peru
The delegation of Australia was extremely relieved by the return of Hakeem al-Araibi to Australia after spending 77 days in a Thai jail. The main problem that Australia, Thailand, Bahrain, and Interpol faced in this crisis was the confusion and the distribution of faulty information. Though Interpol redacted the Red Notice almost immediately after news of al-Araibi's arrest, Thailand's extradition processes for al-Araibi could not be reversed. After the Red Notice had been issued, there was no way of stopping any proceedings right away with respect to the laws and sovereignty of Thailand. However, Bahrain's request was unconstitutional, there should be reform in how an arrest on the warrant of a Red Notice can be reversed. The official statement from our government is that "The red notice should never have been issued because of Mr. Alaraibi’s status as a protected refugee. This was a breach of Interpol’s regulations,". This delegation agrees with the State of Israel's urge for the committee to act fast in improving the Red Notice system. This solution would ultimately need to reform the Commission for the Control of Interpol's Files (CCF). I look forward to working with this committee to tackle the growing issue of faulty Red Notices. An update to the constitution with every member states' input will push ICPO in the right direction.
ReplyDeleteThe Delegation of Australia
The delegation of China would like to address the issue of a right to free speech which was brought up in this article. China believes that an individual does not have the right to speak out against the government, under certain circumstances. If this individuals statements could possibly threaten the prosperity of the People’s Republic of China, that individual should be prosecuted. This is simply China’s way of carrying out our duty to protect the people of our nation. When issuing red notices, China believes that it is key that a red notice must be carried out if the individual is threatening the safety, security, and prosperity of the requesting nation’s citizens. Therefore China believes that it is important to carry out red notices if an individuals statement has threatened a nation.
ReplyDeleteThank you,
The People’s Republic of China
It is very important to the US to ensure that our athletes are protected and that these Red Notices are not being politically motivated. The fact that the Red Notice was able to be approved, even with minimal evidence of Hakeem al-Araibi committing acts of terror. This is why the US will be promoting their SME or Status, Motivation, Evidence System to create greater vetting of these notices so that people's rights of free speech and travel are protected.
ReplyDelete- USA
The delegation of Czech Republic is regretful for Hakeem al-Araibi, who was wrongfully detained and tortured for a crime he did not commit. This an example of a politically charged red notice which goes against the rules of issuing a red notice. This abuse of red notices is just another example of why we need a reformed system in the ICPO, to review red notices. As it is clear to the delegation of Czech Republic that the current system is not reliable or accountable enough. We hope to talk about putting a system in place during conference. Thank you, and we look forward to discussing this issue in conference.
ReplyDelete-Czech Republic
The Swiss Delegation would first like to just denounce the actions of the nation of Bahrain for wrongfully torturing and putting under duress, Hakeem al-Araibi. This is a definite example of the abuse of red notice: nations are unfairly and unreasonably issuing these notices on individuals without sufficient evidence. This ultimately forces the international community to honor INTERPOL's charter and go against their ideals and/or country policy. Switzerland would like to enunciate their peaceful nature and their proper usage of the red notice. We look forward to meeting with all of you and addressing this situation in committee.
ReplyDelete-Switzerland