Endangered Scholars Worldwide

Endangered Scholars Worldwide Once again we urge our readers to act on behalf of these endangered scholars around the world. It is all that we can do, but we know that doing so can make a difference. Ifyou are aware ofendangered or imprisoned scholars whose cases are not included in our listing, please e-mail us at socres@newschool.edu. —Arien Mack NEW CASES d r . ‘a b d u l l a h a l -h a m i d , a w riter and form er professor of contem po­ rary literatu re at Im am M uham m ad bin Sa’ud University, Riyadh, was sentenced to four m onths in prison on N ovem ber 7, 2007, in Buraida, Saudia Arabia, for encouraging a public dem onstration by the wives o f detainees in th e intelligence prisons. The wives claim ed th eir husbands had not been charged or tried, despite being im pris­ oned for over tw o years. A num ber of th e w om en w ere arrested, but released shortly afterw ard. Dr ‘ Abdullah, along w ith his brother ‘Issa, was charged w ith “incitem ent to p ro test” and is due to start serving his sentence on M arch 8, 2008. He previously spent 17 m onths in prison after he and two o th er reform ers w ere arrested in M arch 2004 for w riting a p etition to then-Crow n Prince Abdullah, calling on th e governm ent to enact reform s w ith constitutionally guaranteed hum an rights. A m nesty In ternational reports th a t he and his brother are at risk o f torture if incarcerated. Inform ation current, to the best o f our know ledge, as o f March 8, 2008. Endangered Scholars W orldw ide v Appeals to: Am bassador A del A. Al-Jubeir Royal Em bassy o f Saudi Arabia 601 N ew Ham pshire Ave., NW W ashington, D.C. 20037 Fax: 202 944 3113 Email: info@ saudiem bassy.net King Abdullah. b in ‘Abd al-’ Aziz Al-Sa’ud Royal Palace Riyadh Kingdom o f Saudi Arabia Salutation: Your Majesty d r . u s s a m a a i -m u l l a , a professor of dentistry at Baghdad University, was arrested by Iraqi security personnel on February 17, 2008, along w ith two other professors and four members of university staff, in a raid of the dentistiy faculty in w hich staff were threatened at gunpoint and students beaten. The reasons for the arrests have not been reported, but it is said to be connected w ith the death of the previous dean. There have been reports that US soldiers raided the faculty the week before. The others arrestees were subsequently released, but Ussama is still being held in an unknow n location w ithout charge or trial. Amnesty International has reported that he is at risk of torture. Appeals to: Jalal Talabani President Salutation: Your Excellency E-mail: questions@ iraqipresidency.net Safi al-Din al-Safi M inister o f Justice E-mail: m inister@ iraqi-justice.org deputy@ iraqi-justice.org Salutation: Your Excellency Nuri Kamil al-Maliki Prime M inister E-mail: iraqigov@ yahoo.com Salutation: Your Excellency H oshyar Zebari M inister o f Foreign Affairs E-mail: press@ iraqm ofa.net Salutation: Your Excellency a m i n g h a z a e i , a prom inent Iranian w riter and leader of the group Students for Freedom and Equality, was arrested on January 14, 2008, in a m eeting in Tehran along w ith 14 other students. He is reported to be held w ithout charge or trial in solitary confinem ent in Evin Prison, and to have been tortured. Amin is known for the journal he edits, ArtCult, and his m any online articles, two collected volumes of vi social research w hich have already been published. He has translated several books into Farsi, am ong them works by Judith Butler, Jean Baudrillard, and Donna Haraway. The detention ofAmin and his fellow students follows a wave of repression in Iranian universities in...