Endangered Scholars Worldwide
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The information in this quarterly print report is current as of November 14,2018. The situation of scholars and students around the world changes on a daily basis. For the most up-to-date informationand ways in which you can be involved in calling for the freedom of endangered scholars and students, please visit us online at www.endangeredscholarsworldwide.net or follow us at www.facebook.com/endangeredscholars. In these pages we introduce new cases that have come to our attention over the past three months and provide basic information about continuing cases—a description of charges and potential or act al reported sentences. If you are aware of a scholar or student whose case you believe we should investigate, please contact us at esw@newschool.edu.
SPECIAL REPORT
Endangered Scholars Worldwide Deplores Attacks on Freedom of Expression in Brazil'S Universities
Endangered Scholars Worldwide deplores and condemns the outrageous invasions of Brazilian universities by military police, as well as the confiscation of teaching materials on ideological grounds. Reports claim that police officers and military have taken these actions in more than 20 public Brazilian universities as a result of the campaign and election of the far-right president Jair Bolsonaro. The measures have triggered a reaction from the academic community and public interest organizations. On November 1, 2018, more than 107 academics, researchers, graduates, students, and staff members at universities across Europe signed a letter opposing the attacks on freedom of expression in Brazil's universities. [End Page v]
We join other academic, intellectual, and political leaders in Europe, the United States, and other regions in decrying these attacks on Brazil's universities, which were done in the name of Bolsonaro's wider aggressive, antiprogressive, and fascistic agenda. ESW stands in solidarity with the students and faculty of the Brazilian universities that have been subjected to the attacks. For full coverage of the crisis in higher education in Brazil and to sign our letter of protest, please visit www.endangeredscholarsworldwide.net/brazil.
NEW AND CONTINUING CASES
BAHRAIN
Scholars and Researchers: abdul-jalil al-singace, 56, the former head of the Department of Engineering at the University of Bahrain, has been in Jau Prison since 2011 on a life sentence for allegedly "plotting to overthrow the government" during the Arab Spring protests. Throughout his time in detention, Al-Singace has been subjected to torture and various other forms of ill-treatment. Since March 2013, Bahraini officials have consistently ignored Al-Singace's requests for medical attention despite his long-term poliomyelitis, which has left him paralyzed since childhood.
Whether deliberately or through indifference, Bahraini authorities are wielding the denial of adequate medical care as a weapon against their dissidents, both academics and others. ESW urges the authorities to grant Abdul-Jalil Al-Singace access to all necessary medical care as a matter of urgency, and we continue to call for his immediate and unconditional release, as well as the release of all those detained in Bahrain in violation of Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Bahrain is party. ESW calls for letters, emails, and faxes respectfully urging authorities to reconsider any convictions related to this scholar's peaceful exercise of free speech and association and to ensure his well-being and access to medical attention while in custody, in accordance with international human rights standards. [End Page vi]
Students: ali mohamed hakeem al-arab, 23, a nursing student was arrested on February 9, 2017, with his cousin, ahmed al arab, also a nursing student. Both men were subsequently sentenced to death by the Fourth High Criminal Court in Bahrain on charges including "forming and joining a 'terrorist group.'" Al-Arab had escaped along with several prisoners from Jau Prison on January 1, 2017, which resulted in the killing of a policeman. The Bahrain Ministry of Interior issued a statement in February identifying Ali al-Arab as "the main suspect" in the killing of the officer, after he was "found to be in possession of two Kalashnikov rifles and three firearms." According to a report by Amnesty International dated March 15, 2018, Al-Arab claims he...
