Mr. TAHLIL in Appeal

04/12/2007 | Newsletter

El-Ayoune – Western Sahara

The Chairman of the Local Committee of ASVDH in Boujdour, Mr. Mohamed TAHLIL, appeared today, Tuesday, December 4, 2007, before the Court of Appeals at El-Ayoune. Mr. TAHLIL, who was sentenced to three years of prison Wednesday, September 19, 2007, by the court of first instance, was supported by Sahrawi lawyers, five observers from Spain and an observer from Switzerland. The appellate court decided to reduce the sentence against Mr.TAHLIL from three years to two years of prison.

Mr. TAHLIL was arrested on Monday July 16, 2007, while travelling back from Mauritania, at the post control on the border Mauritania-Western Sahara, and was led to the police station in Dakhla, after having beaten him and cuffed his hands in public without any offence. Also, Mr. TAHLIL was taken into custody on Tuesday April 17, 2007, detained at a check-point into El-Ayoune by a group of Moroccan policeman, among them, a Mr. AZIZ (called Touhima, a senior police officer) and Mr. ELKAMOURI (another senior police officer) before being expelled from the city on the 18th of the same month. Mr. TAHLIL was also arrested on 13 August 2005, condemned to 3 years of prison. This sentence was confirmed in appeal on 25 January 2006; he was released on 22 April 2006. He was again arrested, tortured and abandoned in the desert, 50 kms far from the town of Boujdour, on 30 April 2006. On 11 August 2006, the Moroccan authorities in Boujdoour had refused to grant him his passport. On 11 October 2006, Mr. TAHLIL was arrested and questioned for 4 hours at the Mauritanian border at the time of his return from Nouadhibou; he was then arrested a second time at 40 km far from Dakhla. He was detained in the station police for 24 hours, and was insulted and beaten. His personal effects included a mobile phone and 2000 dirhams, which were confiscated.