Nawaf al-Hendal

Cases
Location of case in SG report
2015-029-001
Relevant SG report
Year of the report
2015
Country Geolocation

Latitude: 29.31166

Longitude: 47.481766

Country Geolocation (linked Cases)
Kuwait
From Region
UN body that raised the case prior to the SG report
  • UN Special Procedures: Thematic
Dates of prior UN action
27 April 2015
Type of record
Named individual
Gender
Male
Was the victim a foreign national?
No
Was the victim a minor?
No
Individual's/organization's activity

Founder of the Kuwait Watch Organization for Human Rights

Type of rights defended
  • Unclear in SG Report
Was the victim a civil servant or member of the security forces or of the judiciary?
No
Reported trigger of reprisal

On 22 January 2015, while in Geneva to attend the review of Kuwait during the universal periodic review, scheduled for 28 January,

Engagement with UN body
  • UN Human Rights Council: UPR
Dates of engagement
28 January 2015; March 2015
Type of attempted engagement
  • Participation in meeting on UN premises
Dates of mentioned reprisals
22 January 2015; 1 February 2015; 23 March 2015; 25 March 2015
Location of mentioned reprisals
Kuwait city
Reprisal information

On 22 January 2015, while in Geneva to attend the review of Kuwait during the universal periodic review, scheduled for 28 January, Mr. Al-Hendal learned that an arrest warrant had been issued against him by the State security apparatus of the Ministry of the Interior in relation to messages he had posted on his Twitter page. On 1 February, upon arrival at Kuwait International Airport, Mr. Al-Hendal was stopped and interrogated by officials on his participation in the review of Kuwait. On 23 March, three days after returning from Geneva where he delivered a statement to the Human Rights Council, Mr. Al-Hendal monitored – without participating in – a protest outside the National Assembly in Kuwait City in his capacity of Director of his organization. As police officers physically dispersed the crowd, they reportedly identified Mr. Al-Hendal and assaulted, arrested and detained him at the Criminal Investigations Department in Al-Salmiya. On 25 March, Mr. Al-Hendal was released from detention but prohibited from travelling pending his trial on charges of “participating in an illegal demonstration”.

Types of reprisals suffered
  • Charge/Investigation/Prosecution: Charge/Investigation/Prosecution - General
  • Detention/Imprisonment: Detention/Imprisonment - General
  • Physical attack: Physical attack - General
  • Threats/Intimidations (incl. "fear of reprisal")
  • Travel restriction
Alleged/likely perpetrators
State actors
Was the reprisal based on new legislation?
No
Does the report make general comment about country’s environment for engagement with UN?
No
Government response dates
Unclear
Government response content

The Government, in three separate replies, stated that no reprisals had been committed against Mr. Al-Hendal, and the travel ban imposed on Mr. Al-Hendal had been lifted (ibid.).

Is the country cited for a "pattern of reprisal" in the context of this case?
No
Is a pattern of reprisals mentioned otherwise in the context of this case?
No
Does the report cite "self-censorship" as an issue in the context of this case?
No
How many times has the case been followed up in subsequent SG reports?
1
In which SG report was this case followed up on? 0
2016
Follow up information provided in SG report 0

42.Reference was made in my previous report to Nawaf al-Hendal, founder of the Kuwait Watch Organization for Human Rights (see A/HRC/30/29,para.29),in relation to allegations of reprisalsfor his participation in the universal periodic review of Kuwait in January 2015 and in the twenty-ninth session of the Human Rights Council, held in March 2015. By letter of 30 September 2015, the Government expressedits regret that the case summary included in the communications report of special procedures (see A/HRC/30/27, KWT 2/2015) made no mention of the lifting of the travel ban imposed on Mr. Al-Hendal,and recalled that Mr. Al-Hendal had in fact been able to attend the Council session in September 2015. The Special Rapporteurson the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, and on the situation of human rights defenders, in theirobservations on communications reports, while welcomingthe release of Mr. Al-Hendal, reminded the Government that international law provides for a right to unhindered access to and communication with international bodies on matters of human rights and fundamental freedoms,and urged it to refrain from reprisals against persons or organizations engaging with the United Nations in the field of human rights (see A/HRC/32/36/Add.3, para.445,and A/HRC/31/55/Add.1and Corr.1, para.513)

Followup Trends 0
Improvement
Did the government respond? 0
Yes
Was this case followed up by a UN body? 0
  • UN Special Procedures: Thematic