8 Years of Imprisonment of Human Rights Lawyer Mohammed Al-Roken

Today marks a sad anniversary: Eight years of imprisonment of Mohammed Al-Roken, an Emirati lawyer committed to the defense of human rights and the rule of law. ICFUAE calls on the authorities of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to secure his immediate and unconditional release. 

On 17 July 2012, UAE security forces arbitrarily arrested Dr Al-Roken, subjected him to an enforced disappearance and held him incommunicado for over three months. During this time, he was denied access to his family and any legal aid. In 2013, Al-Roken was sentenced to ten years imprisonment as a member of the “UAE 94” for peacefully seeking piecemeal democratic reform. Denied his right to appeal, he has subsequently been subject to solitary confinement and forms of torture, including ‘music torture’ in Abu Dhabi’s notorious Al-Razeen prison.

Al-Roken has dedicated his life to the protection of human rights, a fact that was duly recognised in 2017 as he won the Ludovic Trarieaux International Human Rights Prize, which he was awarded in absentia. 

ICFUAE statement:

Dr. Mohammed Al-Roken dedicated his life to defending the fundamental liberties of his people, representing those who have fallen victim to human rights abuses by their own government. 

His 2012 imprisonment came as an act of direct reprisal against his work and activism. As long as Mohammed Al-Roken remains imprisoned, a grave injustice continues to stand. 

ICFUAE reiterates its call on the government of the UAE to immediately and unconditionally release Dr Mohammed al-Roken.