Commiqué de presse jointe: Le Parlement européen adopte une résolution sur l’incarcération des travailleurs et des militants des droits de l’Homme en Algérie

On the eve of the International Workers’Day on 1 May, our organisations welcome the resolution passed by the European Parliament callingon the Algerian authorities “to ensure the safety and security of civilsociety activists and human rights defenders and their freedom to pursue theirlegitimate and peaceful activities”.

The resolution reiterates a number ofconcerns regularly raised by our organisations about the degradation of therights to freedom of expression, association and assembly in Algeria. Labourrights activists are regularly arrested only for exercising their right to freeexpression, and peaceful assembly and condemned to heavy penalties. These formsof harassment, which seem to aim only at sanctioning human rights activism,confirm the restrictive and repressive environment in which human rightsdefenders, including labour rights activists, operate today in Algeria.

This is the first resolution by theParliament on this country since more than a decade. Our organisations now callon both the EU Member States and the EU High Representative to acknowledge theEuropean Parliament resolution and to: “ensure that there is a clear and principledEU policy vis-à-vis Algeria […] in line with the EU Strategic Framework onHuman Rights and Democracy”. The EU should make sure the case of the elevenworkers’ and human rights activists will be discussed as a matter of priority atthe forthcoming EU-Algeria Association Council on 19 May. The resolution also reiteratesa key demand of our organisations by calling “on the European External Action Serviceand the Member States to monitor closely all trials and judicial proceedingsagainst human rights defenders and labour rights activists”.

In line with the European Parliamentresolution, our organisations call on the Algerian authorities to immediatelyand unconditionally release peaceful activists Rachid Aouine, Mohamed Rag, Khencha Belkacem, Brahimi Belelmi, MazouziBenallal, Azzouzi Boubakeur, Korini Belkacem, Bekouider Faouzi, BensarkhaTahar, Djaballah Abdelkader, as well as to withdraw all charges againstthem. The Algerian authorities should also put an end to all forms ofharassment and intimidation against labour rights activists and human rights defenders,including at the judicial level.

Brussels-Copenhagen-Dublin-Geneva-Paris, 30 April 2015

Presscontacts:

FIDH: ArthurManet / Lucie Kroening, +33 1 43 55 25 18, presse@fidh.org

Front LineDefenders: Emma Achilli, +32 2 230 93 83, emma@frontlinedefenders.org

OMCT: MiguelMartin Zumalacarregui: + 41 22 809 49 24, mmz@omct.org REMDH: Hayet Zeghiche, +32 488 0800 41, hze@euromedrights.net