More than a year.. and they are still behind bars
We extend an open invitation to all local and international organizations, civil society activists, humanitarian and human rights workers, and all segments of Yemeni society to participate in our campaign calling for the release of our colleagues who have been forcibly detained in Sana’a.
More than a year has passed, and our fellow victims of arbitrary detention are still behind unknown bars, facing false and baseless accusations, and living an uncertain and unclear fate.
A whole year of their lives has passed with no return; a year of isolation, oppression, injustice, and loss. Their days pass quickly, while their lives are being stolen without cause or compensation.
Behind bars are families bleeding with pain — fathers and mothers, wives and husbands, and children waiting eagerly. They have knocked on all doors, official and unofficial, but with no answer. No clarification, no procedures granting them the right to know or to be reassured.
Another year is devouring the detainees, their families, and their colleagues with grief. Charges were extracted under coercion — charges that tarnished their reputation as humanitarian workers and targeted their noble mission of serving Yemen and the Yemeni people.
Enforced disappearance and unlawful arrests have stripped them of their most basic rights. Their health is deteriorating day by day — physically and psychologically — amid complete silence, gross neglect, and practices that violate their humanity.
Today, more than a year later, the call remains the same:
Release our arbitrarily detained colleagues.