Press Release
Unjust blockade against the State of Qatar
Complaints and actions taken by the State of Qatar
A briefing was given to the permanent members of the United Nations;
also a briefing was given to the member States of the Security Council.
First: filed a complaint with the
International Civil Aviation Organization regarding the opening of airspace:
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has filed a complaint with the
International Civil Aviation Organization to open the airspace and distributed
the complaint to 33 Embassies in the State of Qatar, which represent the
Executive Council of the International Civil Aviation Organization. Also the
complaint was forwarded to the Embassies of the State of Qatar abroad to
contact the civil aviation authorities in those countries to explain the
complaint.
Second: Formal complaint with the British
Broadcasting Corporation regulator (Ofcom)
against Al Arabiya News Channel and Sky News Arabia:
1-
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has prepared the complaint file against
Al Arabiya and Sky News Arabia: the file was prepared in coordination with the
Qatari News Agency (QNA), the Government Liaison Office and the Media Office of
the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
2-
British law firm
"Carter-Ruck" in London was appointed to lodge a formal complaint with the
British Broadcasting Corporation regulator (Ofcom) against the above-mentioned
channels for broadcasting baseless statements
attributed to H.H. Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Emir of the
State Qatar following the hack of Qatar News Agency (QNA) on 24 May 2017. Since Al Arabiya Channel and Sky News Arabia (which is part of the UK
Sky plc) are Ofcom-regulated, QNA has assigned Carter-Ruck to file a complaint
with Ofcom to draw the attention to the two channels' breach of its
Broadcasting Code, including those sections requiring due impartiality and due
accuracy in the news.
The Qatar Government Communication Office (GCO) and the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs swiftly issued press statements about the hack of QNA and
clarifying the true position towards the fabricated statements. The GCO also
took the precaution of contacting broadcasters directly so as to ensure that
matters were entirely clear. The majority of the world's media responded
accordingly, informing the public of the hack and correcting any misleading
impression that had been conveyed by earlier reports. However, notwithstanding
the general response, Al-Arabiya and Sky News Arabia continued to report the
falsely attributed statement with great prominence.
Third: High Commission for Human Rights:
1-
A complaint submitted to H.E. Prince Zeid bin
Ra’ad Zeid Al-Hussein, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, on the
arbitrary measures taken by a number of countries against the State of Qatar, that
violate the rights stipulated in the international conventions and treaties,
particularly with regard to the dispersal of families, tearing the family
fabric and forced deportation of workers, students and private property.
2-
The High Commissioner issued a statement on 14 June 2017 under the
title "The Qatari Diplomatic Crisis: Comment by the United Nations High
Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Bin Ra’ad Al-Hussein on Impact on the Human
Rights”, which states the following:
“It is becoming clear that the measures being adopted are
overly broad in scope and implementation, and have the potential to seriously
disrupt the lives of thousands of women, children and men, simply because they
belong to one of the nationalities involved in the dispute. Saudi Arabia, the
UAE and Bahrain have issued directives to address the humanitarian needs of
families with joint nationalities, but it appears that these measures are not
sufficiently effective to address all cases.
We are receiving reports that specific individuals have
already been summarily instructed to leave the country they are residing in, or
have been ordered to return home by their own Government. Among those likely to
be badly affected are couples in mixed marriages, and their children; people
with jobs or businesses based in States other than that of their nationality;
and students studying in another country.
I am also extremely troubled to hear that the UAE and Bahrain
are threatening to jail and fine people who express sympathy for Qatar or
opposition to their own Governments’ actions, as this would appear to be a
clear violation of the right to freedom of expression or opinion.
I urge all the States involved to solve this dispute as
quickly as possible through dialogue, to refrain from any actions that could
affect the well-being, health, employment and integrity of their inhabitants,
and to respect their obligations under international human rights law.”
3-
An appointment was made with His Excellency the High Commissioner
for Human Rights on 22 June 2017 to urge him to take further action and issue a
statement with a stronger language than Statement I.
Fourth: International Maritime Organization (IMO):
A complaint was lodged with the Secretary-General of the
International Maritime Organization (IMO), Mr. Kitack Lim. The latter delivered
a letter from the Minister of Transport and Communications concerning the
violation of international maritime conventions by Saudi Arabia, the United
Arab Emirates and the Kingdom of Bahrain through the embargo imposed on the prohibition
of Qatari maritime shipping in violation of maritime agreements
and conventions, particularly the 1982 Convention. The meeting
was attended by a group of officials of the International Maritime Organization
and a number of officials of the Ministry of Transport in Qatar.
Fifth: United Nations Educational, Scientific
and Cultural Organization (UNESCO):
1-
H.E. Dr. Mohammed Bin Abdul Wahab Al Hammadi, Minister of
Education and Higher Education and Chairman of the Qatar National Committee for
Education, Culture and Science (QNCECS) has communicated
with H.E. Ms. Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO, on the damage caused to
Qatari and non-Qatari students following the issuance of the boycotting countries
(Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and the Kingdom of Bahrain) illegal
laws that contravene international conventions and directly affect education.
2-
The Minister of Education and Higher Education has requested
UNESCO to issue an urgent statement calling upon the boycotting countries to respect
the rights of students to education and to distance them from political
differences and to call on these countries to immediately abolish these illegal
measures and allow Qatari and non-Qatari students to attend their schools,
colleges and institutions to complete their academic year which is nearing to
finish, and to compensate them for the exams which they missed due to this blockade.
Sixth: A complaint has been filed with the
Public Prosecution to initiate a criminal lawsuit against the Saudi-UAE led systematic
media campaign to tarnish the reputation of the State of Qatar, which began on 24
May 2017 following the penetration of the website of Qatar News Agency (QNA):
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the State of Qatar has filed a
complaint with the Public Prosecutor's Office to initiate a criminal lawsuit and
take necessary measures to prosecute media personals, writers and journalists
who harass the State of Qatar and incite the overthrow of the regime. And to
impose the maximum penalty on them in accordance with the Articles of
accusation stipulated in the Qatari Penal Code No. (11) of 2004, Which
criminalize: threats, defamation, and incitement in one of the public ways to
overthrow the regime or promote it in the State, and publicly slander and
insult.
Seventh: "Terror list of 59"
against Qatar:
1-
A complaint was filed with H.E. Mr. Rashid Khalikov, Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Partnerships with the Middle East on the
so-called "Terror List" issued by the four countries (Saudi Arabia,
United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt) with the names of Qatari humanitarian
charities which are internationally recognized by the United Nations, and requested
H.E. the Permanent Representative to issue an urgent statement.
2-
The United Nations issued a statement on June 15, 2017, rejecting
the terror list released by Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and
Bahrain, which includes 59 figures and 12 entities
allegedly linked to Qatar, stating that the UN is bound only by the sanctions lists put together by UN organs, In addition, its position will not change with the Qatar Charity
Foundation, which has previously worked with UN agencies such as
UNICEF and UNRWA. Also affirmed that the United Nations is also committed to the
sanctions lists issued by the UN Security Council and is not committed to any
other lists.
Eighth: Amnesty International:
A complaint was filed with the Amnesty International regarding the
measures taken against Qatar. The Amnesty International from its part has issued
a statement on 10 June 2017, in which warned that the expulsion of Qatari
nationals by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and the Kingdom of Bahrain in
the backdrop of the diplomatic crisis with Doha, causes
disintegration of Gulf families and spreading fear and suffering.
The human rights organization said in the statement that Saudi
Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain have been disrupting the lives of
thousands of Gulf residents, causing "family disintegration, the
elimination of people's livelihoods and the disruption of students'
study". The statement strongly condemned the threats of the three
countries to impose severe penalties against those who criticize the measures,
saying that these threats represent "a flagrant violation of freedom of expression,
and stressed that these countries should respect human rights and
immediately stop these arbitrary measures.
The statement also stated that the organization has interviewed a
number of Qatari students who were unable to continue their education in the
UAE and Bahrain because of the blockade. One Qatari female student told the
organization that all her lessons in the UAE for the rest of the year had been
automatically canceled after boycotting decision was announced.
Amnesty International noted that "the authority of the State
to regulate and restrict immigration is restricted by international human
rights law,", arguing that "discrimination in treatment between
different categories of non-citizens cannot be justified unless it deemed
necessary to achieve a legitimate objective" and the "arbitrary
division of families as part of policies Immigration violates the right to
family life. "
The Amnesty also mentioned that the relations between the mixed
Gulf families are in danger. The organization criticized the threat of the authorities
of boycotting countries to imprison people who show sympathy for Qatar through social
media and media, saying it constitutes a "repress of freedom of
expression."
Ninth: Human Rights Watch:
1-
A complaint was filed with Human Rights Watch, which issued a
statement on 14 June 2017 condemning the closure of media institutions linked
to the Qatari Government in a number of countries on the background of the
crisis between the Gulf States and Doha, and this was
considered as a violation of freedom of expression.
Mrs. Sarah Leah Whitson, executive director of Human Rights Watch's Middle East Division stated that the “Governments don’t
have the right to close down media outlets and criminalize speech to shut out
criticism they find uncomfortable.” and “the individuals have the right to
express opinions about the current events” and called on the authorities in
those countries to repeal or amend laws used to criminalize the peaceful
expression of opinion”. Whitson also
noted that "the media needs protection from political interference, not official
muzzling, the offending Governments should demonstrate they understand and respect
the role of media, even those they don’t agree with.
2-
On June 19, 2017, a delegation from Human Rights Watch examined
the violations of the rights of citizens of Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and
Bahrain, and the negative humanitarian and human rights effects of the boycotting
and blockade decisions taken by those three countries against Doha.
Officials at
the National Human Rights Committee in Qatar met with a delegation from Human
Rights Watch in the framework of the Commission's moves to explain the humanitarian
and human rights dimensions that resulted from the decisions to sever ties and blockade
taken by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.
A delegation
from the Organization met at the headquarters of the Committee a large number
of affected people from the State of Qatar and the boycotting countries and
listened to their complaints and violations that have taken their rights.
The number
of complaints received by the Committee so far is more than 1750; most of the complainants refused to mention their names or take pictures of them for fear
of monitoring and use pressure on them in the boycotting countries by imprisonment
or confiscation of properties.
Embassy of the State of Qatar
Colombo
Unjust blockade against the State of Qatar
Complaints and actions taken by the State of Qatar
A briefing was given to the permanent members of the United Nations;
also a briefing was given to the member States of the Security Council.
First: filed a complaint with the
International Civil Aviation Organization regarding the opening of airspace:
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has filed a complaint with the
International Civil Aviation Organization to open the airspace and distributed
the complaint to 33 Embassies in the State of Qatar, which represent the
Executive Council of the International Civil Aviation Organization. Also the
complaint was forwarded to the Embassies of the State of Qatar abroad to
contact the civil aviation authorities in those countries to explain the
complaint.
Second: Formal complaint with the British
Broadcasting Corporation regulator (Ofcom)
against Al Arabiya News Channel and Sky News Arabia:
1-
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has prepared the complaint file against
Al Arabiya and Sky News Arabia: the file was prepared in coordination with the
Qatari News Agency (QNA), the Government Liaison Office and the Media Office of
the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
2-
British law firm
"Carter-Ruck" in London was appointed to lodge a formal complaint with the
British Broadcasting Corporation regulator (Ofcom) against the above-mentioned
channels for broadcasting baseless statements
attributed to H.H. Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Emir of the
State Qatar following the hack of Qatar News Agency (QNA) on 24 May 2017. Since Al Arabiya Channel and Sky News Arabia (which is part of the UK
Sky plc) are Ofcom-regulated, QNA has assigned Carter-Ruck to file a complaint
with Ofcom to draw the attention to the two channels' breach of its
Broadcasting Code, including those sections requiring due impartiality and due
accuracy in the news.
The Qatar Government Communication Office (GCO) and the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs swiftly issued press statements about the hack of QNA and
clarifying the true position towards the fabricated statements. The GCO also
took the precaution of contacting broadcasters directly so as to ensure that
matters were entirely clear. The majority of the world's media responded
accordingly, informing the public of the hack and correcting any misleading
impression that had been conveyed by earlier reports. However, notwithstanding
the general response, Al-Arabiya and Sky News Arabia continued to report the
falsely attributed statement with great prominence.
Third: High Commission for Human Rights:
1-
A complaint submitted to H.E. Prince Zeid bin
Ra’ad Zeid Al-Hussein, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, on the
arbitrary measures taken by a number of countries against the State of Qatar, that
violate the rights stipulated in the international conventions and treaties,
particularly with regard to the dispersal of families, tearing the family
fabric and forced deportation of workers, students and private property.
2-
The High Commissioner issued a statement on 14 June 2017 under the
title "The Qatari Diplomatic Crisis: Comment by the United Nations High
Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Bin Ra’ad Al-Hussein on Impact on the Human
Rights”, which states the following:
“It is becoming clear that the measures being adopted are
overly broad in scope and implementation, and have the potential to seriously
disrupt the lives of thousands of women, children and men, simply because they
belong to one of the nationalities involved in the dispute. Saudi Arabia, the
UAE and Bahrain have issued directives to address the humanitarian needs of
families with joint nationalities, but it appears that these measures are not
sufficiently effective to address all cases.
We are receiving reports that specific individuals have
already been summarily instructed to leave the country they are residing in, or
have been ordered to return home by their own Government. Among those likely to
be badly affected are couples in mixed marriages, and their children; people
with jobs or businesses based in States other than that of their nationality;
and students studying in another country.
I am also extremely troubled to hear that the UAE and Bahrain
are threatening to jail and fine people who express sympathy for Qatar or
opposition to their own Governments’ actions, as this would appear to be a
clear violation of the right to freedom of expression or opinion.
I urge all the States involved to solve this dispute as
quickly as possible through dialogue, to refrain from any actions that could
affect the well-being, health, employment and integrity of their inhabitants,
and to respect their obligations under international human rights law.”
3-
An appointment was made with His Excellency the High Commissioner
for Human Rights on 22 June 2017 to urge him to take further action and issue a
statement with a stronger language than Statement I.
Fourth: International Maritime Organization (IMO):
A complaint was lodged with the Secretary-General of the
International Maritime Organization (IMO), Mr. Kitack Lim. The latter delivered
a letter from the Minister of Transport and Communications concerning the
violation of international maritime conventions by Saudi Arabia, the United
Arab Emirates and the Kingdom of Bahrain through the embargo imposed on the prohibition
of Qatari maritime shipping in violation of maritime agreements
and conventions, particularly the 1982 Convention. The meeting
was attended by a group of officials of the International Maritime Organization
and a number of officials of the Ministry of Transport in Qatar.
Fifth: United Nations Educational, Scientific
and Cultural Organization (UNESCO):
1-
H.E. Dr. Mohammed Bin Abdul Wahab Al Hammadi, Minister of
Education and Higher Education and Chairman of the Qatar National Committee for
Education, Culture and Science (QNCECS) has communicated
with H.E. Ms. Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO, on the damage caused to
Qatari and non-Qatari students following the issuance of the boycotting countries
(Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and the Kingdom of Bahrain) illegal
laws that contravene international conventions and directly affect education.
2-
The Minister of Education and Higher Education has requested
UNESCO to issue an urgent statement calling upon the boycotting countries to respect
the rights of students to education and to distance them from political
differences and to call on these countries to immediately abolish these illegal
measures and allow Qatari and non-Qatari students to attend their schools,
colleges and institutions to complete their academic year which is nearing to
finish, and to compensate them for the exams which they missed due to this blockade.
Sixth: A complaint has been filed with the
Public Prosecution to initiate a criminal lawsuit against the Saudi-UAE led systematic
media campaign to tarnish the reputation of the State of Qatar, which began on 24
May 2017 following the penetration of the website of Qatar News Agency (QNA):
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the State of Qatar has filed a
complaint with the Public Prosecutor's Office to initiate a criminal lawsuit and
take necessary measures to prosecute media personals, writers and journalists
who harass the State of Qatar and incite the overthrow of the regime. And to
impose the maximum penalty on them in accordance with the Articles of
accusation stipulated in the Qatari Penal Code No. (11) of 2004, Which
criminalize: threats, defamation, and incitement in one of the public ways to
overthrow the regime or promote it in the State, and publicly slander and
insult.
Seventh: "Terror list of 59"
against Qatar:
1-
A complaint was filed with H.E. Mr. Rashid Khalikov, Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Partnerships with the Middle East on the
so-called "Terror List" issued by the four countries (Saudi Arabia,
United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt) with the names of Qatari humanitarian
charities which are internationally recognized by the United Nations, and requested
H.E. the Permanent Representative to issue an urgent statement.
2-
The United Nations issued a statement on June 15, 2017, rejecting
the terror list released by Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and
Bahrain, which includes 59 figures and 12 entities
allegedly linked to Qatar, stating that the UN is bound only by the sanctions lists put together by UN organs, In addition, its position will not change with the Qatar Charity
Foundation, which has previously worked with UN agencies such as
UNICEF and UNRWA. Also affirmed that the United Nations is also committed to the
sanctions lists issued by the UN Security Council and is not committed to any
other lists.
Eighth: Amnesty International:
A complaint was filed with the Amnesty International regarding the
measures taken against Qatar. The Amnesty International from its part has issued
a statement on 10 June 2017, in which warned that the expulsion of Qatari
nationals by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and the Kingdom of Bahrain in
the backdrop of the diplomatic crisis with Doha, causes
disintegration of Gulf families and spreading fear and suffering.
The human rights organization said in the statement that Saudi
Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain have been disrupting the lives of
thousands of Gulf residents, causing "family disintegration, the
elimination of people's livelihoods and the disruption of students'
study". The statement strongly condemned the threats of the three
countries to impose severe penalties against those who criticize the measures,
saying that these threats represent "a flagrant violation of freedom of expression,
and stressed that these countries should respect human rights and
immediately stop these arbitrary measures.
The statement also stated that the organization has interviewed a
number of Qatari students who were unable to continue their education in the
UAE and Bahrain because of the blockade. One Qatari female student told the
organization that all her lessons in the UAE for the rest of the year had been
automatically canceled after boycotting decision was announced.
Amnesty International noted that "the authority of the State
to regulate and restrict immigration is restricted by international human
rights law,", arguing that "discrimination in treatment between
different categories of non-citizens cannot be justified unless it deemed
necessary to achieve a legitimate objective" and the "arbitrary
division of families as part of policies Immigration violates the right to
family life. "
The Amnesty also mentioned that the relations between the mixed
Gulf families are in danger. The organization criticized the threat of the authorities
of boycotting countries to imprison people who show sympathy for Qatar through social
media and media, saying it constitutes a "repress of freedom of
expression."
Ninth: Human Rights Watch:
1-
A complaint was filed with Human Rights Watch, which issued a
statement on 14 June 2017 condemning the closure of media institutions linked
to the Qatari Government in a number of countries on the background of the
crisis between the Gulf States and Doha, and this was
considered as a violation of freedom of expression.
Mrs. Sarah Leah Whitson, executive director of Human Rights Watch's Middle East Division stated that the “Governments don’t
have the right to close down media outlets and criminalize speech to shut out
criticism they find uncomfortable.” and “the individuals have the right to
express opinions about the current events” and called on the authorities in
those countries to repeal or amend laws used to criminalize the peaceful
expression of opinion”. Whitson also
noted that "the media needs protection from political interference, not official
muzzling, the offending Governments should demonstrate they understand and respect
the role of media, even those they don’t agree with.
2-
On June 19, 2017, a delegation from Human Rights Watch examined
the violations of the rights of citizens of Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and
Bahrain, and the negative humanitarian and human rights effects of the boycotting
and blockade decisions taken by those three countries against Doha.
Officials at
the National Human Rights Committee in Qatar met with a delegation from Human
Rights Watch in the framework of the Commission's moves to explain the humanitarian
and human rights dimensions that resulted from the decisions to sever ties and blockade
taken by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.
A delegation
from the Organization met at the headquarters of the Committee a large number
of affected people from the State of Qatar and the boycotting countries and
listened to their complaints and violations that have taken their rights.
The number
of complaints received by the Committee so far is more than 1750; most of the complainants refused to mention their names or take pictures of them for fear
of monitoring and use pressure on them in the boycotting countries by imprisonment
or confiscation of properties.
Embassy of the State of Qatar
Colombo
