The Prison Called Yemen #8: Alia al Wazer Prevented from Travel to Freedom House Conference
Alia al Wazir was stopped in the airport en route to a Freedom House conference and prohibited from leaving the country. No male escort (mahram) was the official reason, not that there’s a law on the books to that effect, and its likely due to the trial of her husband, UN employee Walid Sharaf al-Din, charged with communicating with Iran. The National Security can’t prevent al Qaeda from exiting and entering Yemen but they do a whopper of a job on the activists, journalists and civil rights workers. Update: the state hasn’t presented any evidence against al Din and his lawyers demanded the judge recuse himself. The trial has been continually postponed.
al Eshteraki: منعت سلطات مطار صنعاء الدولي زوجة معتقل في الأمن السياسي من السفر إلى بيروت يوم الأحد. Authorities banned Sana’a International Airport wife was detained in the political security of travel to Beirut on Sunday.
وقالت علياء الوزير زوجة المعتقل وليد شرف الدين للاشتراكي نت إن ضابط الأمن في المطار اعترض على بيان في جواز سفرها وادعى أن ذلك لايسمح لها بالسفر وحدها. Alia minister wife of the detainee Walid Sharaf al-Din of the socialist revealed that the security officer at the airport objected to the statement in her passport and claimed that it does not allow her to travel alone.
وأوضحت الوزير أن ضابط الأمن قال لها إنها “ربة بيت” ويحظر عليها السفر وحيدة دون محرم. The minister explained that the security officer told her she “housewife” and are prohibited from traveling alone without a mahram.
وحين اعترضت الوزير على الضابط بعدم وجود قانون بشأن ذلك، رد عليها مستهزئاً بأن قانوناً صدر قبل عشرة دقائق بذلك. When the officer objected to the minister that there is no law about it, he responded sarcastically that a law passed by ten minutes to do so.
وقالت الوزير إنها الوحيدة التي منعت من السفر فيما سافر على نفس الرحلة ناشطات أخريات وحدهن. The minister said she would only be barred from travel in traveled on the same flight and other activists alone.
وكانت علياء الوزير متوجهة إلى بيروت لحضور ورشة عمل تنظمها مؤسسة بيت الحرية التي تصدر تقارير سنوية عن الحريات في بلدان المنطقة العربية. Alia was the minister heading to Beirut to attend a workshop organized by Freedom House issued annual reports on the freedoms in the countries of the Arab region.
واعتقل جهاز الأمن القومي وليد شرف الدين زوج علياء في 25 أغسطس 2009 بتهمة التخابر لصالح إيران وقد أحاله للمحاكمة في المحكمة الجزائية المتخصصة. The National Security Service arrested Walid Sharaf al-Din Alia husband in August 25, 2009 on charges of spying for Iran has been referred to trial in the Specialized Penal Court.
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