AI Index : MDE 14/046/2005
UA 299/05
IRAQ Kamal Sayid Qadir (m), aged 48, Austrian national, writer
30 November 2005
Writer Kamal Sayid Qadir, who has Austrian citizenship, was reportedly abducted on 26 October, while on a visit to Iraqi Kurdistan, by members of Parastin, the security intelligence service of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), one of two parties holding power in the Kurdish-dominated region. He is being held incommunicado, and Amnesty International fears that he may be tortured or ill-treated. He has not had access to lawyers and to Amnesty International’s knowledge has not been charged or given access to his family.
The Austrian President reportedly raised the case of Kamal Sayid Qadir with the President of Kurdistan, KDP leader Mas’ud Barzani, during a conference in Austria on about 20 November. The Austrian Embassy in the Jordanian capital, Amman, is also said to be investigating the case. Mas’ud Barzani has reportedly given assurances to the Austrian President that Kamal Sayid Qadir will receive a fair tial.
Kamal Sayid Qadir, an Iraqi Kurd who lives in Austria, had reportedly gone to a meeting with KDP officials at a hotel in the city of Arbil. KDP intelligence agents are believed to have seized him because of articles that he had published on the Internet in the weeks before he returned to Iraqi Kurdistan which were critical of the KDP authorities, including Mas’ud Barzani. He has not been seen since.
Amnesty International wrote to Mas’ud Barzani on 3 November, seeking clarification of what had happened to Kamal Sayid Qadir, but has received no reply.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Since 1991 some areas of northern Iraq have been controlled by the KDP and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK). These Kurdish-controlled areas enjoyed substantial autonomy even while Saddam Hussein was in power, and have continued to do so after the 30 January 2005 elections in Iraq for both the National Assembly and a Kurdish Assembly. PUK Secretary General Jalal Talabani was selected by the National Assembly as President of Iraq on 7 April, and KDP leader Mas’ud Barzani was selected by the Kurdish Assembly as President of the Kurdistan region.
RECOMMENDED ACTION : Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible, in English or your own language :
expressing concern that Kamal Sayid Qadir was abducted on 26 October, allegedly by KDP intelligence agents, and is held incommunicado, putting him at risk of torture or ill-treatment ;
seeking assurances that he is being treated humanely and urging that he be given access to lawyers of his own choosing, his family and any medical treatment he may require ;
expressing concern that he appears to have been detained solely for criticising the KDP leadership, and calling on the KDP to release him immediately and unconditionally if this is the case.
APPEALS TO :
Please send appeals via the KDP offices abroad, asking for them to be forwarded to President Barzani :
KDP International Relations Bureau, London, United Kingdom
Fax : +44 20 7498 2531
e-mail : kdpinternational yahoo.com
Salutation : Your Excellency
KDP Europe, Berlin, Germany
Fax : +49 30 797 437 46
e-mail : kdpeurope t-online-.de
Salutation : Your Excellency
KDP Office, Washington, USA
e-mail : pdk7usa aol.com
Salutation : Your Excellency
KDP Office, Ankara, Turkey
Fax : + 90 312 447 3532
e-mail : info kdp-ankara.org.tr
Salutation : Your Excellency
COPIES TO :
Ambassade des Etats-Unis d’Amérique
Boulevard du Régent, 27
1000 Bruxelles
Fax : 02/511 27 25
email : sniderpw state.gov
PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY.
Check with the International Secretariat, or your section office, if sending appeals after 11 January 2006.
