Background

 

There is little or no news coming out about how they are and why the Ugandan government is accusing them of being 'global terrorists'. Campaigners are concentrating on helping their families cope and the legal case that is being put together to help Kimathi, Awadh and the co-accused (Co.).

 

Condition

 

On December 17th 2010 Al-Amin was denied bail and forced to stay in Luzira prison. There were foreign officials and people from human rights charities who came to the bail hearing. The Judge knew of Al-Amin's poor health but said that Al-Amin's medical records had been 'lost'. The judge also said that the two people that were happy to vouch that Al-Amin will not run off if he was let of out prison before his trial did not have enough identification. But they had brought the full amount needed. This meant that Al-Amin had to stay in the Luzira prison where he is being held in solitary in a cell that has little in it, is full of lice, he gets very little food and only one hour's exercise a day.

 

Harassment

 

Clara Gutteridge from Reprieve, one of the human rights organisations that is trying to help Al-Amin, Omar Awad and Co., went to Uganda to do just that and was arrested by the Uganda security services. She was prevented from speaking to British officials about her arrest. She had gone to see one of Al-Amin's hearings in Kampala High Court in the week beginning 6th December 2010 but never made it. She is the third human rights activist trying to help the eight that have been locked up illegally by the Ugandan government. She says,

 

"The international community must not stand by as one of human rights' most strident defenders is locked away on trumped-up charges by an abusive regime."

 

Story

 

Al-Amin is a person that was working hard to help those who are accused of doing the Kampala bombing in July 2010 to have a fair trial. He has helped hundreds of people who were taken to other countries by force. He is the Director of Muslim Human Rights Forum. He spoke out against governments in East Africa treating people unfairly in the 'War on Terror'.

 

As part of the work he was doing he went to Uganda in October 2010 to check how a number of Kenyans were being treated. They had been taken there illegally and accused of being involved in the Kampala bombings. On the 15th September 2010, as he arrived, he was kidnapped and abused by Ugandan officials. His name was added to the list of people the Ugandan government said helped with the Kampala bombing. They said Al-Amin had given money for rent of a house for one of the bombers before the attack. But they have not shown any evidence for why they are saying these things. They also keep saying the trial will come soon but it keeps being put off. This is very is worrying because with each day that passes, his chances for a fair trial get less and less. If he is found guilty they may kill him for it.

 

Al-Amin knew they may arrest him because he saw those he was working with being rounded up. He was warned that if he went to Uganda, the authorities there will arrest him. He also knew that the FBI, Kenyan and Ugandan police were asking about his organisation from prisoners who were released and came and told him.     

 

Court

 

Only 'summary of evidence' has been released but the reason for Al-Amin, Omar Awadh and Co. being jailed have not been given.

 

There are people being arrested daily in Kenya since the jailing of Al-Amin under a new Kenyan law for 'organised crime organisations'. The Kenyan government says the Somali based fighting group 'Al-Shabab' are a 'crime organisation'. So a lot of people Al-Amin would have helped if he was there in Kenya are being pestered as the Kenyan government finds very few people such as Al-Amin to stop them.

 

Condition

 

Cageprisoners came to know from a trustworthy source that on the 23rd January 2011 Omar Awadh has been interrogated by the MI5 and FBI. The FBI and MI5 are saying they are making plans to send him to the UK or USA. But they have not told him anything about what they are accusing him of. He was snuck out of the prison to a police station for an interrogation by the FBI.

 

Omar Awadh has been held all alone for a whole week and not even allowed to leave his cell. This means he is in there all day and night 24/7.

 

There is evidence that the British government is directly involved in having Omar Awadh locked up without trial and tortured by the Ugandan government. Cars with license plates starting 22CV (for UK vehicles) and 29CB (for US vehicles) have been involved in his case.  

 

The families are very worried and are afraid that their loved ones will be taken to another country by force and without any justice.

 

On the 24th January 2011 a press conference is going to be held to raise voices about the unfairness of how Kimathi, Omar and Co. are being treated.

 

Al-Amin has been treated very badly in prison and is become sicker the longer he is in there. He has problems with his heart already, which is making things worse for him.

 

One of the others has kidney problems. For a long time they would not let him go to hospital. When they finally did, they brought him back to the torture prison without having any medical treatment because they said he was only pretending to be sick.

 

They are being made to live in very bad conditions in the prison cells. They sleep on the hard floor with only one blanket big enough to put on the floor or on themselves. They are locked up for 22 hrs in the day and do not know whether it is day or night. They have been kept away from the other prisoners because the newspapers, radio stations and televisions in Uganda are already saying they were involved in the Kampala bombings. So the other prisoners have been treating them badly also because they think they are guilty because of what they hear. Right now there are two people in one cell except for Awadh who is all by himself and the foreign security services like the MI5 and FBI are grilling him.

 

None of them have been questioned about the Kampala bombings. The questioning is all about ‘Al-Shabab’ in Somalia. Even the FBI said to them that they are not interested in the Kampala bombings but had them brought to Uganda because they are interested in what is happening in Somalia.