Review of the fifth periodic report of Yemen

1.8Arbitrary arrest and incommunicado detention (Art. 2, 9, 19)

1.8.1Domestic law

In conformity with international standards, including Article 9 of the Covenant, Article 48(a) of the Yemeni Constitution provides that “the law shall define the cases in which citizens’ freedom may be restricted. Personal freedom can not be restricted without the decision of a competent court of law”¹⁰¹. Furthermore, Article 48(c) of the Yemeni Constitution specifies that “any person temporarily apprehended on suspicion of committing a crime shall be presented in front of a court within a maximum of 24 hours from the time of his detention” and that “the Judge or Public Prosecutor shall inform the detained individual of the reasons for his detention and questioning and shall enable the accused to state his defence and rebuttal.”¹⁰²

In addition, Article 73 of the Yemeni Criminal Procedure Law No.13 of 1994 ¹⁰³ provides that any person arrested shall be immediately informed of the reasons justifying his arrest, that any person has the right to be presented with the arrest warrant and to contact any person, who in his view, should be informed of the charges. He is also entitled to seek the assistance of legal counsel. Article 269 of the same law provides that any accusation brought against a person, who on this basis is placed in detention, must be examined without delay by a competent tribunal.¹⁰⁴

However, reality on the ground shows that Yemen has failed in practice to provide hundreds, if not thousands, of detainees, including detainees held in National and Political Security detention centers - with the fundamental legal safeguards from the very outset of their detention.