Brahim Dahane
Encyclopedia
Brahim Dahane is a Sahrawi human rights
activist and President of the Sahrawi Association of Victims of Grave Human Rights Violations Committed by the Moroccan State
, a human rights organization banned by Morocco
. Born in 1965, he lives in El Aaiun
, in the part
of Western Sahara
controlled by Morocco, where he is the manager of an Internet café
.
to welcome the United Nations
' MINURSO mission to El Aaiun. After the demonstrations, he was abducted by Moroccan security forces and held in secret detention centres for four years, when he was released along with approximately 300 other Sahrawi "disappeared". According to Amnesty International
,
In 1994, Dahane and three collaborators travelled to Rabat
with the aim of investigate the possibility of launching a case against the Moroccan state for breach of human rights. This initiative is considered to have been the first step towards organising and coordinating human rights activists in Western Sahara.
On 7 May 2005, he founded the ASVDH, and became its first president
. After protesting police brutality
during the presently ongoing anti-occupation
protests
that broke out in El Aaiun in May 2005, Dahane was detained on October 30, 2005, by Moroccan security personnel. For two days, he was questioned on his relations with international human rights associations and foreign diplomats. He was later charged with "belonging to an illegal organization", namely ASVDH. This was condemned by Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch
and other international human rights organizations, who campaigned for Dahane's release.http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGMDE290072006?open&of=ENG-2MD As part of a general royal pardon, Dahane and other members of ASVDH were set free on April 22, 2006.http://web.amnesty.org/appeals/index/mar-010306-wwa-eng
On 8 October 2009, he was arrested with other six Sahrawi human rights activists (known as "The Casablanca 7") in the Casablanca Airport, when they returned from visiting family members at the Sahrawi refugee camps in Tindouf, Algeria. The Moroccan authorities accused them of "harming state security", and transferred the case to a military court. Dahane was incarcerated in Salé
while awaiting trial.
Dahane, Ali Salem Tamek
, and Ahmed Nasiri were freed on 23 April 2011, just before they were set to begin a hunger strike to protest the conditions of their imprisonment.
for human rights in 2009. He was nominated to the prize by the International Commission of Jurists
. He was awarded in recognition of "unwavering personal courage, employing of peaceful means". Swedish Minister of Culture Lena Adelsohn Liljeroth presented the award and the prize money of 150,000 SEK (14,500 euro) and a sphere in silver, which weighs as much as a human heart, at a ceremony in Stockholm on 16 November. Brahim Dahane is currently in Moroccan prison, so it is unclear whether he will be released to receive the award in person.
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
activist and President of the Sahrawi Association of Victims of Grave Human Rights Violations Committed by the Moroccan State
Sahrawi Association of Victims of Grave Human Rights Violations Committed by the Moroccan State
Asociación Saharaui de Víctimas de Violaciones Graves de los Derechos Humanos Cometidas por el Estado Marroquí Asociación Saharaui de Víctimas de Violaciones Graves de los Derechos Humanos Cometidas por el Estado Marroquí Asociación Saharaui de Víctimas de Violaciones Graves de los Derechos Humanos...
, a human rights organization banned by Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
. Born in 1965, he lives in El Aaiun
El Aaiún
El-Aaiún , is a city in Western Sahara founded by the Spanish in 1928. Administered by Morocco since 1976, El-Aaiún is the capital of what the Moroccan government call the region of Laâyoune-Boujdour-Sakia El Hamra, and POLISARIO call Occupied Territories...
, in the part
Southern Provinces
The Southern Provinces or Moroccan Sahara are the terms used by Morocco for Western Sahara, in reference to the part of Western Sahara that lies to the west of the Moroccan Berm...
of Western Sahara
Western Sahara
Western Sahara is a disputed territory in North Africa, bordered by Morocco to the north, Algeria to the northeast, Mauritania to the east and south, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. Its surface area amounts to . It is one of the most sparsely populated territories in the world, mainly...
controlled by Morocco, where he is the manager of an Internet café
Internet cafe
An Internet café or cybercafé is a place which provides internet access to the public, usually for a fee. These businesses usually provide snacks and drinks, hence the café in the name...
.
Biography
At the age of 22, in 1987 he participated in the demonstrationsDemonstration (people)
A demonstration or street protest is action by a mass group or collection of groups of people in favor of a political or other cause; it normally consists of walking in a mass march formation and either beginning with or meeting at a designated endpoint, or rally, to hear speakers.Actions such as...
to welcome the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
' MINURSO mission to El Aaiun. After the demonstrations, he was abducted by Moroccan security forces and held in secret detention centres for four years, when he was released along with approximately 300 other Sahrawi "disappeared". According to Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
,
In 1994, Dahane and three collaborators travelled to Rabat
Rabat
Rabat , is the capital and third largest city of the Kingdom of Morocco with a population of approximately 650,000...
with the aim of investigate the possibility of launching a case against the Moroccan state for breach of human rights. This initiative is considered to have been the first step towards organising and coordinating human rights activists in Western Sahara.
On 7 May 2005, he founded the ASVDH, and became its first president
President
A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
. After protesting police brutality
Police brutality
Police brutality is the intentional use of excessive force, usually physical, but potentially also in the form of verbal attacks and psychological intimidation, by a police officer....
during the presently ongoing anti-occupation
Military occupation
Military occupation occurs when the control and authority over a territory passes to a hostile army. The territory then becomes occupied territory.-Military occupation and the laws of war:...
protests
Independence Intifada
The Independence Intifada is a Saharawi Polisario activist coinage for a series of disturbances, demonstrations and riots that broke out in May 2005 in the Moroccan-held parts of Western Sahara. This event has also been called "The El-Aaiun Intifada" by the same sources...
that broke out in El Aaiun in May 2005, Dahane was detained on October 30, 2005, by Moroccan security personnel. For two days, he was questioned on his relations with international human rights associations and foreign diplomats. He was later charged with "belonging to an illegal organization", namely ASVDH. This was condemned by Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Its headquarters are in New York City and it has offices in Berlin, Beirut, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Paris, San Francisco, Tokyo,...
and other international human rights organizations, who campaigned for Dahane's release.http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGMDE290072006?open&of=ENG-2MD As part of a general royal pardon, Dahane and other members of ASVDH were set free on April 22, 2006.http://web.amnesty.org/appeals/index/mar-010306-wwa-eng
On 8 October 2009, he was arrested with other six Sahrawi human rights activists (known as "The Casablanca 7") in the Casablanca Airport, when they returned from visiting family members at the Sahrawi refugee camps in Tindouf, Algeria. The Moroccan authorities accused them of "harming state security", and transferred the case to a military court. Dahane was incarcerated in Salé
Salé
Salé is a city in north-western Morocco, on the right bank of the Bou Regreg river, opposite the national capital Rabat, for which it serves as a commuter town...
while awaiting trial.
Dahane, Ali Salem Tamek
Ali Salem Tamek
Ali Salem Tamek is a Moroccan Sahrawi independence activist, human rights defender and trade unionist.Ali Salem Tamek was born in Assa, southern Morocco. He has emerged as one of the most outspoken Sahrawi dissidents under Moroccan rule. He is vice president of the Collective Of Sahrawi Human...
, and Ahmed Nasiri were freed on 23 April 2011, just before they were set to begin a hunger strike to protest the conditions of their imprisonment.
Awards and Nominations
Brahim Dahane, won the Per Anger AwardPer Anger
Per Johan Valentin Anger was a Swedish diplomat who participated in numerous efforts to rescue Hungarian Jews from arrest and deportation by the Nazis during World War II.-Early career:...
for human rights in 2009. He was nominated to the prize by the International Commission of Jurists
International Commission of Jurists
The International Commission of Jurists is an international human rights non-governmental organization. The Commission itself is a standing group of 60 eminent jurists , including members of the senior judiciary in Australia, Canada, and South Africa and the former UN High Commissioner for Human...
. He was awarded in recognition of "unwavering personal courage, employing of peaceful means". Swedish Minister of Culture Lena Adelsohn Liljeroth presented the award and the prize money of 150,000 SEK (14,500 euro) and a sphere in silver, which weighs as much as a human heart, at a ceremony in Stockholm on 16 November. Brahim Dahane is currently in Moroccan prison, so it is unclear whether he will be released to receive the award in person.
External links
- ASVDH - Official website
See also
- Ali Salem TamekAli Salem TamekAli Salem Tamek is a Moroccan Sahrawi independence activist, human rights defender and trade unionist.Ali Salem Tamek was born in Assa, southern Morocco. He has emerged as one of the most outspoken Sahrawi dissidents under Moroccan rule. He is vice president of the Collective Of Sahrawi Human...
- Aminatou HaidarAminatou HaidarAminatou Ali Ahmed Haidar , sometimes known as Aminetou,Aminatu or Aminetu, is a Sahrawi human rights defender and political activist. She is a leading activist for the independence of Western Sahara. She is sometimes called the "Sahrawi Gandhi" for her nonviolent protests, including hunger...
- Muhammad Daddach
- Mohamed ElmoutaoikilMohamed ElmoutaoikilMohamed Cheikh Elmoutaoikil is a Moroccan Sahrawi human rights defender active in Western Sahara and Morocco. He is the father of three children. He holds a degree in Geology...
- Human rights in Western SaharaHuman rights in Western SaharaMorocco sees Western Sahara as its Southern Provinces. Morocco considers the Polisario Front as a separatist movement given the Moroccan origins of many of its leaders, and a puppet in the hands of Algeria....