TUNISIA: HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS UNJUSTLY HELD

Your Excellency,

I write to you to express my grave concern over the prolonged detention of human rights defenders, Mustapha Djemali and Abderrazek Krimi.

The charges for their detention are solely based on their legitimate work at the Tunisian Council of Refugees (Conseil Tunisien pour les Refugies – CTR). Their detention is arbitrary as defending refugee and migrant rights is not a legitimate offense under international law and should never be equated with human smuggling or trafficking, in line with the UN Convention on Transnational Organized Crime and its Trafficking and Smuggling Protocols ratified by Tunisia.

Tunisia is a party to the 1951 Refugee Convention which gives refugees the right to identity and travel documents, work, housing, education and relief, and protection from sanction for irregular entry. Following their arrest, the CTR suspended its activities, triggering critical disruptions in access to asylum procedures and basic services including health assistance, shelter, and child protection.

I urge you to ensure that authorities drop all charges against Mustapha Djemali and Abderrazek Krimi and immediately release them. Pending this, I urge you to ensure that authorities provide them with access to the medication they require urgently. I also call on your government to cease targeted arrests of human rights defenders and allow them to operate in a safe and enabling environment without reprisals.

Yours sincerely,

[YOUR NAME]