Skyline condemns Jordanian authorities for the arrest of writer and dissident Adnan Al-Rousan and refers him to court for his articles

Stockholm - Skyline International for Human Rights calls on the Jordanian authorities to release the writer and opposition activist "Adnan Al-Rousan" who was arrested for the articles he wrote and published. It stresses that his continued - unjustified - detention violates the Jordanian Constitution and the rules of international law that guarantee the right to freedom of opinion and expression.

(Monday), Skyline states that it is astonished by the arrest of 71-year-old writer and dissident "Adnan Al-Rousan" by the authorities on August 15 and the start of his trial based on articles he wrote and published on his Facebook account criticizing the performance of the king and some executive bodies.

Skyline" points out that the trial of journalist "Adnan Al-Rousan", who is accused of criticizing the authorities and Jordanian King Abdullah II on social media, held its first session last Sunday, August 21. Asim Al-Omari, the lawyer for writer Al-Rousan, confirmed to the media that his client is accused of "inciting sedition, spreading the seeds of division, spreading false news that undermines the image of the state, defaming an official body and humiliating one of its employees." He stressed that "Al-Rawsan" appeared in court on Sunday and denied the charges against him.

The family of "Al-Rousan" said in a statement that "the writer, known for his oppositional positions and articles critical of the government and decision-making, was arrested at his home on Monday. They stressed that "authorities are trying to persuade people who have criticized Rousan to file a case against him to prolong his detention."

For its part, the Journalists Support Committee, in a statement released the day before yesterday, Saturday, condemned the arrest of the writer and activist "Adnan Al-Rousan" by the Jordanian authorities. This is a blatant violation of all international laws and regulations protecting journalists.

The Committee calls on Jordanian authorities to "immediately and unconditionally release Al-Rousan and reiterate their firm stance of refusing to arrest journalists or activists based on social media postings."

Skyline emphasizes that the Jordanian authorities' continued restrictive behavior toward activists and freedom of expression is a serious violation of the rights enshrined in the Jordanian Constitution and in numerous international agreements guaranteeing freedom of opinion and expression, most notably the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

The organization concluded its statement by calling on Jordanian authorities to immediately and unconditionally release the Jordanian writer and all prisoners of conscience, and to work to ensure that individuals and activists can exercise their fundamental rights, which include first and foremost freedom of expression and opinion without restriction or persecution.