On April 15, 2006, all charges against human rights defender and lawyer Dr. Muhamad Mugraby were dropped by a higher military court , apparently in response to a world wide campaign condemning his prosecution. Dr. Mugraby had been charged with the crime of "defaming the military establishment and its officers." The trial in this case was set for Monday, April 17, 2006. To assist in his defense the Dutch Lawyers For Lawyers Foundation sent a delegation of seven lawyers from Amsterdam, namely Willem van Manen, Leo Spigt, Christien Wildeman, Judith Lichtenberg, Ilan de Vré, Jens van den Brink, and Gerrard Boot. The delegation also included a member of the British House of Commons, Julian Brazier. Observers from various international human rights organizations have been gathering in Beirut to attend the trial, now canceled.
The Military Court of Cassation held that the statements of Dr. Mugraby at the European Parliament were general, comprehensive and highly critical of all Lebanese state authorities and agencies without exception. The court added that such statements were not directed specifically against the military justice system or its officers and hence did not constitute the crime provided under Article 157 of the Military Justice Code. Dr. Mugraby, acknowledged the court, considered the statements to fall within his right of free expression.
On another front, the organizers of the rally called for the morning of April 17th near the military court building in support of Dr. Mugraby announced that they are going ahead with it as part of the continued action in support of human rights and democracy in Lebanon.
Attorney Muhamad Mugraby has called for a press conference jointly with his Lebanese and European lawyers, representatives of human rights organizations, and British MP Julian Brazier, on Monday April 17th, at 12:00 noon at the Meridien Commodore Hotel, Hamra, Beirut, to discuss the impact of the ruling.

IDHAE as several international human rights organizations had strongly protested the prosecution had announced their support for Dr. Mugraby, and demanding that his trial be cancelled. Those organizations included Amnesty International, International Commission of Jurists, Human Rights Watch, and Article 19 Organization. On February 9, 2006, parliamentary leaders from the European Parliament, including the head of the subcommittee on human rights, addressed a letter to the Lebanese government demanding that all charges against Dr. Mugraby be dropped. Mr. Joe Stork of Human Rights Watch said in a statement that Dr. Mugraby's prosecution casts doubt on Lebanon's commitment to human rights reform. Ironically, Mr. Fouad Siniora, prime minister of Lebanon, is due in Brussels today for talks on European economic aid for the country.

For more Read : Syria's puppets in Beirut continue persecuting a Lebanese dissident. By CLAUDIA ROSETT at http://www.opinionjournal.com/columnists/cRosett/?id=110007489

Background :

Dr. Muhamad Mugraby, a Lebanese attorney with a busy corporate and commercial law practice in Beirut, is also a well-known defender of human rights in his country. He has long championed the independence of the judiciary, not only in Lebanon but regionwide. In 1967, he introduced civil rights and civil liberties as courses at the Lebanese University School of Law, where he taught for many years. He is also an outspoken critic of Syria's increasingly tight grip on Lebanon, and believes that human rights in Lebanon cannot be restored without addressing the harmful impact of the ubiquitous Syrian role in the country's affairs.

As a human rights lawyer and activist, Dr. Mugraby has focused on some of the most serious human rights problems in Lebanon, such as incommunicado detention, torture, and the expanding use of military courts to try civilians. He is not afraid to take on politically sensitive cases. He has represented property owners and tenants in the old city of Beirut who have challenged unlawful practices of Prime Minister Hariri's Solidere-- the multi-billion-dollar real estate company -- carrying out the controversial physical reorganization of downtown Beirut. In March 1997, he made formal written complaints to Lebanon's public prosecutor about the unlawful detention of two Lebanese who "disappeared" in January and in March, were transferred into Syrian custody, and held incommunicado in Damascus. Both demarches called on Lebanese authorities to investigate these cases, and prosecute the perpetrators and their accomplices. There are two lawsuits pending before the Beirut court of appeals by the Beirut prosecutors aimed at striping him of his lawyer’s immunity because of a fax he sent to Amnesty International and allegations brought by Solidere, the real estate development company that holds a controversial and unconstitutional concession over central Beirut.

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All AI Documents on Lebanon: http://amnesty-news.c.topica.com/maaenphabnnehbb0hPub/