Brotherhood detainees in UAE make confessions

Activists belonging to the Muslim Brotherhood, who were detained in the UAE in a legal rights case, are being tried based on the Article No.180 of the Penal Code which bans establishing clandestine organisations, official sources revealed to Al Khaleej. The sources categorically denied claims that the detainees have been tortured, asserting that the allegation is pure fabrication. The sources stressed that torture is not in tune with values of the Emirates; nor does it conform to the qualities of the country’s Rulers. Al Khaleej learnt that the Public Prosecution has gone a long way in the interrogation of 60 detainees, whose cases would be referred to the concerned court soon. Some of them acknowledged the presence of a clandestine organisation in the country to which they belong, the official sources said. The activists also admitted that they have sought to collect money, investments and portfolio of their own, adding that they communicate with the international organisation of the Muslim Brotherhood and other bodies. The prosecution learnt that they run branches and offices to promote their ideas all over the Emirates. Members of the organisation also admitted that they took advantage of the Arab Spring and their strategic objective is to seize power and establish a religious government or the State of Caliphate. The prosecution charged the detainees with forming an organisation that does harm to the state security and the principles on which the state is based on, in addition to having contacts with foreign communities, in a bid to doing harm to the political leadership. Interrogations have revealed that the leadership structure of that organisation includes committees and secondary offices in each emirate, in addition to a Shura council, an executive office and a military wing. The sources affirmed that the technique of the organisation relies on hitting the legitimacy of the country, spreading fabricated stories about corruption allegations, and degrading the prosperous living conditions in which people live in the UAE as fake and illusive. It was affirmed also that they have extensive co-ordination with Brotherhood in some GCC countries. The Brotherhood of the UAE received Dhs10 million, as “the local organisation suffers tough conditions at the moment.”   The sources also denied a rumour that the accused are not able to hire a lawyer and pointed out that there are eight lawyers defending them. They estimated the number of people who joined the organisation or those affected by it at hundreds and less than 1,000, underlining the neutral and fair legal procedures taken by the UAE in dealing with this case, considering that the UAE is a state of justice, constitution, law and institutions and that the proceedings would be announced transparently where those involved will be justly treated. Article 180 of the Penal Code reads: “Whoever establishes, founds, organises, or administers an association, corporation, organisation or any branch thereof, with the aim of overthrowing the regime of the State, or publicising it where the use of force is noticeable, shall be punished by temporary imprisonment. “Whoever joins an association, corporation, organisation or branch thereof, or whoever knowingly participates in any of them, shall be punished by imprisonment for a period not exceeding five years. Whoever receives or obtains funds of any kind from a person or body abroad, whether directly or through an intermediary, shall be punished by detention or by a fine or by either one of these two penalties, if the purpose of this is to publicise any of the things provided for in this Article.” From gulftoday