KUWAIT CITY: Kuwait charged a prominent author and government critic on Monday with damaging national interests and undermining the status of the Gulf state’s ruler.
Mohammad Abdulqader Al-Jassem, also a journalist and lawyer, categorically denied the charges, insisting his trial is purely political.
"It is untrue," Jassem said emphatically when criminal court judge Adel Al-Huwaidi read out charges pressed by the public prosecution at the start of the trial.
"This is an entirely political case from start to finish," said Jassem, speaking from a metal cage in a courtroom overcrowded with family members, human rights activists and more than 20 defence lawyers.
Prosecutors accuse Jassem of undermining the status of the emir, attacking the regime and spreading false news about the internal situation in Kuwait that harmed national interests, which carries a penalty of several years in jail.
Initially, Jassem was accused of also instigating to overthrow the regime and remanded in custody for 21 days pending investigations. He has been in detention since May 11.
Defence lawyers called for his immediate release, saying he should be allowed to defend himself since he is a lawyer, because of his bad health and since he is facing charges for expressing opinion.
But the judge ruled Jassem should remain in jail and set June 7 for the next hearing. He also clamped a total ban on the press publishing details of the court proceedings.
Defence lawyer Abdullah Al-Ahmad told AFP the court’s decision to extend Jassem’s detention was a "big surprise for us, since the whole case is political. We had high hopes for his release."
The judge also barred a police captain from returning Jassem to prison after the defendant told the court he had been threatened by him.
Last week, hundreds of Kuwaitis rallied in support of Jassem and called for his release. His supporters plan another rally on Tuesday.
The lawsuit against Jassem, 54, was filed by the minister of the royal court, Sheikh Nasser Sabah Al-Ahmad, the elder son of Kuwait’s ruler.
It was based on articles written by Jassem on his website in the past few months that were deemed very critical of the political situation in the Gulf state, which has been rocked by political crises since 2006.
International human rights organizations have also called for his release.
Jassem was detained for 12 days in November over a lawsuit filed by the Kuwaiti prime minister alleging slander.
Also on Monday, the appeals court overturned a lower court verdict in April to fine Jassem $10,500 for criticizing the prime minister in a newspaper article.
