Tunis Carthage Times

The health of Bechir Laabidi severely deteriorated while in detention. After repeated calls by his lawyers and relatives, he was later transferred to hospital in Tunis. He was present during the whole hearing, which lasted all Tuesday day and night, with only two short intermissions, and which ended early Wednesday morning.

Amnesty International voiced concern that serious violations of fair trial standards were committed during the session at the Gafsa Appeal Court on Wednesday. While the defence lawyers were able to present the case of their clients, they were denied the right to call and cross examine witnesses. Demands of the lawyers that their clients be medically examined for traces of possible torture were rejected by the court and torture allegations disregarded.

"Yet again, the Appeal Court has failed to provide a remedy for government critics whose trial before the Lower Court was badly flawed and unfair," said Malcolm Smart. "It is time that Tunisia's courts give attention to upholding the basic guarantees accorded to all defendants under both Tunisian law and Tunisia’s international human rights obligations."

In a release, the delegation of foreign observers union representing the union SNAPAP (Algeria), CFDT, CGT, FSU and Solidarity (France) present at the trial noted that "The hearing of 33 defendants (5 of 38 defendants were acquitted by Top judges) highlights the injustice that are the sentences handed down against them in the 1st instance.

The delegation highlighted the flaws in the judicial process that did not accept the evidence provided by the accused:
- Torture inflicted on some of them
- Threats to their families and their relatives
- Manipulations have been implemented by government officials and management of the mine
- PV of agreements evidencing the legal framework within which trade union leaders in question have acted.

"The hearing confirms again the choice of the Tunisian government that uses safe way to try to silence the social movement and the just demands peacefully expressed by the people of Gafsa. Multiple falsification of evidence made by the police and representatives of the Ministry of Justice have been highlighted during the trial. "notes the communiqué issued after the trial.

They conclude that "The judge's refusal to provide for a new hearing to allow lawyers to prepare their argument on the basis of new evidence adduced by the accused confirmed this denial of democracy. It highlights the power of interference in this decision which the verdict is dropped after more than 24 hours of order. "

The French Socialist Party has denounced his side "This travesty of justice, up to sentences of imprisonment, could not stifle the legitimacy of a social struggle for the dignity of the miners and their families, nor forget the abuses of a policy that police use of violence or torture as the modus operandi

he Party in its request to the authorities Tunisiennes "the release of prisoners of Gafsa, which had no right to a fair trial and to guarantee the political and social rights for Tunisian citizens, including the right to a fair trial , freedom of the press, freedom of expression and organization of democratic elections in this presidential year in Tunisia, and calls on President Sarkozy to speak on these "trial" and contribute to the release of these prisoners, and end the practice of torture in Tunisian prisons.

Here is the report of the trial according to the data published by the newspaper "Le Temps" Today:

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

	Name	First Sentence	Sentence in Appeal
1	Adnene Hajji	10 years and one month	8 years
2	Béchir Laabidi	10 years and one month	8 years
3	Taïeb Ben Othman	10 years and one month	6 years
4	Adel Jiaar	10 years and one month	6 years
5	Tarek Halaïmi	10 years and one month	6 years
6	Maher Fejraoui	10 years and one month	10 years and one month
7	Hassen Ben Abdallah	10 years and one month	10 years and one month
8	Ridha Amaïdi	2 years and one month	2 year suspended sentence
9	Abid Klaïfi	6 years and one month	2 year suspended sentence
10	Hédi Boussallahi	4 years and one month	3 years
11	Mdhaffar Laabidi	6 years and one month	3 years
12	Ghanem Chraïti	6 years and one month	3 years
13	Haroun Helimi	6 years and one month	4 years
14	Boubaker Ben Boubaker	4 years and one month	3 years
15	Sami Ben Ahmed alias Amaïdi	6 years and one month	4 years
16	Fayçal Ben Amor	6 years and one month	4 years
17	Abdessalem Helali	6 years and one month	4 years
18	Ridha Izziddin	6 years and one month	4 years
19	Fehim Boukaddous	6 years	6 years
20	Hafnaoui Ben Othman	4 years	3 years
21	Mahmoud Raddadi	4 years	3 years
22	Thameur Maghzaoui	2 years and one month	2 year suspended sentence
23	Issam Fejraoui	2 years and one month	2 year suspended sentence
24	Mohieddine Charbibe	2 years	2 years
25	Rachid Abdaoui	6 years and one month	4 years
26	Mouadh Ahmadi	2 year suspended sentence	2 year suspended sentence
27	Abdellah Fejraoui	2 year suspended sentence	2 year suspended sentence
28	Mohamed Beldi	2 year suspended sentence	2 year suspended sentence
29	Radhouane Bouzaïane	2 year suspended sentence	2 year suspended sentence
30	Makrem Majdi	2 year suspended sentence	2 year suspended sentence
31	Othman Ben Othman	2 year suspended sentence	2 year suspended sentence
32	Mohamed Helali	2 year suspended sentence	2 year suspended sentence
33	Mohsen Amaïdi	2 year suspended sentence	2 year suspended sentence
34	Boujemaâ Chraïti	Dismissal	2 year suspended sentence
35	Lazhar Abdelmalek	Dismissal	2 year suspended sentence
36	Ismaïl Jawhari	Dismissal	2 year suspended sentence
37	Habib Khedir	Dismissal	2 year suspended sentence
38	Ali jedidi Ali Jedidi	Dismissal	2 year suspended sentence

The Gafsa region was wracked by a wave of popular protests in the first half of 2008. They began in the town of Redeyef after the region's major employer, the Gafsa Phosphate Company, announced the results of a recruitment competition.

The results were denounced as fraudulent by those who were unsuccessful and others, including the Tunisian General Labour Union (UGTT). The protests developed into a more general protest about high unemployment and rising living costs and spread to other towns as the authorities deployed large numbers of police and other security forces into the region.

Amnesty International considers those sentenced to be prisoners of conscience and has called for their immediate and unconditional release. It has also requested that others be retried in fair proceedings, in accordance with the fair trial guarantees enshrined in Tunisian law and Tunisia's international obligations.