| Tuhama Mahmoud Ma'rouf تهامة محمود معروف | |
|---|---|
| Born | b. 1964 |
| Nationality | Syrian |
| Alma mater | Aleppo University |
| Occupation | dentist |
| Known for | 2010–11 imprisonment |
| Political party | Communist Labour Party |
| Spouse | Bakr Sidqi |
Tuhama Mahmoud Ma'rouf (Arabic: تهامة محمود معروف; born 1964) is a Syrian dentist who was detained from February 2010 to June 2011 for her involvement in the banned Communist Labour Party in the early 1990s. Amnesty International designated her a prisoner of conscience, "detained solely for the peaceful exercise of her right to freedom of expression and association".
Arrest and imprisonment
Ma'rouf was originally detained in 1993 for her involvement with the PCA, along with eight other female activists. The arrests were part of a general crackdown on the party which effectively destroyed it.
She was then found guilty and sentenced in absentia on 5 November 1995 by the Supreme State Security Court (SSSC) of violating Article 306 of Syria's Penal Code, "membership in a secret organization which aims to change the economic and social status of the state". However, for unknown reasons, authorities did not arrest her to begin her sentence until 6 February 2010 in Aleppo. Three days later, she appeared before the court and was ordered to be transferred to Adra prison to serve her sentence of six years' imprisonment. On 18 February 2011, she began a hunger strike to demand a transfer to a woman's prison.
Amnesty International protested her imprisonment and called for her immediate release, as did the Committee on Human Rights of the US National Academy of Sciences, the Damascus Center for Human Rights Studies, and Human Rights Watch.
Ma'rouf was released on 2 June 2011 as part of a general amnesty for political dissidents following the start of the Arab Spring protests.
Personal life
Ma'rouf received a degree in dentistry from Aleppo University in 1997. Her husband, Bakr Sidqi, is a writer and former political prisoner; they have two children.
References
- ^ "Urgent Action: Female Political Prisoner on Hunger Strike". Amnesty International. 4 March 2011. Retrieved 23 January 2012.
- "Further information on UA 292/93 (MDE 24/07/93, 26 August 1993) Fear of torture/legal concern". Amnesty International. 2 December 1993. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
- ^ "Case Information". Committee on Human Rights of the US National Academy of Sciences. 2012. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
- "Female Political Prisoner on Hunger Strike". Damascus Center for Human Rights Studies. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
- "Syria: Transfer Women Out of Male Prison". Human Rights Watch. 12 November 2010. Retrieved 24 January 2012.