CCPR/C/128/D/2893/2016
1.
The authors of the communication are Malika Bendjael and Merouane Bendjael,
nationals of Algeria. They claim that Mourad Bendjael, son of Malika and brother of
Merouane, who was born on 12 August 1967 and is also an Algerian national, was a victim
of enforced disappearance attributable to the State party, in violation of article 2 (3) as well
as articles 6, 7, 9, 10 and 16 of the Covenant. The authors further claim to be victims of a
violation of their rights under article 2 (2) and (3) as well as articles 7, 14, 17 and 21 of the
Covenant with regard to Malika Bendjael, and of article 2 (2) and (3) as well as articles 7, 9,
10, 17 and 21 with regard to Merouane Bendjael. The Covenant and its Optional Protocol
entered into force for the State party on 12 December 1989. The authors are represented by
counsel, Nassera Dutour of the Collectif des familles de disparu(e)s en Algérie.
The facts as submitted by the authors
2.1
On 4 May 1994, at around 11 a.m., Mourad Bendjael and his friend A.B. were arrested
in Algiers by agents of the Intelligence and Security Department. These agents were dressed
in civilian clothing, were hooded and armed, and arrived in a pickup truck. They forced the
two young men into their vehicle at gunpoint, without producing any official document or
arrest warrant or explaining the reasons for their actions. Passers-by witnessed the scene.
2.2 On 6 May 1994 at 2 a.m., about 20 armed Intelligence and Security Department agents,
dressed in civilian clothing, were deployed to the Alger Centre neighbourhood. They
presented themselves at the Bendjael family home, claiming to be police officers and to be
looking for Mourad Bendjael even though the Department had arrested him two days earlier.
Without producing a warrant, they proceeded to search the premises, upending everything in
their path. They questioned all members of the family and arrested Malika Bendjael’s other
two sons, Karim and Merouane.1 On 12 May 1994, the agents returned to the Bendjael family
home to carry out another search. They were accompanied by Merouane, who was wearing
his missing brother’s jacket. On 7 June 1994, A.B. was released. He informed Malika
Bendjael that he and her son had been taken to the Châteauneuf barracks in Ben Aknoun after
their arrest. He also stated that they had been tortured.
2.3
Merouane Bendjael had been held at the Châteauneuf barracks, where he was tortured
for four days. On arrival he caught sight of his brother Mourad Bendjael, lying on the ground
and tied to a pipe in the recess of a corridor. He was very weak and covered in bruises, having
evidently been tortured. During the four days of his detention at the barracks, Merouane saw
his brother Mourad every time the agents took him along the corridor to the torture room.
Mourad Bendjael was always in the same place and in the same state. He was never able to
talk to his brother.
2.4
A fortnight after his arrest, Merouane Bendjael was taken to the office of Officer M.
along with his brother Mourad, who was unrecognizable as a result of the torture he had
suffered. The officer pressed a gun to Merouane’s head and threatened to kill him if Mourad
continued to refuse to talk. He pulled the trigger, but the gun was not loaded. On 12 June
1994, Merouane was brought before the public prosecutor of Sidi M’Hamed Court in
Algiers;2 he was remanded in custody and transferred to Serkadji prison.3 The third brother,
Karim, was freed on 12 June 1994 without even being brought before a court.
2.5
On 21 June 1994, the Bendjael family lawyer lodged a complaint with the chief
prosecutor of the Court of Algiers. 4 To their great surprise, following this complaint the
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Eleven other people from the neighbourhood were arrested that night, including two of the Bendjael
brothers’ friends.
Merouane Bendjael stated that he had been tortured, but the judge took no steps to investigate this
allegation.
On 17 November 1996, Merouane Bendjael was tried by Algiers Criminal Court for “membership of
an armed terrorist group threatening the security of the State” and for theft. Despite maintaining his
innocence, he was sentenced to 5 years’ imprisonment. On 22 April 1999, following an application
for judicial review, he was acquitted by the Supreme Court of Algiers. He provides a certificate of
detention at Serkadji prison, dated 4 April 2006, which attests to his release on 22 April 1999.
The lawyer pleaded a violation of the Code of Criminal Procedure on the grounds that almost 50 days
after his arrest, Mourad Bendjael had not yet been brought before a court and had had no contact with
his family or his lawyer.
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