Arrest or detention without evidence or likelihood of crime or without due process
Arbitrary arrest and arbitrary detention is the
arrest or
detention of an individual in a case in which there is no likelihood or
evidence that they committed a
crime against
legal statute, or in which there has been no proper
due process of law or order.[1]
Background
Virtually all individuals who are arbitrarily arrested are given no explanation as to why they are being arrested, and they are not shown any
arrest warrant.[2] Depending on the social context, many or the vast majority of arbitrarily arrested individuals may be held
incommunicado and their whereabouts can be concealed from their family, associates, the public population and open
trial courts.[3][4]
International law
Arbitrarily depriving an individual of their
liberty is prohibited under international
human rights law. Article 9 of the 1948
Universal Declaration of Human Rights decrees that "no one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile";[5] that is, no individual, regardless of circumstances, is to be deprived of their liberty or
exiled from their country without having first committed an actual criminal offense against a legal statute, and the government cannot deprive an individual of their liberty without proper due process of law. As well, the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights specifies the protection from arbitrary arrest and detention by the Article 9.[6] The implementation of the Covenants is monitored by the
United Nations human rights treaty bodies.
Examples
Former Iraqi president and dictator Saddam Hussein subjected people to arbitrary arrest, including people in Kuwait during the First Gulf War. Saudi Arabia and Iran also do similar things.[7][8][9][10][11]