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Wife of academic jailed in UAE says he told her he was feeling ill UAE considers clemency appeal for Matthew Hedges
(about 1 hour later)
A British academic who was sentenced to life in prison after being accused of spying for the UK government in the United Arab Emirates has told of feeling unwell in a telephone conversation with his wife. The family of a British academic who was convicted of spying in the United Arab Emirates has appealed for clemency, the country’s ambassador to the UK has said.
Daniela Tejada said she had spoken to her husband, Matthew Hedges, on Thursday night. Sulaiman Almazroui told a press conference in London on Friday that his government was considering the appeal and would respond in due course but he defended the process under which Matthew Hedges was convicted.
She told BBC Breakfast her conversations with her husband had been very closely monitored so there was a limit to what she could tell him of the efforts to secure his release. The jailing of Hedges, a 31-year-old Durham University PhD student, sparked a public outcry this week, with the Gulf state being accused of a miscarriage of justice.
Hedges’s wife, Daniela Tejada, had said she believed the UK government had been putting its interests above her husband’s fight for freedom.
She said had spoken to her husband on Thursday night and he had complained of feeling unwell.
Almazroui said: “Matthew Hedges was not convicted after a five-minute show trial, as some have reported. Over the course of one month, three judges evaluated compelling evidence in three hearings.
“They reached their conclusions after a full and proper process. This was an extremely serious case. We live in a dangerous neighbourhood and national security must be a top priority.
“Mr Hedges’s family have made a request for clemency and the government is studying that request. The British foreign secretary, Jeremy Hunt, had a good conversation yesterday with our foreign minister.”
He emphasised the close ties between Britain and the UAE, adding: “Because of the strength of that relationship we are hopeful that an amicable solution can be reached.”
Tejada confirmed that an appeal for clemency had been lodged with the UAE government adding: “We will wait to see what happens.”
Hedges, originally from Exeter, was arrested at Dubai airport on 5 May. He says he is innocent and was in the country conducting research on the UAE’s security strategy for his PhD thesis, but prosecutors claimed he confessed to charges.
Tejada told BBC Breakfast her conversations with her husband had been closely monitored so there was a limit to what she could tell him of the efforts to secure his release.
“I tried to reassure him and to tell him that he had 10 times as much support as before,” Tejada said.“I tried to reassure him and to tell him that he had 10 times as much support as before,” Tejada said.
Hedges, 31, has been in a UAE prison for more than six months. The Durham University PhD student went to the country to research his thesis and was sentenced at a court in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday in a hearing that lasted less than five minutes, with no lawyer present. Hedges has been in a UAE prison for more than six months. He went to the UAE to research his thesis and was sentenced at a court in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday in a hearing that lasted less than five minutes, with no lawyer present.
His wife, who was in the courtroom, said Hedges began shaking when the verdict was read out.His wife, who was in the courtroom, said Hedges began shaking when the verdict was read out.
The UAE has since said it wants to reach an amicable conclusion to the dispute.The UAE has since said it wants to reach an amicable conclusion to the dispute.
The apparent change in tone, viewed as a possible precursor to an act of clemency, came after the British foreign secretary, Jeremy Hunt, warned of serious diplomatic consequences if Hedges were not released, and followed a torrent of cross-party criticism in the UK accusing the UAE courts of a miscarriage of justice. The apparent change in tone, which was viewed as a possible precursor to an act of clemency, came after Hunt warned of serious diplomatic consequences if Hedges were not released, and followed a torrent of cross-party criticism in the UK accusing the UAE courts of a miscarriage of justice.
Sulaiman Almazroui, the UAE’s ambassador to the UK, was due to issue a statement at 10am on Friday setting out the next steps in his country to secure Hedges’ release. Consultations took place overnight in the UAE with the foreign minister, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahyan.
Consultations took place overnight in the UAE with the foreign minister, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahyan. The Foreign Office is increasingly optimistic that the UAE, a longstanding British ally, wants to avoid a diplomatic confrontation with London, or find itself in a similar place to Saudi Arabia, which has suffered reputational damage following the killing of the journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
Academics have said Hedges may have inadvertently put himself at risk by his “sharp analysis” of the UAE’s shifting security politics. The country presents itself as a modernising, socially liberal force in the Gulf, but dissent is repressed.Academics have said Hedges may have inadvertently put himself at risk by his “sharp analysis” of the UAE’s shifting security politics. The country presents itself as a modernising, socially liberal force in the Gulf, but dissent is repressed.
On Thursday, Tejada said she wanted Hunt to do whatever it took to bring her husband home. She said it was absurd that the UAE had found Hedges guilty of spying on an ally of Britain, and accused the Foreign Office of refusing to take the case seriously at the outset. On Thursday, Tejada said she wanted Hunt to do whatever it took to bring her husband home. She said it was absurd the UAE had found Hedges guilty of spying on an ally of Britain, and accused the Foreign Office of refusing to take the case seriously at the outset.
Tejada said the Foreign Office had repeatedly told her it had no duty of care for Hedges. “I was under the impression that they were putting their interests with the UAE above a British citizen’s right to freedom and a fair trial. They were treading on eggshells,” she said.Tejada said the Foreign Office had repeatedly told her it had no duty of care for Hedges. “I was under the impression that they were putting their interests with the UAE above a British citizen’s right to freedom and a fair trial. They were treading on eggshells,” she said.
But in a later statement issued after her meeting with Hunt, she toned down her criticism, saying: “[Hunt] has assured me that he and his team are doing everything in their power to get Matt free and return him home to me. This is not a fight I can win alone and I thank the Foreign Office for now standing up for one of their citizens.”But in a later statement issued after her meeting with Hunt, she toned down her criticism, saying: “[Hunt] has assured me that he and his team are doing everything in their power to get Matt free and return him home to me. This is not a fight I can win alone and I thank the Foreign Office for now standing up for one of their citizens.”
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