matthew hedges
Forced to stand for whole days in ankle cuffs.
"I thank you all once again, this is very surreal."
The United Arab Emirates has released Durham PhD student Matthew Hedges after an international outcry and intense lobbying from the British government. He was detained on May 5 in Dubai, when he was on a two week research trip to the country. He was charged with spying and was sentenced to life in prison on November 21. His wife Daniela Tejada said his release was “the best possible news” and she’d been “brought back to life”.
If the UK is only going to speak out about human rights when its own nationals like Matthew Hedges are affected, then it will be betraying thousands of brave human rights defenders around the globe
He has been released from prison.
Daniela Tejada, the wife British researcher Matthew Hedges, has said she is "very hopeful" her husband will be granted clemency by the United Arab Emirates, where he has been jailed for life for espionage.
How much longer must we accept that oil-rich countries can operate outside the rule of law simply because they prop up the economies of Western governments?
Richard Ratcliffe says Matthew Hedges is "clearly innocent" and Foreign Office should be vocal in such "spurious political cases".
A family spokeswoman confirmed the news.