3.2 As far as the allegations under articles 9 and 19 of the Covenant are concerned, Abbassi Madani’s arrest was arbitrary and politically motivated. The charge against him that he had jeopardized State security was political, since no specific act that could in any way be categorized as a criminal offence could be established by the prosecution. He was reproached for having started a political strike that the military, and not the civil legal authorities, had described as subversive. This strike was put down with considerable bloodshed by the Algerian army, despite its peaceful nature and the guarantees provided by the head of Government. Even if a political protest movement could be categorized as a criminal offence, which is not the case under Algerian law, the protest movement had ended following the agreement between the head of Government and the party headed by Abbassi Madani. His arrest by the military police and the charges brought against him by a military tribunal clearly served the sole purpose of removing the president of the main opposition party from the Algerian political scene, in violation of articles 9 and 19 of the Covenant. 3.3 As for the allegations relating to article 14, minimum standards of fairness were not observed. Abbassi Madani was sentenced by an incompetent, manifestly partial and unfair tribunal. The tribunal comes under the authority of the Ministry of Defence and not of the Ministry of Justice and is composed of officers who report directly to it (investigating judge, judges and president of the court hearing the case appointed by the Ministry of Defence). It is the Minister of Defence who initiates proceedings and has the power to interpret legislation relating to the competence of the military tribunal. The prosecution and sentence by such a court, and the deprivation of liberty constitute a violation of article 14. 3.4 With regard to article 9, there is no legal justification for the house arrest of Abbassi Madani. The Algerian Government justified this decision by citing “the existence of this measure in several pieces of Algerian legislation”, in particular article 6, paragraph 4, of Presidential decree No. 99-44 of 9 February 1992 declaring the state of emergency, which was still in force at the time the communication was submitted. According to the Government, this decree was in conformity with article 4 of the Covenant. The Government, however, never complied with the provisions of article 4, paragraph 3, pursuant to which it should “immediately inform the other States parties to the present Covenant, through the intermediary of the Secretary-General of the United Nations, of the provisions from which it has derogated and of the reasons by which it was actuated”. Article 9 of the Criminal Code, which prescribes house arrest as an 136 136 additional penalty, 6 is applied together with article 11, which obliges a person convicted to remain within a geographical area specified in a judgement.7 House arrest may thus only be handed down as an additional penalty in the sentence imposing the main penalty. In the case of Abbassi Madani, there is no mention of any decision to place him under house arrest in the sentence handed down by the Blida military tribunal. At any rate, article 11 of the aforementioned Act lays down five years as the maximum duration for house arrest from the moment of the release of the convicted person. Since at the time the communication was submitted Abbassi Madani had been under house arrest for considerably more than five years, it constitutes a violation of the Act itself, which the Algerian Government is invoking to justify the imposition of that penalty. 3.5 The grounds for placing Abbassi Madani under house arrest are the same as those for his arrest and conviction by the military tribunal, namely the free exercise of his political rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Covenant. This measure therefore constitutes a violation of articles 9, 12 and 19 of the Covenant. State party’s observations on admissibility and on the merits 4.1 On 27 June 2003, the State party pointed out that there is no indication in the communication that Abbassi Madani had given anyone the authority to act on his behalf, as provided for in the rules for submitting communications to the Committee. Mr. Salim Abbassi who claims to be acting on his father’s behalf has not submitted any documentary evidence of his authority to so act. The power of attorney given by Salim Abbassi to Rachid Mesli was not authenticated and should not therefore be taken into consideration. Furthermore, Rachid Mesli submitted the petition in his capacity as a lawyer, when he no longer practises as a lawyer in Algeria, 6 Article 9, Act No. 89-05 of 25 April 1989: “Additional penalties are: (1) house arrest; (2) banishment order; (3) forfeiture of certain rights; (4) partial confiscation of property; (5) dissolution of a legal person; (6) publication of the sentence.” 7 Article 11, Act No. 89-05 of 25 April 1989: “House arrest is the obligation on a convicted person to remain in a particular geographical area, specified in a judgement. Its duration may not exceed five years. House arrest shall take effect from the day the prisoner completes his or her main sentence or upon his or her release. The conviction shall be communicated to the Ministry of the Interior, which may issue temporary permits for travel within the country.” Ordinance No. 69-74 of 16 September 1969: “A person placed under house arrest who contravenes or avoids such a measure shall be liable to a term of imprisonment from three months to three years.”