While the government did not disclose the names of inmates to be released, a number of political prisoners have already returned home. There were jubilant scenes as Medina Ali was released yesterday, greeted by family members and human rights activist Ebtisam Al Saegh. Three sisters from Diraz convicted in political cases, Iman, Amal and Fatima Ali, were also freed.
Political Prisoner Medina Ali was released under alternative sentencing in #Bahrain today after a royal decree.
Medina was arrested in 2017 and unlawfully sentenced to 3 years imprisonment.
The below video footage shows her joyous return home. pic.twitter.com/DfSktmJPYn
— BIRD (@BirdBahrain_) December 16, 2019
There are now only 2 female political detainees left imprisoned in Bahrain; Zakeya Al Barboori and Hajer Mansoor, whose sentence the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has deemed to be an act of “reprisal” for the activism of her son-in-law, BIRD’s Director of Advocacy Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei.
3 sisters – Iman, Amal and Fatima Ali – all imprisoned on political charges, have been been released on alternative sentencing today under a royal decree.
There are now only 2 female political detainees imprisoned in #Bahrain – Zakeya Al Barboori & Hajer Mansoor. pic.twitter.com/UICbPy8SCw
— BIRD (@BirdBahrain_) December 16, 2019
Despite having under three months of her unlawful sentence left to serve and fulfilling the criteria for a non-custodial sentence, Hajer Mansoor was not pardoned or granted early release. Her requests for alternative sentencing have also been repeatedly rejected without cause, suggesting the government’s decision to be punitive. Other high-profile political prisoners, including Bahrain’s preeminent human rights defender Nabeel Rajab, will also remain in jail, despite eligibility for alternative sentencing, as will opposition leaders Hasan Mushaima, Dr Abduljalil Al Singace and Abdulhadi Al Khawaja.
Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei, Director of Advocacy at BIRD, commented: “It is heartbreaking to see my mother-in-law singled out in a blatant act of revenge for my activism. Despite her eligibility for early release, Bahrain has consistently rejected her requests, demonstrating their continued intolerance for any form of criticism or dissent. Bahrain retains the highest prison population rate in the Arab world, demonstrating that today’s releases are largely symbolic. Without the release of Bahrain’s prominent human rights defenders and opposition figures, the political crisis in the country will remain unresolved.
]]>While three of the four individuals are outside of Bahrain, the fourth individual is being held in detention. The citizenship of all four individuals has been revoked as well. This brings the total number of Bahraini revocation of citizenship cases to 764 since 2012, with an unprecedented 258 cases occurring in 2018 alone. The four individuals were also fined 1,000 BDH each.
The Court convicted:
- Hussain Abdullah Marhoon Rashid: In custody. Hussein had already been convicted in absentia on terrorism-related charges in October 2014.
- Sayed Mohammed Qassim Mohammed Hassan Fadhel: Sayed was already sentenced to life imprisonment in February 2016.
- Hussain Ali Ahmed Dawood: Hussain was already sentenced to life imprisonment three times for three separate cases.
- Ahmed Mohammed Ali Mahdi Ibrahim Zain Al Deen: Ahmed was already convicted on terrorism-related charges.
As this deeply unfair trial concludes, the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (BIRD) condemns the ruling in the strongest possible terms and urges Bahraini authorities to issue a moratorium on executions, pending the abolition of the death penalty once and for all.
Commenting, Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei, Director of BIRD, said: “There is no justice in this verdict. It is now the trend for Bahraini courts to use confessions extracted under torture to sentence people to death. The revocation of citizenship has become as commonplace as speeding tickets in Bahrain, where most victims are left stateless in blatant violation of international law. International monitoring is absolutely vital to ensuring some justice is administered by Bahrain’s kangaroo courts.”
Death Penalty in Bahrain
Despite pressure from the UN and the international community, the death penalty remains an integral part of the Bahraini legal system. There are currently 18 Bahraini nationals on death row, all sentenced in political cases.
In January 2017, three torture victims, Abbas AlSameea, Sami Mushaima and Ali Alsingace, were executed six days after the Court of Cassation upheld their death sentence. This is widely considered to be the first execution related to political unrest in Bahrain since 1996.
Records of Citizenship Revocation per Year
According to BIRD’s documentation, there have been 764 cases in which the citizenship of a Bahraini national has been revoked by the government since 2012.
- 258 in 2018
- 156 in 2017
- 90 in 2016
- 208 in 2015
- 21 in 2014
- 31 in 2012
It appears that Sheikh Isa Qassim has been suffering from an “undisclosed illness” and recently fell and hurt himself.
Doctors from the Bahraini hospital Ibn Al-Nafees advised that Sheikh Isa Qassim be transferred abroad immediately to relevant hospitals with specialised care so that urgent measures can be taken to prevent his condition from deteriorating.
The doctors agreed that London is the most medically appropriate option for Sheikh Isa Qassim, although the precise hospital at which he will receive treatment remains unclear.
On Friday 6 July, Bahrain’s Foreign Minister Khalid Al Khalifa announced on Twitter that the Shia cleric would be able to travel abroad for medical care.
It appears that Sheikh Isa Qassim was issued a temporary passport to enable his visit, as he was stripped of his citizenship on 20 June 2016.
Commenting, the Advocacy Director of the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (BIRD) Sayed Alwadaei said: “The arrival of Sheikh Isa Qassim to London follows a series of violations of his rights. In the last two years, Bahraini authorities have rendered him stateless, placed him under house arrest and denied him access to necessary medical treatment. In May 2017, five people from his village were killed at his doorstep. Although Sheikh Isa Qassim now appears to be receiving appropriate medical care, the ordeal he has suffered remains concerning and cannot be forgotten”.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Timeline
- 20 June 2016: The Bahraini Government announced that it had unilaterally decided to revoke the citizenship of Sheikh Isa Qassim. In response, hundreds of demonstrators began a peaceful sit-in around Sheikh Isa Qassim’s home in the village of Duraz. The cleric is one of 738 people stripped of Bahraini citizenship since 2012, according to BIRD’s research.
- July 2016: Following Sheikh Isa Qassim’s denaturalisation, the Public Prosecution charged Sheikh Isa Qassim with alleged illegal fundraising and money laundering. The charges relate solely to the Shia religious practice of khums, a religious donation to senior clerics who redistribute the money for religious and charitable purposes.
- Since June 2016, Duraz has been under a continuous police blockade. Authorities have cut internet access and have closed most of the roads leading into and out of the village.
- 16 August 2016: Five UN experts urged Bahrain to end its “persecution” of its Shia people.
- Since May 2017, Sheikh Isa Qassim has been under a de facto house arrest.
- 21 May 2017: Sheikh Isa Qassim was sentenced in absentia to a one-year suspended sentence and fined 100,000 Bahraini Dinars two days after US President Trump met Bahrain’s King Hamad in Saudi Arabia and told him there would be “no strain” between their two countries.
- 23 May 2017: The Bahraini authorities brutally crushed the peaceful sit-in initiated by Sheikh Isa Qassim’s followers during a ‘security operation’ using overwhelming force.
- During this operation, which the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights described this event as one of the “deadliest” operations since Bahrain’s uprising began in 2011, 286 protesters were arrested, tens were injured and five were unlawfully killed. No one has been held accountable for their deaths.
- 29 January 2018: Bahrain’s Supreme Court upheld Sheikh Isa Qassim’s sentence.
Health Condition
- Despite Sheikh Isa Qassim’s health deteriorating sharply in the last year, he has repeatedly been denied access to medical treatment. Doctors independent to the Bahraini government were allowed to visit the cleric at his home, due to his family’s insistence to the police. They diagnosed him with a groin hernia requiring emergency operation. He also suffers from high blood pressure, diabetes and a form of heart disease.
- 4 December 2017: Sheikh Isa Qassim was hospitalised.
- 7 December 2017: Six UN experts urged the Bahraini government to “allow Mr. Qassim to receive visitors freely, to ensure that medical staff can treat him without pressure of any kind, and to ensure that he can continue to access the medicines he needs”.
- 8 December 2017: Sheikh Isa Qassim underwent surgery.
- 31 January 2018: Sheikh Isa Qassim returned to the hospital to undergo a hernia surgery. His operation was delayed by almost two weeks by authorities.
24 May 2017 – Five were killed yesterday as Bahraini police used tear gas and shotguns to repress a peaceful sit-in around the home of leading Shia cleric Sheikh Isa Qassim in Duraz. Bahraini authorities continue to surround the town following Sunday’s trial of Sheikh Qassim on unsubstantiated charges, denying dozens of wounded access to hospitals and medical care. We, the undersigned, condemn in the strongest possible terms the government’s lethal raid on the peaceful demonstration in Duraz and call for the withdrawal of the excessive police presence.
Security forces reportedly shot dead Mohamed Khadim Muhsin Zain Al-Deen, a respected environmental activist who served as Deputy President of a local chapter of Friends of the Environment, during today’s raid. Video and photographic evidence seen by the undersigned show police conducting arrests and clearing the 11-month-long sit-in outside the home of Sheikh Isa Qassim, as well as other protesters suffering from shotgun wounds.
Sheikh Qassim, the most senior Shia cleric in Bahrain, was sentenced in absentia on Sunday, 21 May to a one-year suspended sentence for alleged money-laundering. The Government of Bahrain also arbitrarily stripped Sheikh Qassim of his citizenship in June 2016, rendering him stateless. During today’s raid, authorities reportedly entered Sheikh Qassim’s home, although it is as yet unclear if he was personally targeted.
The Ministry of Interior (MoI) announced the Duraz operation this morning and claimed that a number of “fugitives” had been arrested. The MoI appeared to deploy special commando units to raid the sit-in.
Since June 2016, after demonstrators organized a peaceful sit-in to protest the government’s arbitrary denaturalization of Sheikh Qassim, the authorities have blockaded the village of Duraz. Police have blocked off nearly all entrances to the village and established checkpoints at the remaining two, excessively restricting the right to freedom of movement of Duraz’s residents, business owners and visitors. Duraz has also been subject to internet shutdowns.
Moreover, following the revocation of Sheikh Qassim’s citizenship, the Bahraini government launched a campaign targeting other Shia religious leaders. Since June, the authorities have judicially harassed more than 75 Shia clerics for participating in the sit-in or for the contents of their sermons, even preventing some from accessing mosques to lead prayers. In July, the government also dissolved Al-Wefaq, a predominantly Shia opposition society, and, in today’s raid, reportedly arrested the group’s former head of public relations from his home in Diraz.
Last year, the European Union warned that “revoking the citizenship of prominent figures such as Sheikh Isa Qassim risks increasing divisions and sectarian differences” in Al Khalifa-ruled Bahrain.
On Sunday, the same day that Sheikh Isa Qassim was sentenced, King Hamad Al Khalifa of Bahrain met with US President Donald Trump at the Riyadh Summit in Saudi Arabia. The meeting saw President Trump sign a US $110 billion arms deal with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and reassure the Saudi and Bahraini monarchs that “there won’t be strain with [their relationships with] this administration.” In March 2017, the Trump administration decided to lift all human rights conditions on a multibillion-dollar sale of F-16 fighter jets and other arms to Bahrain.
Sayed Alwadaei, the Director of Advocacy at the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (BIRD), said, “The tragic death of a peaceful protester in the crackdown in Duraz this morning follows Trump’s meeting with Bahrain’s authoritarian king last weekend in Riyadh. In this meeting Trump effectively gave Hamad a blank cheque to continue the repression of his people. The US administration has blood on its hands for providing arms unconditionally to the Bahraini regime during an intensified repressive campaign on civil society in Bahrain.”
In a January raid on the Duraz sit-in, masked, plain-clothed officers shot 18-year-old Mustafa Hamdan in the back of the head, rendering him comatose. He died in March 2017. No branch of the security forces have claimed accountability.
“By violently raiding the home of the country’s most prominent Shia cleric, the Bahraini government is purposefully inflaming religious tensions and demonstrating its resolve to crush any form of peaceful dissent,” said Husain Abdulla, Executive Director of Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB). “With the Trump administration’s blessing, Bahraini authorities are brutally stamping out any semblance of opposition and – in effect – making free expression, assembly, and belief capital crimes. It is imperative that the international community vehemently condemn this extremely destabilizing course of action.”
We, the undersigned, are gravely concerned by the Bahraini government’s increasing use of excessive and deadly force to target peaceful protests and suppress dissent. We condemn the lethal raid on Duraz, as well as the judicial harassment of Sheikh Isa Qassim, and urge the Government of Bahrain to immediately end its violent attack on Bahraini civil society.
Signed,
Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB)
Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (BIRD)
European Centre for Democracy and Human Rights (ECDHR)
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27 March 2017 – Bahraini security forces attacked the funeral procession of Mustafa Hamdan with tear gas and shotgun bullets, injuring those gathered. We, the undersigned organizations, condemn this excessive use of force employed by security forces over the weekend during the procession. We call on the security forces to halt their excessive use of force against mourners and peaceful protestors and to allow freedom of movement during funeral proceedings without fear of being attacked.
Mustafa Hamdan died on 24 March at Salmaniya Medical Complex, two months after masked, plainclothes security forces shot him in the head with live ammunition from close range, rendering him comatose. Hamdan was 18 years-old. Security forces shot Hamdan on 26 January as they attacked demonstrators at a peaceful sit-in in Diraz in the middle of the night. Though he was taken to the Bahrain International Hospital, the hospital refused to admit him. His brother took him to Salmaniya Hospital, where security forces awaited them. Because he did not receive the care he needed, he died after falling into a coma. The police’s actions amount to an extrajudicial killing due to their excessive use of force against peaceful demonstrators without trial, judge, or jury. The Bahraini government has neither admitted responsibility, nor initiated an investigation to hold the perpetrators of his shooting accountable.
Hamdan’s funeral was held over the weekend of 25 March and attended by thousands of people. Security forces attacked the funeral, firing tear gas and birdshot pellets at the mourners. Among those hit by the police’s excessive use of force was Mazen Mahdi, a photojournalist. He was targeted with tear gas despite wearing a press vest. Police shot Mahdi with a tear gas canister that hit him on his hand. Witnesses report that a security force-fired tear gas canister was shot into crowd of mourners and caused a woman to faint from excessive tear gas inhalation. Another mourner sustained an eye injury.
The Bahraini government has previously attacked peaceful demonstrators and mourners with birdshot, teargas, and live ammunition. Indeed, Mustafa Hamdan was the victim of such excessive force. The Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR), which regularly documents marches, reported that 68 marches took place around the country during the previous week. Riot police attacked 12 marches, injuring eight people with shotgun bullets. BCHR documented eight injuries from shotgun pellets.
Sayed Ahmed Alwadei, Director of Advocacy, BIRD: “The fact that the security forces attacked the funeral march of a man they killed shows how deep the culture of impunity goes in Bahrain. Mustafa Hamdan’s death is a call to action for the international community, especially Bahrain’s allies in London and Washington, to hold Bahrain accountable.”
Said Yousif Al-Muhafdha, Vice-President, BCHR: “The failure of the Bahraini authorities to open an investigation into the shooting of demonstrator Mustafa Hamdan and punish the culprit contributes greatly to the spread of impunity in Bahrain and protects the violators. We note the utter disregard for a crime of this magnitude, despite the fact that 50 days have passed since the shooting, and the authorities have taken no steps to punish the perpetrators.”
Bahraini security forces have attacked funeral processions before. On 21 May 2014, security forces attacked the funeral procession of Ali Faisal al-Akrawi, killing 14-year-old Sayed Mahmood Mohsen Ahmed. BCHR documented that two officers shot Sayed Mahmood in the chest with shotguns from three meters away. Police officers surrounded him and continued to shoot him. A hospital pronounced him dead upon arrival. On 15 February 2011, police attacked the funeral of Ali Abdulhadi Mushaima, the first victim of the government’s violent suppression of the 2011 mass peaceful pro-democracy protests. During the attack, a police officer shot 32-year-old Fadhel Salman Matrook with a shotgun from several meters away, killing him.
Husain Abdulla, Executive Director, ADHRB: “The violence against the mourners that we saw over the weekend is appalling. We’ve seen time and time again that the Bahraini government refuses to allow peaceful expression in the country, even during a funeral procession. The government must cease the continued perpetuation of state violence and excessive use of force utilized against mourners and protesters in Bahrain.”
We, the undersigned organizations, condemn the Bahraini government’s ongoing use of excessive force against peaceful protesters and funeral processions. We are seriously concerned that the recent re-empowerment of the National Security Agency will lead to an increase in the government’s already over-militarized response to peaceful gatherings. We call on the Bahraini government to immediately cease attacking peaceful gatherings, respect funeral processions, and conduct a serious investigation into the use of excessive force against peaceful protesters. We also call on the government to invite the UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions to visit the country and allow her unfettered access to all areas.
Signed,
Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain
Bahrain Center for Human Rights
Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy
European Centre for Democracy and Human Rights
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24 March 2017 – Mustafa Hamdan, 18, died this morning at the Salmaniya Medical Complex, two months after security forces shot him in head and rendered him comatose. We, the undersigned, consider Hamdan’s death an extrajudicial killing by the Bahraini Government. We condemn state violence employed against peaceful protesters, the denial of medical care, and a systemic culture of impunity within Bahrain’s security forces, which has seen no one held accountable for Hamdan’s shooting.
Hamdan was shot on 26 January, when security forces attacked demonstrators at a peaceful sit-in in Duraz village in the middle of the night. Masked, plainclothes security forces shot Hamdan in the back of the head at a protest with live ammunition. He later succumbed to this wound.
The undersigned spoke to a witness who was meters away from Hamdan when police shot him. The witness states that he was shot by plain-clothed officers from a distance of approximately fifty meters. The witness also reported that there was a large police presence that night, including approximately nine civilian cars with plainclothes officers armed with shotguns loaded with birdshot pellet, pistols and live-ammunition rifles.
According to the same witness, the authorities arrested three people in Duraz that night and took them to the Criminal Investigation Unit (CID) where they were detained for several days. The three individuals were later released. According to our sources, the authorities also arrested one of the medics onsite; he is reportedly still detained. The undersigned were unable to speak to the arrested individuals.
Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei, Director of Advocacy, BIRD: “Mustafa was unquestionably killed at the hands of Bahrain’s security forces. Their reckless shooting at protesters is the action of violent gangsters, not a responsible state. Now he is dead, and the Government of Bahrain is too cowardly to even acknowledge their responsibility, fostering a continued culture of impunity.”
Hamdan was denied the immediate emergency medical care he needed to survive. A resident of Duraz rushed Hamdan to the Bahrain International Hospital. The hospital refused to admit him without a Ministry of Interior (MOI) official present. Sources in the medical field report that the authorities require an MOI official to be present when patients present with injuries that could be sustained during a protest. When the people with Hamdan requested an ambulance take him to the public Salmaniya Medical Complex, this too was refused. Hamdan’s brother arrived and took him to Salmaniya, where 35 members of the security forces and Hamdan’s mother were waiting for them. Hamdan’s mother was reportedly intimidated by the security forces. A medic at Salmaniya told the undersigned there was a “massive” number of security force personnel waiting at the hospital.
Hamdan was finally accepted at Salmaniya Medical Complex, having suffered a skull fracture, concussion and internal bleeding from the shooting. Hamdan has been in a comatose state since the shooting.
The Government of Bahrain has released no statements about Mustafa Hamdan’s shooting. No branch of the security forces has accepted responsibility or faced public investigation. It is suspected that Bahrain’s National Security Agency (NSA), its domestic intelligence agency, was involved in the attack. The government restored the NSA’s law enforcement powers weeks before Hamdan’s shooting. These powers had previously been stripped in 2011, after the NSA conducted mass arrests and tortured detainees, leading to the death of one person in their custody. The government’s decision to re-empower the NSA also walks back one of the only recommendations of the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI) that had been fully implemented.
Husain Abdulla, Executive Director, Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB): “This violent attack on a peaceful gathering – just weeks after the authorities decided to reinstate law enforcement powers for the NSA – is further incontrovertible evidence the Bahraini government is abandoning the reform program inaugurated by the BICI. Mustafa Hamdan is now another tragic, needless sacrifice to the government’s continued failure to institute even basic human rights protections recommended by countless independent institutions – from the BICI to the UN.”
The people who shot Hamdan belonged to the security forces. Bahrain’s public security forces have at times operated in plain clothes for years, and the ammunition used that night – including birdshot pellets – are hallmarks of the Bahraini security forces. Bahrain’s National Institute for Human Rights (NIHR) issued a statement on 30 January acknowledging the head injury of Mustafa Hamdan but blamed the violence of “two groups of masked men exchanging rockets and fires shooting” without reference to the security forces. The NIHR failed to launch an investigation into the shooting. The NIHR’s membership is royally appointed and the institute consistently absolves the Bahraini government of blame of human rights violations, and is not considered independent by NGOs.
The village of Duraz has been subjected to a police blockade since June 2016, when authorities rendered stateless Sheikh Isa Qassim, the most senior Shia cleric in Bahrain. Qassim’s home in Duraz has been the site of a peaceful sit-in since that time. Police have blocked off nearly all entrances to the village and established checkpoints at the remaining two, excessively restricting the right to freedom of movement of Duraz’s residents, business owners and visitors.
Mustafa Hamdan was the victim of excessive use of force at a peaceful demonstration. His right to life and freedom of assembly, as protected under articles 6 and 21 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which Bahrain acceded to in 2006, were violated by the Bahraini security forces. The Government of Bahrain infringed upon Hamdan’s right to health when they did not allow prompt medical care for his injury without MOI officials present at the Bahrain International Hospital.
We, the undersigned, are appalled by the extrajudicial killing of Mustafa Hamdan. We call for an independent investigation into his death and denial of medical care at Bahrain International Hospital, as well as for all responsible parties to be held accountable. We further call on Bahrain to allow the UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary, or arbitrary executions to visit the country.
Signed,
Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain
Bahrain Center for Human Rights
Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy
European Centre for Democracy and Human Rights
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We, the undersigned, in reaction to the statement made today by Bahrain’s Deputy Foreign Minister, Mr. Abdulla Faisal al-Doseri, during the High Level Segment of the Human Rights Council (HRC), are concerned by Bahrain’s continued lack of commitment to the promotion and protection of human rights. Mr. al-Doseri used the opportunity to underscore Bahrain’s legal framework, to highlight national human rights mechanisms and claim cooperation with international bodies and domestic civil society. We would like to call attention not only to the inaccuracy of these claims, but also to the use of empty rhetoric to distract from Bahrain’s widespread and systematic practices of human rights abuse. Furthermore, we are gravely concerned by Mr. al-Doseri’s attempt to frame the ongoing human rights violations in the country – including systematic arbitrary detention and torture; draconian restrictions on free expression, assembly, and association; religious discrimination; and political exclusion – as successful reforms, thus underscores Bahrain’s commitment to further fueling the deepening human rights crisis.
New Laws Threaten Rights
Mr. al-Doseri’s praise of Bahrain’s constitution and expansive legislation to protect human rights, drastically contradict their vague provisions and flawed application in courts. The government has continued to use broadly-defined counterterror legislation to target activists, human rights defenders, and other members of civil society. In January 2017, under the guise of counterterror measures, the authorities further facilitated such abuse by re-empowering the National Security Agency (NSA), to arrest and detain civilians under the anti-terror law, which criminalizes expression of dissent or participating in protests. The Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI) initially recommended that the authorities strip the NSA of its arrest powers due the agency’s direct involvement in the arbitrary detention, enforced disappearance, and torture of civilians in 2011. The reversal of this recommendation – one of only two BICI recommendations that had been fully implemented – is a sign that the the Bahraini government is actively abandoning what few reforms it had previously instituted.
In February, King Hamad of Bahrain began the process of amending Bahrain’s Constitution which would allow military courts to try civilians. The National Assembly has approved the amendment, which will now be referred to the Shura council. The current Constitution prohibits military courts from trying cases of civilians unless the king has declared a state of emergency, thus activating the country’s martial law. The proposed amendment will remove all legal limitations on the martial courts. During the 2011 state of national safety, National Safety Courts oversaw hundreds of unfair trials against protesters, human rights defenders, and political leaders.
Civil Society At Risk
Despite Mr. al-Dosari’s declaration of Bahrain’s commitment to work openly and collaborate with civil society, the government has continued to target civil society and has failed to adequately protect their rights to free expression, assembly, and association. Human rights defenders have repeatedly been harassed and imprisoned for their work. Nabeel Rajab, President of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR) and one of Bahrain’s most prominent human rights defenders, faces up to 18 years in prison in two trials. He has already served over seven months in pre-trial detention, on charges relating to his free expression. Other human rights defenders, such as Abdhuladi Al-Khawaja and Dr. Abduljalil Al-Singace, have remained arbitrarily detained, despite international calls for their release. Many other human rights defenders have also faced reprisals for their work, including interrogations, travel bans and forced exile.
Political Space Closing
In today’s remarks, Mr. al-Dosari condemned the politicization of human rights by some groups for their own political gain. While the government continues to reject attempts by independent human rights groups for the promotion and protection of human rights, Bahrain has also moved to restrict all political space for dissenting views. The Bahraini government has recently escalated its harassment of political opposition societies and dissidents, including by dissolving Al Wefaq National Islamic Society, Bahrain’s main opposition group. The closing of Al-Wefaq’s headquarters and seizing of its assets, in addition to an increase in the prison term of Sheikh Ali Salman, the party’s Secretary-General, from four years to nine, on appeal – represent further restrictive measures on Bahrain’s political space. Members of secular leftist societies including Fadhel Abbas, the former Secretary-General of Al-Wahdawi, and Ebrahim Sharif, the former Secretary-General of Wa’ad have also been targeted.
Religious Discrimination
In his speech, Mr. al-Dosari highlighted Bahrain’s efforts to promote moderation and religious tolerance, all while taking steps to counter radicalization and hate speech. However, discrimination against Bahrain’s majority Shia community has increased dramatically in the past year. Shia individuals are disproportionately targeted by arbitrary arrest, denaturalization, and deportation. Since June 2016, Bahraini authorities have also targeted over 75 Shia religious leaders, nine of which have been imprisoned on charges relating to their freedom of expression or assembly. Sheikh Isa Qassim, the most senior Shia cleric in the country, was stripped of his citizenship in June 2016 and is currently being prosecuted on charges related to the traditional Shia practice of khums. Since his denaturalization, his home town of Duraz has been under police blockade due to widespread protests to his persecution by the Government. Nightly internet blackouts, collective punishment and disruptions to freedom of movement represent just some of the restrictive measures employed by Bahraini authorities in Duraz.
Further, Bahrain has maintained deeply sectarian police and military forces in the kingdom. The Government has maintained its policies to naturalize foreign Sunni nationals into the security forces, who continue to use excessive force against Bahrain’s Shia population. The Bahrain Defense Force also maintains deeply sectarian rhetoric in training manuals and practices.
No End to Impunity
While Mr. al-Doseri expressed pride in Bahrain’s national human rights institutions, he neglected to explain why these institutions have increasingly served to obfuscate allegations of abuse. We have consistently found that Bahrain’s accountability mechanisms – the Ministry of Interior Ombudsman, the Special Investigation Unit (SIU), the Prisoners’ and Detainees’ Rights Commission (PDRC), and the National Institute for Human Rights (NIHR) – operate without the requisite independence from the government and continually fail to bring perpetrators to justice. Most recently, these mechanisms failed to competently investigate credible allegations of severe torture in the cases of Sami Mushaima, Ali al-Singace, and Abbas al-Samea, three individuals who were executed by the Government earlier this year. The SIU dismissed their torture after investigations which did not adhere to international standards. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights condemned the executions, as did the UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial killings, who recently raised doubts over the MoI Ombudsman’s “independence, professionalism and thoroughness.”
Conclusions
Contrary to Mr. al-Doseri’s statement, the human rights situation in Bahrain has declined to one of its lowest points in years. We are gravely concerned by the systematic enforcement of arbitrary detentions, disappearances, torture, and denaturalizations of Human Rights Defenders, unionists and political dissidents. Despite the establishment of several accountability mechanisms, these have failed to effectively address abuses, and have put the lives of the most vulnerable victims – at significant risk. Recent decisions to re-empower the NSA and expand military courts represent further alarming regressions. These indicate that Bahrain is far from walking the path to reform.
Husain Abdulla, Executive Director, ADHRB: “Today’s High Level statement by the Bahraini government is yet another deeply disappointing failure to seize true opportunities for reflection, honesty and reform, Bahrainis today are facing the most serious and widespread human rights violations in years. At the Human Rights Council, the government has an opportunity to address these abuses head on, to frankly address the need for reform, and to seek the support of the international community in the promotion and protection of universal human rights. Unfortunately, the government has failed yet again to seize this opportunity.”
Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei, Director of Advocacy, BIRD: “Actions speak louder than words, and Bahrain’s actions have included executions and new repressive laws, a blanket ban on all speech and reprisals against human rights defender. This is the true face of Bahrain, and the international community must use their opportunity at the Human Rights Council to condemn Bahrain’s doubled-down repression.”
We call on the Government of Bahrain to immediately make substantive and transparent reforms, including by implementing the 26 recommendations of the BICI, the recommendations of its Second Cycle Universal Periodic Review, and by engaging in full and open cooperation with the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the UN Special Procedures.
Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain
Bahrain Center for Human Rights
Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy
European Center for Democracy and Human Rights
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Unknown Bahraini security forces wearing black balaclavas shot Hamdan during the early hours of 26 January 2017. It is currently unclear under which branch the security forces involved in the attack operate. The live ammunition from the attacks recovered from the area in Diraz is consistent with the types of ammunition Bahrain’s riot police use. The ammunition found at the scene of the attacks appears to be Victory Starlight 32gr cartridges. These weapons are manufactured in Cyprus.
Reports from Hamdan’s family indicate that his skull is fractured from the ammunition, which entered into the back of Hamdan’s head. Hamdan was first taken to Bahrain International Hospital, a private hospital, which refused to treat him. He was then transferred to Salmaniya Medical Center, where doctors performed emergency surgery. Hamdan is now reportedly in critical but stable condition. His mother said in a media interview that he is “between life and death”.
Hamdan is one of several reported injured in the attack by security forces in Diraz last night and early this morning. Additionally, there are reports of around five arrests from the area. The reason the individuals have been taken into custody are unclear at present. The recent attack in Diraz comes after state-run Bahrain News Agency reports that 20 people are facing charges in three separate cases. According to reports, the defendants are facing charges over alleged attacks on suspected informants in Diraz. One of these suspected informants was allegedly tortured and has since died.
A permanent sit-in in Diraz has been ongoing since 20 June 2016, when the Bahraini authorities revoked the citizenship of prominent spiritual leader Sheikh Isa Qassim. Sheikh Isa Qassim’s residence is in Diraz, and protesters have gathered around his house since June 2016 to protect him from possible reprisals. Since the beginning of the sit-in, the Bahraini government has tightened security around Diraz. Security has set up checkpoints into area staffed with police who prevent non-Diraz residents from entering and who, residents state, carry machine guns. Some of the last reports of violence in Diraz by security forces was 21 December 2016, when Bahraini security forces raided houses and attacked protesters.
The human rights situation in Bahrain has reached a critical level recently. On 15 January 2017, the Government of Bahrain carried out the execution of three torture victims on death row. Since that that time, hundreds of Bahrainis have participated in protests around the country. The repression of civil society has reached high levels, as human rights defender Nabeel Rajab faces a number of charges in two separate cases – all of which relate to the exercise of his rights to free speech. A number of UN Special Procedures mandates have also responded to the recent heightened persecution of the Shia majority population. Since August 2016, the undersigned organizations have documented the harassment of at least 70 Shia clerics, with nine sentenced to between one year and two and a half years in prison for their speech and assembly.
The attack last night and this morning in Diraz is the latest step in what is continuing to be a critical time in Bahrain. The Bahraini authorities have disregarded individuals’ internationally-sanctioned rights to assembly by violently shooting protesters gathering in Diraz with live ammunition. We, the undersigned, condemn this excessive and deadly use of force by the Bahraini security forces. We call on the Government of Bahrain to do the following:
- Immediately launch an investigation into the attack in Diraz on 25 January and 26 January;
- Hold those security forces who attacked and shot protesters, including Mustafa Ahmed Hamdan, accountable for their crimes;
- Ensure the rights of those arrested last night and this morning are respected and that they are given fair treatment under the law.
Signed,
Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain
Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy
European Centre for Democracy and Human Rights
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In 2011, hundreds of thousands of people rose up in support of democracy and human rights in Bahrain. After enduring decades of structural inequalities, corruption, and repression, nearly half the country’s citizen population gathered to demand reform. The government responded swiftly, and severely. Riot police flooded the streets, employing excessive and indiscriminate force to disperse the demonstrations and suppress the movement. Assisted by a Saudi and Emirati forces, Bahraini authorities violently put down the peaceful uprising, leading to thousands of arrests, hundreds of injuries, and dozens of deaths.
Since 2011, the Bahraini authorities have taken steps to institutionalize this repression by passing broad, wide-ranging laws that have created a legal framework, which is now used to target human rights defenders, journalists, and civil society at large.
Following the repression of the 2011 pro-democracy movement, King Hamad established the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI) in July to analyze Bahraini authorities’ violations during the pro-democracy movement. On November 2011, the BICI commission handed over their finalized report to King Hamad, outlining 26 recommendations for key reforms for the Government of Bahrain, all of which the government accepted, yet today, the vast majority of these recommendations remain unfulfilled.
This past summer, the government unleashed a new campaign of repression as it arrested prominent Bahraini human rights defender Nabeel Rajab, who faces 15 years in prison for exercising his freedom of expression, and took steps to permanently dissolve Al-Wefaq, the country’s largest political opposition society. Nabeel remains in prison in poor conditions, after his trial was postponed multiple times. His next hearing is scheduled for 15 December 2016, where he could face up to fifteen years in prison for tweets. Al-Wefaq’s Secretary-General Sheikh Ali Salman recently had his 9-year sentence upheld in regards to a peaceful speech he gave. Since the dissolution of Al-Wefaq, in June 2016, the authorities have increased their harassment of almost all major political societies.
Fadhel Abbas, the Secretary-General of Al-Wahdawi, is currently serving a 3-year prison sentence for calling the Saudi war in Yemen, in which Bahrain is a belligerent, unconstitutional. The National Democratic Action Society – Wa’ad – has been under threat, with their leader banned from travel and repeatedly subject to police questioning in the past year. Ebrahim Sharif, the former Secretary General of Wa’ad, served 4 years in prison following his arrest, torture and prosecution by military court in 2011; he served another year in prison after he called for sustained peaceful opposition in July 2015, and was charged again in November 2016 after he criticised Prince Charles of the United Kingdom’s visit to Bahrain. These latest charges were later dropped, following international pressure.
The government has likewise subjected civil society to similar widespread harassment. Bahraini authorities have summoned more than 75 Shia religious leaders and clerics for interrogation. Many have been charged and imprisoned for taking part in the peaceful sit-in in Diraz, which began on 20 June 2016 following the arbitrary denaturalization of Ayatollah Sheikh Isa Qassim, Bahrain’s leading Shia cleric.
Harassment of human rights defenders and activists include interrogations and restricting their freedom of movement. Since June, the government has employed the practice of travel bans to restrict civil society from leaving the country and participating in international human rights conferences and meetings, such as the United Nations Human Rights Council. On 29 August 2016, the authorities stopped the Head of International Relations and Women & Children’s Rights Advocacy at BCHR, Nedal Al-Salman, at Bahrain International Airport. She was attempting to travel to Geneva via Doha to attend meetings at the United Nations Human Rights Council (HRC). Nedal has since been summoned and charged with “illegal gathering.” The government prohibited Hussain Radhi, a member of the BCHR Documentation Section, from travelling across the King Fahd Causeway between Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, on 23 August 2016. Officials at the passport office informed Radhi that the Department of Cybercrime at the CID had issued the ban, and he has since been charged with crimes related to tweets. Additionally, the government has targeted human rights lawyers like Mohamed Al-Tajer, a well-respected human rights lawyer and outspoken advocate, with travel bans and criminal charges for his free expression.
Such restrictions on activists, human rights defenders, opposition figures, and religious leaders constitute clear violations of the right to freedom of speech, expression, assembly, and movement.
Stifling civil society, dissolving legitimate peaceful political opposition groups, imprisoning activists for peaceful speeches, sentencing individuals who call for human rights, and passing vague and broad laws to suppress free speech and expression does not signify progress for Bahrain.
We, in the Bahraini human rights community, remain deeply concerned with the human rights situation in Bahrain. We call on the Government of Bahrain to take active steps to overturn the repressive measure taken this summer. We call for the release of all activists and prisoners of conscience and demand the Bahraini government hold all human rights violators accountable.
Today we stand in solidarity with all those in Bahrain who continue to call for human rights and dignity for all in Bahrain.
Signed,
Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain
Bahrain Center for Human Rights
Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy
European Centre for Democracy and Human Rights
]]>Concerns over possible ill-treatment and torture have emerged in Sayed Alawi’s case. Alawi was interrogated without the presence of his lawyer and his family have been barred from seeing him. Following his prolonged initial disappearance, his family reported that Alawi sounded “weak,” “exhausted,” and “barely able to speak” over the phone. Bahrain’s oversight bodies, which have failed to establish their independence from the Ministry of Interior or Public Prosecution, have been reluctant to investigate. These conditions contribute to Alawi’s family’s fears that he is subjected to ill-treatment and torture.
Sayed Alawi, from Duraz, was arrested at his workplace on 24 October 2016. Multiple cars reportedly surrounded Alawi’s worksite, raided his office, confiscated his electronic devices, and then took him to an undisclosed location.
Since the time of his arrest, Sayed Alawi’s wife, Majeeda, has not been permitted to visit her husband. Officials at the Criminal Investigations Department repeatedly denied his location there during his disappearance. She tried on multiple occasions to confirm his location. She visited the CID – where criminal investigations are conducted, and the site commonly identified as a location of torture in Bahrain – on 26 October, but was told he was not there. She visited again on 1 November, and officials refused to confirm or deny his location.
On 3 November, Majeeda received a call from the CID informing her that he was in Dry Dock Detention Center, Bahrain’s primary pre-trial detention facility. Dry Dock officials instructed her to visit on 6 November. When she arrived, the authorities informed her that Sayed Alawi was not held there. On the following day, a lawyer told the family that Sayed Alawi had been presented before the Public Prosecution and subsequently transferred back to Dry Dock. The next day on 8 November 2016, the family again travelled to Dry Dock to see Sayed Alawi. For the second time, Dry Dock officials denied Sayed Alawi’s presence at the facility. Authorities refused to give the family information about Sayed Alawi’s whereabouts.
The family did not receive any confirmation of his location for over a month, and finally received a phone call from Sayed Alawi 36 days after his arrest, days after Majeeda took her story to the local press. During the call, Alawi’s voice was reportedly weak and sounded exhausted, and he was not able to speak.
Sayed Alawi’s family has submitted multiple complaints to the Ombudsman and the Special Investigation Unit, institutions trained and supported by the United Kingdom tasked with investigating police abuse. Majeeda filed a case with the Ombudsman following his disappearance, but the office was unable to provide her with updates on his case and whereabouts. She subsequently filed a second complaint alleging torture, which the office accepted after his family persisted for several days.
Sayed Alawi’s case fits a pattern of arbitrary arrest and ill-treatment which has been repeatedly documented in Bahrain over several years. The CID continues to be identified as a center of torture in Bahrain, particularly during pre-trial detention. Bahrain’s criminal justice system relies primarily on confessions, which encourages ill-treatment amounting to torture in pre-trial detention.
The UK has provided over £5m in funds towards “technical assistance” to Bahrain since 2012. In June 2016, BIRD found this policy to be “counterproductive” and “unsustainable”, having funded the establishment of bodies which whitewash violations, without adequately helping victims. The UK has provided training to the Special Investigations Unit and the Police Ombudsman. On 6-7 December, the British Prime Minister visited Bahrain for the Gulf Cooperation Council Leaders Summit, and Sayed Alawi’s family publicly called on her to raise his case.
A 2015 report by Human Rights Watch, with assistance from the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy, found that “Bahraini security forces continue to torture detainees using methods identical to those documented by BICI investigators in 2011, and by Human Rights Watch in 2010.”
We, in the Bahrain human rights community, are deeply concerned that Bahrain’s accountability mechanisms, including the Ombudsman and SIU, continue to demonstrate reluctance in providing accountability and effective preventative measures in reducing abuse. We call for the immediate release of Sayed Alawi and for an immediate investigation into arrest, detention and possible ill-treatment, as well as prosecution of all officials responsible for abuse.
Signed,
Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain
Bahrain Center for Human Rights
Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy
European Centre for Democracy and Human Rights
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