Archive
Apr98
April 98: “Political temperature” is set to rise
1 April: The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) 1st Quarterly Repot (ISSN 1351-8682) on Bahrain has been published this week. The 17-page report says, “the political temperature will rise further if a key opposition leader, Abdel Amir al-Jamri, dies in jail. Mr. Jamri, who was imprisoned by the authorities two years ago, is seriously ill but the authorities have so far refused to allow him hospital treatment. However, they have offered to release him on condition that he refrains from further political activity. Mr. Jamri has declined the offer”.
4 April: The unconstitutional State Security Court sentenced four girls to three months suspended jail. The girls were forcibly placed in an intimidating cage inside the coastal guard base in Muhrarrq with the aim of humiliating the dignified families who were kept outside the base. The girls are Layla Abdul Nabi Abdul Wahab Rabea, 17, Amal Ahmad Abdul Wahab Rabea, 20, Maryam Ahmad Ali Balwayye, 21, and Ahlam Seyyed Mahdi Hassan Ali Al-Setri, 20. These girls had been snatched from a house in Sitra-Qeryya last year (26 March 1997), held in incommunicadodetention for 20 days and then released after payment of 100 dinar ($267) each. A fifth woman, Jalila Seyed Adnan Shubbar, from Karbabad was also sentenced to 3 months-suspended jail on 4 April. The government newspapers said that the four girls and the woman were charge with “illegal gathering” aimed at destabilizing the state security.
4 April: The president of the Arab Lawyers Union, Mr. Farooq Abu-Isa issued a statement dated 4 April denying the reports published by the government’s newspapers that he had supported the dissolution of the Bahrain Bar Society. Both Al-Ayyam and Akhbar Al-Khalij of 1 April claimed that the Arab Lawyers Union (ALU) supported the dissolution of the elected Bar Society. The president of the Cairo-based ALU sent letters to leading lawyers in Bahrain including Dr. Abbas Helal, Mr. Hassan Radhi, Mr. Ali Al-Ayyobi, Mr. Ahmad Al-Thokair, Mr. Rashid Al-Jar, Mr. Mohammed Ahmad, and others, confirming the ALU’s firm position towards the elected Bar Society and its total rejection of the dictatorial decision to dissolve the society.
6 April, 11.00 am: A group of Bahraini exiles picketed in front of the Bahraini embassy in London demanding an end to abuse of human rights in Bahrain; restoration of the parliament; and bringing to justice the tortures and killers of Bahraini people. Pamphlets and publications had been distributed to the public explaining the extent of misery imposed on the Bahraini nation by the mercenaries and scourts. The pamphlets explained the ransacking of mosques, dissolving the Bar Society, arbitrary detaining citizens, torturing men, women and children, collective punishment, importing more than 40 thousands Syrian Bedouin for changing the demographics of the country, sponsoring tedawn-raids against the peaceful people, as well as all form of racism and discrimination in education and employment.
11 April: 11 April: The Amir returned to Bahrain and was received at the airport by senior members of the ruling Al-Khalifa family as well as Ian Henderson, the British officer who headed Bahrain’s security for 31 years. He is now the Security Advisor for the Amir.
13 April: The security forces attacked the art-shop of Mohammed Ahmad Ali Al-Mo’mon, 26, in Karbabad,. He was tortured and released after a day of “shock-torture”. Shock-torture is a new method wher people are taken to a torture cell, beaten mercilessly and then released. These are now widely spread and this method has been devised to avoid the monitoring of the Red Cross and other human rights organizations.
14 April: Concern about the ill-treatment of Mr. Mohammed Jaber Sabah (member of the Committee for Popular Petition), is growing. This comes after Mr. Sabah published a leading article in the Al Quds (London-based), on 14 April, criticising the unconstitutional rule in the country and demanding the restoration of the legitimate and elected National Assembly, whichas been unlawfully dissolved against the will of its members and voters for more than 22 years. He adamantly rejected the ” Shura Council” calling it unconstitutional and urged its members to reconsider their positions. Mr. Sabah has been harassed and threatened against publishing the article when following a summon by the torturer, Abdul Aziz Atteyat-Allah Al Khalifa (so called Governor of Manama) on 28 March. The latter attempted to intimidate Mr. Sabah and warned of grave consequences if he continues to express his views.Mr. Sabah, is undergoing a critical kidney problem, and people are blaming any deterioration of his health on the government.
14 April: The house of Haji Ahmad Fardan, of Nabih Saleh, and arrested his four sons. His house’s contents ware destroyed. His sons’ names are Faisal, 32, Shakir, 28, Ali, 24, Hassan, 21. The four sons were released tow days later.
14 April: Two children were arrested and mercilessly beaten. Abdula Juma’a Hassan, 12, from Karbabad, has been arrested in an early morning raid on his parents house. The armed security forces beat him while his parents were forced to watch their son tortured. Then he was taken to the Budaya’a police(torture) centre without bandaging his bleeding wounds. The boy was accused of ” writing pro-constitution slogans on walls”.. On the same day, at 10am local time, the security forces raided the house once again to arrest another child, Mohammed Juma’a Hassan, 10, brother of Abdulla.
On 15 April, a child and a teenager were arrested and taken to the Budaya’a (torture) centre. They were AhmedAli Abdul Hassan, 10, Hassan Abdul Aziz, 13.
Sheikh Mohammed Al-Rayyash, who had been detained in December 1995, under the provisions of the States Security Law, has been transferred to Borj (Tower) solitary cell in Al-Qala’a. On the other hand, the child Majid Abass Habib, 12, who has been arrested two years ago, has finished his sentence’s term, but is still in custody without any explanation being given by the Interior Ministry who exercise an absolute grip on the Judicial system.
Ibrahim Ali Mohammed, 27, from Nabih Saleh, (fisherman) was arrested offshore, brought back home, had his house and car ransacked in front of his family, taken for a full day of severe torture and then released on 16 April.
15 April: A dawn raid on the house of the teenager Abass Ahmed Abdula, 17, from Wadyan (Sitra), resulted in the destruction of the belongings of the house. The teenager was arrested after being mercilessly beaten. It is worth mentioning that the teenager had been arrested a year ago when he was 16-year old, and was just released a month ago.
18 April: The trial of the ten people (out of the group of 16) was held and adjourned to 9 May. The families were prevented from entering the courtroom and were not allowed to see their sons who had been severely tortured. The group includes ten people (out of the 16) as well as two additional persons who were being tried in absentia. The ten are: Seyyed Mohammed Redha Mortadha, Ali Darwish Ali, Mohammed Abd Ali, Ali Abul Qassim, Ali Salman Isa, Seyyed Fadhil Adnan Shubbar, Yousif Habib, Jamil Abdul Hussain, Khalil Darwish, Seyyed Saeed Abdulla. The two persons being tried in absentia are: Haji Khalil Darwish (Father of two of the accused in the group of 16), and Abdul Fadhl Ahmad Al-Mosawi.
19 April: The people of Bahrain were surprised when they woke up on Sunday, 19 April, to witness the deployment of army units around the country. Sand bags were stacked in strategic positions with soldiers carrying their machine guns pointed at the houses of the citizens. Jeeps, armoured vehicles, military lorries, logistic supplies, and heavy equipment were at full display near Bahrain National Stadium, Bahrain International Exhibition, Sehla, Karzakkan, Rifa’a, Sitra and many other areas. The deployment of these military units continued until nighttime. This deployment is coming at a very tense period.
20 April, Reuters reported that”Bahrain has accused its neighbour Qatar of using forged documents to support its territorial claim against Bahrain at the World Court. “…The fact is that Qatar has submitted 82 forged documents in support of its case,” said Bahrain’s Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammad bin Mubarak al-Khalifa, in quoted by the official Gulf News Agency on Monday. He said the court at The Hague had set a deadline of September 30, 1998 for Qatar to submit a comprehensive and specific report on the authenticity of each of the documents challenged by Bahrain.
20 April: The authorities inside Bahrain banned Dr. Ali Fakhro from delivering a talk at the Oruba Club due on 20 May. Dr. Ali Fakhro, who is presently Bahrain’s ambassador to France and to the EU had occupied the positions of Minister of Health and Minister of Education between 1971 and 1995. The banning came in a letter signed by Isa bin Mohammed Al-Khalifa, head of the General Organization for Youth and Sport. The letter addressed to the Oruba Club said “In reference to your letter of 25 March 1998 requesting permission for a lecture by Dr. Ali Fakhro entitled “I am the Arab Citizen: What to do?”, please be advised that this is not permitted”.
28 April: The residents of Daih protested against the torture of Sheikh Al-Jamri. The residents blocked the main highway and raised placards demanding his immediate release and the punishment of the torturers.
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The following people were arrested from Manama in April. They were then dragged in the past two weeks to perform some acts while being filmed by the security forces: Haj Nasser Jaffer Kazrooni, Asghar Berdestani, Abdul Redha Hassan, Abdul Redha Ubol, Mostafa, Abbas Freigh, Hasan Berdestani, Hussain Ali, Abdul Rahim Asiri, Mahmood Ali Abdul Hussain Al-Halwachi, Mahmood Abdulla Salem Al-Halwachi, Seyed Jaffer.
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The Case of Bahrain in Geneva
Discussion about the human rights situation in Bahrain has started in Geneva. The 54th session of the UN Human Rights Commission is witnessing a serious development in the role played by the international body in relation to the protection of human right in countries like Bahrain.
The Bahraini official delegation is made-up of 14 persons headed by the new British advisor to the interior ministry, Mr. David Jump, as follows:
David Jump: Advisor of the Interior Ministry; Ghazi Mohamed Al-Qosibi,Undersecretary of the Foreign Ministry; Ahmad Al-Haddad, Permanent Representative at the UN; Yousif Mahmood; Isa Bu Qhuwa, Prosecutor General (Ministry of the Interior); Salman Al-Zayyani; Isa Kamal; Ghassan Shaiko; Ahmad Al-Mulla; Said Al-Faihani; Ahmad Arrad; Khalid Al-Khalifa; Salah Musaifer; Mohammed Al-Amer
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The Financioal Times
reported on 24 April: “The operation of the UN Commission for Human Rights came under attack yesterday from its own chairman as well as human rights groups for playing politics rather than making a genuine attempt to promote human rights and tackle abuses. Jacob Selebi, South Afr’s ambassador to the UN in Geneva and current chairman of the commission, said it was essential to reform the block voting system which led “people to vote on the basis of group solidarity and not on the substance of human rights abuses”.
Mr. Selebi’s outspoken attack on the workings of the commission coincided with the accusations by human rights groups that grave human rights violations in Algeria and China have been ignored. Before the six-week commission session, both the European Union and the US announced that they would not sponsor a resolution against China in recognition of progress made and continuing discussions on human rights”.
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Economic and Social Council, Distr. E/CN.4/1998/38/Add.1 , 24 December 1997
COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS, Fifty-fourth session , Item 8 (a) of the provisional agenda
QUESTION OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS OF ALL PERSONS SUBJECTED TO ANY FORM OF DETENTION OR IMPRISONMENT, IN PARTICULAR:
TORTURE AND OTHER CRUEL, INHUMAN OR DEGRADING TREATMENT OR PUNISHMENT
Report of the Special Rapporteur, Mr. Nigel S. Rodley, submitted pursuant to Commission on Human Rights resolution 1997/38
Bahrain
In a letter of 17 November 1997, the Special Rapporteur transmitted allegations that Yasser Abdul Hussein Ali Al-Sayakh was reportedly arrested at his home in the Jidali district of Manama by security forces on 5 December 1996. During interrogation at the ‘Adlya Criminal Investigation Department by two named officers about his alleged involvement in political activities, he was allegedly suspended by the hands, punched in the stomach and subjected to falaqa (beatings on the soles of the feet) while being hung by the knees over a stick with his hands tied. He was further said to have been threatened with electric shocks and the pulling out of his fingernails. It was also reported that during a visit by the InternationCommittee of the Red Cross, he was kept in a toilet with four other detainees until the delegation had left. As a result of the torture, he was reportedly suffering from pain in his back and legs as well as psychological problems.
Urgent appeals
On 27 March 1997, the Special Rapporteur made an urgent appeal on behalf of Sayyid Jalal Sayyid’Alawi Sharaf, who was reportedly arrested at his home in al-Duraz on 6 March 1997 and taken to the al-Qal’a compound Manama. The reports indicated that he was being held incommunicado and had been beaten during interrogations. In a reply dated 15 April 1997, the Government strongly denied that Sayyid Jalal Sayyid’Alawi Sharaf had been mistreated, and assured the Special Rapporteur that the detainee had acto proper care as well as visitation rights.
On 4 April 1997, the Special Rapporteur transmitted an urgent appeal on behalf of Ali Hassan Yusuf, who was reportedly arrested in Jidd Hafs on 16 February 1997. He has reportedly been held incommunicado at Manama prison ever since. The Government reply of 28 April 1997 strongly denied allegations of mistreatment, and stated that Ali Hassan Yusuf had been released on bail on 16 April 1997.
The Special Rapporteur sent an urgent appeal on 7 October 1997, on behalf of Mohammed Ahmed Shafi’i, who was allegedly arrested by intelligence officials on 3 September 1997 in Hamad town. The reports indicated that he was being held incommunicado at the al-Qal’a compound in Manama.[back to the contents]
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See Web Site of the UN Commission on Human Right
http://www.unhchr/html/menu4/subres/9702.htm
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World Organization Against Torture (OMCT):
Ben Schonveld of OMCT said that in Bahrain, at the begining of this year, at least 50 minors as young as 10 had been reportedly detained in a new wave of arrests by police. The reason behind the arrests appeared to be to discourage anti-regime activities, such as participation in demonstrations or gatherings, painting graffiti, burning tires and distributing pamphlets. The arrests were a part of an official campaign to muzzle politocal dissent; the use of torture in such circumstances placed those children at extreme risk. The life of children living and working on the streets was another subject of concern.
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France Liberte:
France Liberte (headed by Madam Mitterand) raised the case of Bahrain on 1 April by saying “We have strongly raised the tragic situation of Bahrain where the State Security Law is being used against citizens with severity. Torture, both psychological and physical, is widely practiced before trying the citizens in front of the State Security Court that does not allow for appeals. These consistent violations urge us to condemn the government of Bahrain and we call on the government to prove its seriousness in putting an end to torture and human rights violations.
Government’s Response:
On 2 April, a government spokesman, Saeed Al-Faihani, responded by saying that the statemenof France Liberte encourages “elements of political extremists”. He said that Bahraini prisoners “are not held incommunicado or tortured”. David Jump was spotted directing the other the government delegation. The government delegation was also spotted steeling the opposition’s pamphlets and publications.
HRW Intervention:
Human Rights Watch (HRW) submitted a strong intervention reminded the UN Commission that the Sub-Commission had last August expressed “deep concern about the alleged gross and systematic violations in Bahrain”.
HRW said “the exercise of freedoms of assembly and political association remain effectively outlawed. A number of Shi’a community leaders actin the campaign to revive the elected National Assembly are now in their third year of detention without trial, frequently in solitary confinement. In July, and again in December, leaders of the People’s Petition Committee were summoned for interrogation and their welfare reportedly threatened after they requested permission to present a petition, signed by 21,751 citizens, to the country’s ruler, Sheikh Isa bin Salman, urging him to restore the National Assembly and release political prisoners”.
HRW “continues to receive reports of persons being arbitrarily detained and physically abused by security forces, and of prosecutions on security-related charges before the State Security Court, where procedures do not meet basic fair trail standards and whose verdicts are not subject to appeal. A blind cleric, Sheikh Ali Al-Nachas, repeatedly detained for long periods without charge reportedly because his sermons were deemed “political,” died in custody in June 1997, giving rise to allegations of mistreatment and medical neglect.
The year has seen additional arrests and harassment of individuals for writing or possessing written material which the government considers hostile. The government has increased pressure on Bahraini defense lawyers to refrain from providing information about arrests and security court trials to the press or to outside human rights monitors, and threatened some lawyers with disbarment if they continued to do so. Close government monitoring of telephone, fax, and Internet links, and harsh penalties for disseminating “false news and unfounded statements,” make most Bahrainis afraid to discuss the situation with international .
“The government also took further steps to restrict information about the situation in Bahrain from reaching the outside world. A new regulation restricting Bahrainis employed by local state-dominated media from working for international agencies effectively stifled the BBC Arabic Service as a source of uncensored news for Bahrainis and outsiders. In June 1997 the government expelled the correspondent of the German Press Agency, the last remaining Western news agency with a bureau in Bahrain, following her eyewitness accounts of three days of intense clashes between demonstrators and security forces and her dispatches regarding the deaths of two young men following reported beatings by the security forces.
The government routinely attributes the unrest to foreign-backed “terrorists,” a term it applies to opposition without distinction. The government also refuses to allow the return from abroad of citizens who express unwelcome political views. No local human rights groups are permitted to operate in Bahrain, and requests from international human rights to conduct official visits have been denied.
HRW urges the Commission to express public concern about Bahrain’s repressive practices. We also urge the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention and the Special Rapporteur on the Right to Freedom of Opinion and Expression to investigate conin Bahrain”.
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The 54th Session of the UN Commission on Human Rights started on 14 April discussing Item 10 concerning the violations of human rights in countries. Several human rights organisations started raising questions about the situation in Bahrain. The following NGOs spoke on Bahrain on 15 April:
The International Commission of Jurists said, “The situation in Bahrain also deserves this Commission’s attention. Since the Sub-Commission’s recommendation last year that the Commission considers Bahrain under this agenda item, the human rights situation in that country has continued to deteriorate. It is essential that the Commission acts on the recommendation of the Sub-Commission, especially the Sub-Commission followed the Commission’s direction and examined only situations which are not on the Commission’s agenda”.
Pen International stated: The Sub-Commission has requested that the situation in Bahrain be examined under Agenda item 10. Pen International believes that it is important to establish a mechanism for monitoring the human rights situation in that country. A judge and poet (Sheikh Al-Jamri) is being detained for more than two years for his constitutional demands. Arresting and persecuting writers and journalists are further attacks on the freedom of expression.
The International Federation of Human Rights (FIDH): “In its 49th session, the Sub-Commission adopted a resolution about the human righsituation in Bahrain expressing its concern towards the consistent violations there. The resolution requested from the Government of Bahrain to respect its obligations and also requested this Commission to look into the situation in Bahrain. The government ofBahrain has rejected all calls from NGOs and from the European Parliament. Scores of people were sentenced by the State Security Court, which is headed by members of the ruling Al-Khalifa family. This court bases its sentences on confessions extracted from the detainees under torture. The Government of Bahrain implements collective punishment against those calling for pro-democracy reforms. The FIDH calls on this Commission to answer the request of the Sub-Commission and to initiate a process for monitoring human rights abuses in Bahrain.
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Lord Avebury’s Intervention (sponsored by the African Commission of Health and Human Rights Promoters) at the
UN Commission on Human Rights
Fifty-fourth Session
Agenda Item 10
The Human Rights Crisis in Bahrain
Mr. Chairman,
Bahrain is unique in having reverted from a rudimentary democracy to a hedictatorship. The Al-Khalifa family run the country as if it were their private estate, issuing arbitrary decrees and tolerating no dissent.
Last August, the Sub Commission noted “serious deterioration of the human rights situation in Bahrain, including discrimination against the indigenous Shi’a population, extrajudicial killings, persistent use of torture in Bahraini prisons on a large scale as well as the abuse of women and children who are detained, and arbitrary detention without trial or access by detainees to legal advice”.
Since then, there has been no improvement.
On February 28, the Prime Minister ordered the dissolution of the elected executive of the Bar Society, after they held a private seminar which was addressed by Dr Monira Fakhro, a pro-democracy activist who was dismissed from the university wshe refused to withdraw her name from a petition asking for restoration of the 1973 constitution.
The decree also cancelled the elections for the Bar Society, which were to have been held on March 16.
The State Security Courts continue to violate recognised principles of law. Defendants are not given adequate time to consult lawyers; the courts are closed to the press and public; convictions are handed down on the basis of confessions extracted under torture, and there is no right of appeal . The courts are not independent of the government: the Minister of Justice, Sheikh Abdullah bin Khalid al-Khalifa, is a member of the royal family. So is the President of the State Security Court, Sheikh Abdul Rahman bin Jabir al-Khalifa, and another of the judges of that court. The Minister of the Interior, who ‘is integrally involved in virtually every aspect of the judicial system and legal proceedings’, is Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa al-Khalifa, first cousin of the Amir.
Four women from Sitra, one aged only 17, were displayed in cages before the SSC and sentenced on April 4 to 5 months suspended imprisonment for demonstrating on the anniversary of the execution of Isa Qamber. Sixteen people were charged on February 28 and will appear again later this month, apparently on the same charges of arson and possession of explosives for which some others had already been tried and convicted. These 16 had been arrested in 1996, and were expected to face trial last year. In November 1997, the court sentenced eight leaders of the exiled opposition to between 5 and 15 years’ imprisonment, without notifying the defendants of the charges, serving them with copies of the evidence, or arranging for them to be legally represented.
Bahrain has acceded to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, but treats children of 15 upwards as adults. Even so, much younger children are arrested, detained incommunicado, questioned without their parents being present, and frequently tortured. One boy of 7, Yasser ‘Ammar, and two aged 8 were arrested for insolence to the police and detained for several days in 1996, and since the beginning of 1998, at least 50 minors have been taken into custody, two aged 11.
The security forces often raid schools and arrest pupils. On March 25, for instance, they went into SheAbdul Aziz Secondary School and arrested Ahmad Makki, Saeed Jaffer Al-Unaisi, Ali Ahmad Al-Motawwa, Ali Hassan Al-Qallaf, Najib Abdulla Omran, Ali Ibrahim Ahmad.
Bahrain has also signed the Convention Against Torture with a reservation on Article 20, effectively blocking any investigation of the reports by Amnesty International and others. The Rapporteur on Torture has reminded Bahrain that he is still awaiting their reaction to the observations he made last year, when he said that apart from being used to extract confessions, torture was allegedly used to force detainees to sign statements renouncing their political affiliation, to desist from anti-government activity, to coerce victims into reporting on the activities of others, to inflict punishment and to instil fear in political opponents.
Arbitrary detention continues. Sheikh Abdul Amir al-Jamri, leader of the democracy movement, and seven of his colleagues have been held since January 1996 in the al-Qala prison. One of them, Sheikh Ali Mirza Al-Nachas, died in prison last June from lack of medical attention.
The UN Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Arbitrary and Summary Executions, M Bacre Waly Ndiaye, expressed concern about the death of Sheikh Al-Nachas, and two others: Bashir Abdullah Ahmed Fadhel, who was reportedly beaten to death by members of the security forces on May 18, 1997 in Daih in the context of an operation disperse peaceful gatherings in the main assembly hall and the mosque, and Abdul-Zahra’ Ephrain Abdulla, who reportedly died four days after his arrest in Sanabis by members of the security forces on June 1, 1997 as a result of injuries inflicted during severe beatings.
The Special Rapporteur says that he continues to be concerned about allegations regarding violations of the right to life in Bahrain, and he notes the Government’s appaunwillingness to cooperate with him in following up these reports.
Although the government made an agreement with the ICRC allowing them to monitor conditions, Sheikh al-Jamri is denied proper medical treatment for high blood pressure, and he is not allowed radio or newspapers, or to write letters. In March, Isa Abdul Nabi al-Jamri was hospitalised after his medical condition worsened, and other prisoners in Jaw Prison went on strike in protest at his treatment. He is now back in jail, and his severe mental is not being treated. The total number detained is over 1,000 , perhaps as many as 1,500 .
Among recent arrests was that of Haji Abdul Nabi Rabea, 50, and his daughter Rabab, mother of Mohammed, 8, and Abdulla, 18 months. The family house was raided at dawn on March 25 and most of the contents were wantonly destroyed.
Rabab is held in Isa Town Detention Centre a place which is notorious for torture.
Another victim of the terror is Haj Abdulla Fakhro, who was rearrested last week, three hours after being freed by a court. Interior Ministry officers raided his house while the family and friends were prematurely celebrating his release and detained him under the State Security Law. Haj Abdulla had been detained previously when he asked questions about the political situation in Bahrain, after attending a lecture in Al-Fateh Mosque in the presence of the Justice Minister.
The pro-democracy leader, Mr Mohammed Jabir Sabah, was summoned again by Abdul Aziz Atteyat-Allah Al-Khalifa (Governor of Manama) on March 28, and it is reported that he is being questioned about an article he has written for the London paper Al-Quds. Mr Sabah has a kidney problem, and needs treatment which he does not receive while in custody.
Religious discrimination and persecution against the Shi’a majority has intensified. Mosques have been looted and desecrated, the latest being al-Zahra Mosque in Shahrakan and Imam Ali Mosque in Dar Kulaib. There is discrimination against Shi’as in public and private employment, and in higher education .
Several thopeople belonging to the Ajam community, descendants of Persian immigrants from the twenties, are deprived not only of citizenship, but also of many basic rights of education housing and employment in the public sector. At the same time, the government are bringing in an est45,000 Syrians who are distantly related to the ruling family, to augment the existing foreign mercenary security forces, many of whose members are also being given Bahraini citizenship. This irresponsible plan to change the demographic balance of the population is already antagonising people from both sections of the community, and social problems are arising in the areas where the Syrians are lodged.
The mercenary forces are used to carry our collective punishments and mass arrests in the villages. On March 28, for instance, they attacked Sanabis and arrested Salman Mahdi Al-Habbash, 16. In Jablat Habshi, they arrested: Maitham Salman, 19, Salman Abdul Aziz, 20, Majid Abdul Aziz, 18, Salman Abdul Hadi, 18, Mohammed, 25. The same day, in a sweep of Bani Jamra, they took into custody Shakir Jaffer Zaid, 24, Hussain bin Khayr, 24, Hussain Atteya, 23, and iMalkeya they arrested Seyyed Mohammed Jawad, Jaffer Hussain, and Sayed Ali. These operations are nearly always carried out with extreme brutality, and widespread destruction of property, since the mercenaries have no sympathy for the villagers.
Freedom of expression is non-existent. All foreign correspondents have been pressured into leaving, and the local media are controlled by or subservient to the ruling family. Books on human rights have been banned, and there are no indigenous human rights NGOs or free trade unions. Amnesty International has not been allowed to visit Bahrain, and Human Rights Watch has only been there clandestinely. Responsible journalists are not welcome, and when Sue Lloyd-Roberts of the BBC went to Bahrain, her contacts were arrested.
Bahrain is the only country inthe region that deprives opponents of the régime of their citizenship and expels them. This Commission expressed its deep concern at the arbitrary deprivation of persons or groups of persons of their nationality , and requested the Secretary-General to ask for the views of governments on this problem . Bahrain has not replied.
In the British Foreign Secretary’s Mission Statement, he promised that we would ‘work through our international forums and bilateral relationships to spread the values of human rights, civil liberties and democracy which we demand for ourselves’.
The people of Bahrain enjoy none of those benefits, and it is time this Commission recognised their plight.
Thank you Mr. Chairman.
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Lord Avebury vs. the UK Government
Q & A about Bahrain
The Lord Avebury: asked Her Majesty’s Government whether they will raise with the United Nations Human Rights Commission the practice adopted in Bahrain of detaining minors with no right of access by their parents or lawyers. And of trying them before the State Security Courts, from which there is no right of appeal. (HL1172) [23 March]
ANSWER
BARONESS SYMONS OF VERNHAM DEAN
We have no plans to initiate a resolution on Bahrain at this year’s session of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights. We urge all countries to observe the due process of law and to comply with the International Convention on the Rights of Child. Bahrain is a party of this Convention. It has assured us that it is aware of its responsibilities towards children under the requirements of the Convention and that it will take all necessary measures accordingly.
2 April 1998
The Lord Avebury: asked Her Majesty’s Government whether they will urge the relevant authorities of Bahrain to inform parents of the whereabouts of children under the age of 18 who are detained in custody, and to grant the parents access to their children. (HL1173) [23 March]
ANSWER
BARONESS SYMONS OF VERNHAM DEAN
We urge all countries to observe the due process of law and to comply with the International Convention on the Rights of the Child, to which Bahrain is a party. Bahrain has assured us that parents are advised of the whereabouts of, and are granted access to, any children detained in custody.
2 April 1998
The Lord Avebury: asked Her Majesty’s Government why the British Embassy in Bahrain appears to have no contact with the members of the Committee for Popular Petition which advocates restoration of the 1972 constitution. (HL1174) [23 March]
ANSWER
BARONESS SYMONS OF VERNHAM DEAN
The Embassy in Bahrain have not had contact with the Committee for Popular Petition. Nor have the members of the Committee requested any meetings.
2 April 1998
The Lord Avebury: asked her Majesty’s Government whether they have mad any representation to the Government of Bahrain concerning the dissolution of the Bar Society’s elected governing body, and its replacement with Government-appointed nominees. (HL1175) [23 March]
ANSWER
BARONESS SYMONS OF VERNHAM DEAN
We have reiterated to Bahraini authorities, both through our Ambassador in Bahrain and our Mission in Geneva, that we expect the Bahrain government, as we do others, to respect the independence of lawyers and judiciary.
2 April 1998
The Lord Avebury: asked Her Majesty’s Government whether the British Embassy in Bahrain has made any attempt to visit members of the opposition who have been detained for over two years without charge or trial; and, if not, why not. (HL1176) [23 March]
ANSWER
BARONESS SYMONS OF VERNHAM DEAN
The British Embassy in Bahrain has not submitted formal requests to visit members of the opposition who have been detained for over two years without charge. It is through our bilateral contacts with Bahrain that we feel that we have the best opportunities to address constructively human rights issues.
2 April 1998
The Lord Avebury: asked Her Majesty’s Government whether they have sought an undertaking from the Bahrain Government that military equipment sold to them by United Kingdom firms will not be used for internal repression. (HL1177) [23 March]
ANSWER
BARONESS SYMONS OF VERNHAM DEAN
We will not issue an export licence if there is a clearly identifiable risk that the proposed export might be used for internal repression.
2 April 1998
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State injustice: Unfair Trials in the Middle East and North Africa
Amnesty International MDE 01/02/98, April 16, 1998, p 58
Bahrain
The procedures followed by Bahrain’s Supreme Civil Court of Appeal, in its capacity as a State Security Court, have resulted in manifestly unfair trials. This special court routinely violates provisions of Article 14 of the ICCPR, as well as provisions of Bahrain’s Constitution.
When facing trial before the State Security Court, detainees are denied access to legal counsel from the moment of arrest until they are brought to court. This means that although defendants may appoint lawyers of their own choosing, the first contact can only happen on the first day of trial, just moments before the opening session. This violates Principles 15 and 18 of the UN Body of Principles.
Clearly, inadequate time is given for the preparation of the defence. Moreover, defence lawyers are not granted access to court documents before trial, so they can not familiarize themselves with the facts of the case before meeting their clients for the first time in court. Even after the first session, defence lawyers have only limited access to their clients. Trial hearings are often held in camera.
During trial, the State Security Court is not required to summon witnesses to give evidence or for cross examination. Such evidence may be submitted in writing. Defendants can be convicted solely on the basis ofuncorroborated confessions given to police or security officials, even in cases involving the death penalty, and even when there appears to be evidence that such ‘confessions’ were extracted under torture. To date, it appears that no thorough and independent investigations into allegations of torture, which have been both frequent and consistent, brought by defendants has ever been carried out.
Under Bahraini law, there is no right to appeal to a higher tribunal against conviction and sentencing by the State Security Court.
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“Private Eye” on Bahrain (17 April 1998):
A JUMP AHEAD
The government of Bahrain which denies all human rights to anyone who opposes it, has sent a mission to the Human Rights Commission in Geneva.
Its star is the new legal advisor to the Bahrain ministry of the interior, Mr. David Jump. Until his recent lucrative appointment, Mr. Jump was a London solicitor at Trowers and Hamlin, a firm best known for its connections to the “river companies” through which the big money was funnelled secretly to the Tory Party (see Eye 826). Perhaps to celebrate the hiring of Mr. Jump by a show of faith in the rule of law, the Bahraini government has just dissolved the executive committee of the island’s Bar Society. In its place comes a claque of brown-nosing, government-supporting lawyers under the leadership of Sheikh Isa bin Mohammad al Khalifa, a member of the royal family
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Date: 4 Apr 1998 18:47:49 GMT
MANAMA, Bahrain (AP) – Blood-red graffiti scrawled on the sides ofhouses and mosques in Bahrain shout for democracy, vowing a fight to the death. And every few months, arsonists burn another business center or store to the ground.
Demanding jobs for the poor and an end to cronyism and corruption, the country’s Shiite Muslim majority is leading a rebellion that has left more than 40 dead and caused millions of dollars in damage over the past three years.
A crackdown in the Gulf emirate, a key American ally and home to the U.S. 5th Fleet, has suppressed the uprising but failed to stamp it out. Some are increasingly concerned that the simmering unrest could spark wider instability in a region that controls much of the world’s oil.
The target of the Shiites’ anger is the country’s ruling al Khalifa family, which comes from the Sunni branch of Islam has run Bahrain for 200 years.
Under the al Khalifa regime, the island off the coast of Saudi Arabia has developed from a pearl and trading outpost to a regional tourism and banking center.
Although most homes in Shiite areas are solidly built and stocked with the basic amenities, they pale in comparison to luxurious villas in the richer areas, which are mostly Sunni.
The Sunni elite hold most of the top positions in government and industry, and the security forces are almost exclusively Sunni. Many Shiites, who are a slight majority of the country’s 600,000 people, are not well-educated or well-trained and are further disadvantaged because lower-paying jobs tend to go to the 200,000 expatriate workers, mostly Indians, Pakistanis and Bangladeshis.
“The government has been quite ineffective in developing a strategy” to deal with the root causes of unrest, said Patrick Clawson, director for research at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
If the government does not begin to tackle issues such as unemployment and corruption – key concerns of the protesters – the unrest “could become chronic,” added.
The government crackdown has left the rebellion largely leaderless and the arson attacks and bombings that were common in late 1994 and 1995 have become less frequent. There have been no deaths this year.
But Mansoor al-Jamri, a leader of the most prominent Bahraini opposition group in exile, warned that arrests and armed patrols will not end the dissension.
“Bahrainis are not going to shut up, and if we did it might be a nightmare” for the government, warned al-Ja, suggesting that groups challenging the government’s very existence could arise if current demands for restoring the elected Parliament were not met.
Al-Jamri spoke by telephone from London. In November, a Bahraini court sentenced him in absentia to 15 years in prison for plotting to overthrow the governm.
Although the restoration of Parliament, which the government disbanded in 1975, is a key opposition demand, many diplomats and foreign observers say the core of the dispute is the feeling among Shiites that they are not getting their fair share of the island’s riches.
The government insists it is trying to meet the needs of the poor and accuses Shiites in Iran, long a source of inspiration for the rebels, of inflaming passions among Bahraini Shiites.
To tackle unemployment, which the government puts at about 12 percent, Bahrain has introduced a new job counseling system and is trying to increase the number of Bahraini workers in businesses.
While many Shiites accuse foreign workers of stealing their jobs, wealthy Bahrainis say they prefer to hire foreigners because they tend to accept lower wages and are willing to work long hours under harsh conditions.
Many of the arson attacks have targeted small, expatriate-run storein Shiite neighborhoods, and police have arrested dozens of people, virtually all Shiites.
In a small farmhouse outside the capital, an unemployed Shiite man said the government’s efforts are falling far short.
“Things are becoming worse and worse,” he said, refusing to give even his first name for fear he would be arrested if the government knew he sympathized with the opposition.
“They don’t need Bahraini people,” he said. “They need people they can pay cheap salaries to.”
That same sense of hopelessness is what first ignited the rebellion, sending Bahrainis into the streets in late 1994. A slogan painted on a wall in Shaikhura, a small Shiite town outside the capital, Manama, is evithe anger and fatalism has not waned.
“Kill us. We will not stop,” it says.
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Memorandum to the EU at the Joint Ministerial Meeting of EU and GCC on the Political Crises in Bahrain
His Excellency, the Rt. Hon. Robin Cook
Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Commonwealth, London.
Your Excellency
As you meet here in London for the joint ministerial meeting of the EU and GCC ministers of foreign affairs, the people of Bahrain are wondering whether you would examine their case. This meeting takes place, following important developments in the policies of the EU and its member states towards human right issues. The Bahraini people look to the European Union and its member states for support to their just struggle in view of the EU commitment to human rights and democracy. The special relations that bind the EU with GCC, especially the United Kingdom, can be a strong starting point for the defence of human rights in this strategically vital region.
The joint ministerial meeting is a golden opportunity for discussing this issue. The EU is aware of the seriousness of the crisis in Bahrain, following the European Parliament Resolution of 18 September 1997. The GCC member states are also aware of the plight of the Bahraini people. Hundreds of Bahrainis have fled their homeland and sought refuge in the Gulf States. They are well aware that it is the only government that treats its citizens in a way completely different to the way they deal with their citizens. It is the only Gulf State and may be the only one in the world that banishes its citizens arbitrarily and indefinitely, expose them to systematic torture mistreatment and detain them in incommunicado cells amid harsh conditions.
Around 40 citizens had died in the past four years, either in custody or during protests. The Government of Bahrain practices an ugly policy of discrimination against the Shia section of the society. The GCC states are aware of all this, and some had conveyed their displeasure to the Government of Bahrain.
The pro-democracy movement in Bahrain, which commenced in December 1994, had been peaceful and has been acting within the framework of the constitution and international norms. More than 25 thousands citizens had signed an appeal addressed to the Amir of Bahrain, demanding the restoration of both the constitution and the parliament (both suspended since 1975), to allow the return of the exiled, to release the political prisoners and detainees, to grant political rights to women and to solve the problem of the unemployment.
The advocates of democracy come from both sects, Sunni and Shia, and belong to various political trends and different social status. They are represented by the Committee for Popular Petition (CPP). They have sought to enter into dialogue with the government, but all their hopes ended in vain. They have been brutally penalized. Some are detained, such as Shaikh Abdul Amir Al-Jamri and Abdul Wahab Hussain, wile others are being persecuted and harassed. These include Ahmed Al-Shamlan, Mohammed Jaber Al-Sabah and Ibrahim Kamal-u-Din. Others were dismissed from their jobs such as Dr. Muneera Fakhroo. Ms. Hessa al-Khameri, the late Ms. Aziza Al-Bassam and Saeed Al-Asbul.
The CPP is still denied audience with the Amir, while the Government of Bahrain boasts that the doors of the Amir are open to all citizens.
The Government of Bahrain has been practicing repression against its citizens using collective punishment and ruthless means. Arbitrary detentions of citizens for years are common practice. Banishing citizens is unconstitutional, yet the government never ceased to exile people. The State Security Court is a kangaroo court, which manifests the abuse of the judiciary by the state.
The Government of Bahrain does not tolerate any criticism to its policies. Lately it has dissolved the elected administration of the Lawyers Society, because it insisted on its impartiality and integrity. The media is controlled in the same way as societies are, and thus the people are pushed to underground. Despite all this, the CPP still advocates peaceful struggle and denounces violence.
The recent revelation that Sheikh Al-Jamri is being tortured with threats of “rape” and persecution of his family’s members, is an alarming development. International as well as regional peace can only be soundly based on civic peace and respect of human rights.
We look forward to witnessing positive outcome from the Euro-GCC meeting. The UK is assuming an historical direction with the arrival of Labour to power. The UK is better placed than any other power to greatly influence the course of history in the region. The people of Bahrain will surely be grateful to HM Government if the Euro-GCC meeting develop positively in favour of human rights on the ground.
London – 28 April 1998
Bahrain Freedom Movement, BM Box 6135, London WC1N 3XX
The Coordination Committee of Popular Front and the National Front in Bahrain
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Bahrain: Sheikh Al-Jamri is being TORTURED
News from Bahrain spoke of horrific torturing of Sheikh Al-Jamri, the pro-democracy leader held since January 1996. It is now confirmed that Sheikh Al-Jamri was taken to the “Investigating Judge” early in April to force him to sign “pre-prepared” statements as a first step to bringing before the unconstitutional State Security Court. Sheikh Al-Jamri has refused to succumb. The torturers then threatened him of arresting all his family and have gone as far as threatening with “raping” members of his family in front of his eyes. Solitary confinement and sessions of torture involving a British officer, Adel Flaifel and several other torturers have followed these threats. Sheikh Al-Jamri is now suffering from ill health as a result of the on-going torture sessions.
The ill-treatment of Sheikh Al-Jamri has been received with anger amongst the Bahraini nation. These torture sessions and ill-treatment are taking place at the time when resolutions from the European Parliament and the UN Human Right Sub-Commission have called for an immediate halt of human rights abuses in Bahrain. The situation in Bahrain is liable to further instability as a result of the insistence of the government to ignore all calls for moderation and reforms.
The UK will be hosting the next Euro-GCC meeting in London on 29 April, while the US President will be receiving the Amir of Bahrain on 1 June. Both Europe and the US are called upon to show their universal belief in human rights by pressing for the respect of human rights and rule of constitutional law in Bahrain. Without respecting the people, there can only be a fictitious stability that hides all the seeds for instability and turbulence.
The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) 1st Quarterly Repot (ISSN 1351-8682) on Bahrain has been published this week. The 17-page report says, “the political temperature will rise further if a key opposition leader, Abdel Amir al-Jamri, dies in jail. Mr. Jamri, who was imprisoned by the authorities two years ago, is seriously ill but the authorities have so far refused to allow him hospital treatment. However, they have offered to release him on condition that he refrains from further political activity. Mr. Jamri has declined the offer”.
Bahrain Freedom Movement
23 April 1998
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Bahrain: Human rights abuses exposed
Lord Avebury, of the UK Parliamentary Human Rights Group, submitted several writtenquestions on Bahrain to the British Government. In a series of questions , Lord Avebury, questioned the policies of the UK towards the arrest and torture of children in Bahrain, the dissolution of the Bar Society’s elected governing body, dialogue with the Committee for Popular Petition and the sales of military equipment. The British Government responded by stating that the government of Bahrain affirmed that they inform the parents of “the whereabouts of” their children. Moreover, the UK Government commented on the dissolution of the Bar Society saying that “it has reiterated to Bahraini authorities, both through its Ambassador in Bahrain and its Mission in Geneva, to respect the independence of lawyers and judiciary”. The answers to the reaming questions did not provide clear policy.
In Geneva, the 54th Session of the UN Human Rights Commission continued to focus on the cases of human rights violations. On 8 April, the case of Saudi Arabia was assessed under the “confidential procedure” for alleged lack of religious freedom. However, the case of Bahrain has reached the “open” stage of accountability by virtue of the UN Sub-Commission resolution of 21 August 1997. The debate on this item will intensify in the coming days. The Bahraini delegation, headed by the British Advisor David Jump, has protested to several Arab missions who spoke to the Bahraini opposifor more information on the political crisis in Bahrain. The case of Bahrain, having reached this stage, will continue for the coming periods to receive open discussion and more critical examination of the misconduct of the authorities towards the Bahrain nation.
In a obvious challenge to criticism by the international community for the systematic state terrorism and human rights violations, the regime’s repressive apparatus has launched a sudden devious assauon the house of Seyed Abdul Nabi, from Sarr, terrorised his family and arrested his three sons. The assailants conducted their assault in the first hour of Monday 30 March, where they first besieged the house with ten secret police cars and five police vehicles, then ransacked the house and arrested Mr. Abdul Nabi’s sons. They are: Seyed Ridah, 28, (worker in Department of water), Seyed Mohammed, 25, (University student), Seyed Hussain, 15, (student) . Seyed Ridah and Seyed Mohammed have beenreleased after 24 hours of brutal torture, while their teenage brother is still under-arrest and is subjected to unbearable torture.
Later on the same day, 30 March, the security forces raided a number of houses in Sarr, and smashed and destroyed their belongings. Amongst them were the house of Haj Hassan Ali Al Kalini. The following were Known to have been arrested during these raids: Seyed Mohammed, Mohammed Abdula, Adnan Abdul Jalil, Hassan Maki Khalaf, 15, Seyed Alawi Seyed Majid, 16, Hisham Mohammed Hassan, 16, Seyed Jalal Seyed Alawi, 24, Seyed Sami Seyed Alawi, 17, Seyed Abdul Qani Hassan Mansoor, 28. Also police(torture) centre has summoned Mr. Jalal Al Qasab, from Sarr.
On 6 April, the following persons responsible for running community programmes were arrersted: Jaffar Al Durazi, Fawzi Al Durazi, Fadil Al Biladi and Abula Al Biladi. The arrests are presumably part of the “preventative” measures arbitrarily conducted by the foreign forces ahead of the forthcoming “Month of Muharram” when social programmes and processions increase.
Bahrain Freedom Movement
9 April 1998
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