FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 21, 2012
Phone
: +44 (0) 20 7413 5566
Email: press@amnesty.org
Bahrain: Promises of Reform
Broken, Repression Unleashed
WASHINGTON
- November 21 - Bahrain is facing a stark choice between the rule of law, or
sliding into a downward spiral of repression and instability, Amnesty
International warned in a new briefing today.
The briefing Bahrain: reform shelved, repression unleashed comes days before the first
anniversary of a landmark report by the Bahrain Independent Commission of
Inquiry (BICI), which was established by the country’s authorities to
investigate abuses during the 2011 anti-government protests.
The
BICI report found the Bahraini government responsible for gross human rights
violations and documented widespread abuses. It made a series of recommendations
including calling on the authorities to bring to account those responsible for
human rights abuses and to carry out independent investigations into
allegations of torture and other violations.
After
BICI published its report in November 2011, the government committed itself to
implementing the recommendations.
But
as this briefing makes clear, instead of fulfilling this undertaking, the
authorities swiftly moved to entrench repression, culminating in October 2012
in the banning of all rallies and gatherings in the country in violation of the
right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, and in November with the
stripping of Bahraini nationality from 31 opposition figures.
“The
scale and nature of the violations unleashed in Bahrain since the BICI made its
recommendations are making a mockery of the reform process in the country,”
said Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui, Deputy Middle East and North Africa Director at
Amnesty International.
“As
Amnesty International has documented in this briefing, the authorities have
reneged on their promises to pursue the path of reform. Any claim by the
government that it is committed to the rule of law and to improving human
rights sounds hollow, in the face of a moribund reform process.
“Indeed,
it has become evident that the authorities in Bahrain do not have the will to
take the steps necessary to reform. Protestations to the contrary only
underscore the gap between their rhetoric and reality.
“As
the country is engulfed in entrenched unrest and instability looms, the international
community, and especially Bahrain’s allies, have a duty to condemn what is
happening in the country and to stop using the BICI report a shield to avoid
having to criticize the Bahraini authorities.” The establishment of BICI, made
up of international human rights and legal experts, was considered a
groundbreaking initiative, but a year on, it has been effectively shelved.
For
victims and their families, justice and reparation remain elusive.
One such
victim is Roula Jassim Mohammed al-Saffar who was among health professionals
sentenced by a military court to between 5 and 15 years in prison in September
2011. She was subsequently acquitted by a civilian court on appeal. Following
her arrest on 4 April 2011 she says she was tortured in detention. When Amnesty
International met her in Bahrain while she was on bail she described what
happened during questioning at the Criminal Investigation Department:
“A
woman officer entered the room and said ‘I will blindfold you and I will deal
with you now’. Then three men entered the room and started hitting me… She had
an electric device in each hand and hit me with it on both sides of my head at
the same time. I felt dizzy and lost consciousness. I don’t remember what
happened straight after. Then they took me to another room and one of them
called me a whore and insulted my family… On the third day she gave me electric
shocks again and she asked if I went to the strike. Another woman started
slapping me. She cut my hair with scissors. Then they burned my hair on the
sides. They hit me and sexually harassed me by putting their hands all over my
body… This continued for four or five days.”
Meanwhile,
Amnesty International continues to document widespread violations by security
forces, including the use of unnecessary and excessive force against
protesters, sometimes fatal.
Hussam
al-Haddad, 16, died on 17 August 2012 in al-Muharraq, the day after he was shot
by riot police. His family say he had gone to a nearby cafe while
demonstrations were going on in the area. A family member who was present
alleged that after Hussam al-Haddad was shot and, while he was on the ground, a
riot police officer hit him with his rifle and kicked him. Hussam al-Haddad was
taken to the military hospital and then to Salmaniya Medical Complex. His
family was informed about his death at around 2am that night. On 9 October the
Special Investigation Unit determined that the policeman who shot at him was
acting in self-defence after being attacked and the case was therefore closed.
Since
the beginning of 2012, an increasing number of gatherings have involved
participants reportedly throwing Molotov cocktails or blocking roads. According
to the government, two policemen have died in recent weeks after having been
reportedly attacked in riots. Such violent attacks are not protected forms of
expression under international human rights law, and those suspected of
carrying them out may be brought to justice in conformity with standards of
fairness and due process.
However,
the use of violence does not exonerate the authorities from their obligations
to respect human rights. Amnesty International has repeatedly called on the
Bahraini authorities to refrain from using excessive force against protesters;
the organization considers that policing of assemblies should always be guided
by human rights considerations.
An
increasing number of children aged between 15 and 18 have been held in adult
prisons and detention centres in Bahrain in the past few months. The total may
number 80, according to lawyers and local human rights groups. Human rights
defenders and activists denouncing such abuses are repeatedly harassed and some
have been jailed for carrying out their human rights work and peacefully
exercising their rights to freedom of expression, association and assembly.
And
in an ominous move, the Bahraini authorities on 7 November stripped 31
opposition figures of their Bahraini nationality. A Ministry of Interior
statement indicated that the group, including politicians, activists and
religious figures, had their nationality revoked because they had caused
“damage to state security”.
Bahrain
risks sliding into protracted unrest and instability and is at a crossroads.
The BICI report provides a roadmap to put Bahrain on the path of the rule of
law; only the genuine implementation of the BICI report recommendations would
halt the slide. Bahrain’s close allies, including the USA and the UK can no
longer shield behind BICI and pretend it’s business as usual.
###
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