The Bahrain Center for Human Rights expresses its concern about the health condition of the prisoner, Dr. Abduljalil Al-Singace, who has started a hunger strike since July 8, 2021 in protest of the ill-treatment he is being subjected to inside his prison in Jau Central Prison.
At the Bahrain Center for Human Rights, we received information from the family of the prisoner sentenced to life imprisonment – Dr. Abdul-Jalil Al-Singace – stating that Al-Singace had informed his family of his intention to start a hunger strike and shall refrain from taking medicines and conducting tests for Covid 19, in protest against the ill treatment he is being subjected to inside the prison. The officer, Muhammad Fakhro, confiscated a scientific research that Al-Singace had worked on for a period of no less than four years, and Fakhro was a main reason for rejecting all requests submitted by Al-Singace while he was in prison.
Al-Singace still suffers from health conditions that require specialized medical attention; he suffers from dizzy spells that cause him to fall. In a call with his family at the beginning of June, Dr. Al-Singace reported that he had fallen due to the slippery rubber stoppers on his crutches, which had not been replaced despite the fall and multiple requests to replace them.
It is worth noting that Dr. Abduljalil Al-Singace is a Bahraini academic and a human rights activist and blogger until 2011, when he was imprisoned for his participation in the protests. He is one of the “Bahrain 13” group, which includes political leaders who were arrested for their role in the democratic movement in Bahrain in 2011. Dr. Al-Singace was tortured and sentenced to life imprisonment in a trial that failed to justice for trying to overthrow the government. He remains in Jau Prison, where the authorities continue to deny him necessary medical care.
What the authority is doing in Bahrain contradicts its claim to be committed to human rights principles, especially the United Nations minimum rules for the treatment of prisoners. Based on all of the above, the Bahrain Center for Human Rights demands the following:
- The release of Dr. Abdul-Jalil Al-Singace, due to his health condition
- Improving the treatment of prisoners in line with the minimum rules for the treatment of prisoners
- Establishing controls and procedures that ensure that officers do not abuse their authority over prisoners