World Press Freedom Review
2005
Bahrain
2005 World Press Freedom Review
http://www.freemedia.at/cms/ipi/freedom_detail.html?country=/KW0001/KW0004/KW0089/
Campaigns for social and political reform have gained momentum in Bahrain in recent years. In the press, criticism of government policies and analysis of domestic and foreign issues has increased but the 2002 Press Law, which includes 17 categories of offences, still acts as a restrictive measure. The government has on several occasions expressed an intention to amend the law but has so far failed to act on these commitments.
Bahraini authorities undertook exhaustive measures to control the use of blogs and the posting of information on the Internet this year. On 27 February, Ali Abdulemam, moderator of the discussion forum Bahrain Online was arrested by security forces. He was charged with violation of the press, communication and penal codes. Bahrain Online posts comments from members on political, social and religious issues and regularly posts statements that are critical of authorities. The site has been banned since 2002, and like many other sites containing critical information, it cannot be accessed from within the country.
World Press Freedom Review
2005
Bahrain
2005 World Press Freedom Review
http://www.freemedia.at/cms/ipi/freedom_detail.html?country=/KW0001/KW0004/KW0089/
Campaigns for social and political reform have gained momentum in Bahrain in recent years. In the press, criticism of government policies and analysis of domestic and foreign issues has increased but the 2002 Press Law, which includes 17 categories of offences, still acts as a restrictive measure. The government has on several occasions expressed an intention to amend the law but has so far failed to act on these commitments.
Bahraini authorities undertook exhaustive measures to control the use of blogs and the posting of information on the Internet this year. On 27 February, Ali Abdulemam, moderator of the discussion forum Bahrain Online was arrested by security forces. He was charged with violation of the press, communication and penal codes. Bahrain Online posts comments from members on political, social and religious issues and regularly posts statements that are critical of authorities. The site has been banned since 2002, and like many other sites containing critical information, it cannot be accessed from within the country.
On 1 March, two webmasters who worked on the site, Mohamed Al Musawi and Hussein Yousef were also arrested. The three journalists staged a hunger strike to demand better prison conditions in Manama’s Al Hoora police station and their reclassification as prisoners of conscience rather than ordinary prisoners. All three were accused of having defamed the king and for inciting hatred against the regime.
Press Law 47, passed in 2002, added further restrictions on freedom of expression including the prohibition of “defamation of the person of the king.” According to activists in Bahrain, this tenet has been used to censor all forms of criticism addressing the king and royal family and to minimize public scrutiny of domestic affairs. The press law introduced harsher penalties for press crimes, including sentences of six months to five years in prison for violators.
On 24 April, the Information Ministry issued a decree instructing website and blog moderators of any site that included information on Bahrain to register with the Ministry and to assume responsibility for all materials published online. According to a Reporters sans frontiers (RSF) report, the ministry’s head of press and publications, Jamal Dawood, said that registration would be automatic and no one would be refused but that registration would be handled at the ministry where site administrators would have to apply in person and submit their full contact information. After validation, each website would receive an identification number that would have to be posted on the site.
The decision met with harsh criticism from human rights observers within and outside Bahrain who argued that the new policy would make website editors and forum moderators completely responsible for the content of a site and destroy the aspect of anonymity that is of integral importance to supporting freedom of expression on the Internet.
Aside from China and a small number of other repressive countries, Bahrain is one of the first nations to make registration of online publications obligatory. In June, RSF and the Representative on Freedom of the Media for the Organisation of Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) issued a statement saying: “Any requirement to register websites with governmental authorities is not acceptable. Unlike licensing scarce resources such as broadcasting frequencies, an abundant infrastructure like the Internet does not justify official assignment of licenses. On the contrary, mandatory registration of online publications might stifle the free exchange of ideas, opinions, and information on the Internet.”
Threats and restrictions on press freedom are not limited to government practices in Bahrain. In late June, a Muslim cleric threatened the editor-in-chief of the daily Al Ayam after the newspaper ran a political cartoon about the Iranian presidential election.
Isa Al Shaygi received a letter from Aqeel Al Mousawi, a religious scholar, who said the cartoon was offensive. Al Mousawi led a massive protest outside Al Ayam offices before meeting with Al Shaygi who said he would bring the complaint to the newspaper’s management. Al Mousawi then sent a letter saying that the editor “would soon be punished by the people for being a traitor.”
The cartoons published in Al Ayam depicted Iran’s supreme leader manipulating election results. With Ayatollah Khamenai’s dual role as a supreme political and religious leader, many Shi’ites in Bahrain took offence to the cartoon and responded by staging sit-ins and protest at Al Ayam offices throughout the country.
Bahrain has witnessed a notable escalation in the public demand for political and social reforms this year. However, according to the Egyptian Organisation for Human Rights (EOHR), the government is becoming increasingly intolerant and has been met by a strong and aggressive response from authorities and security forces.
In June and July, a number of protests and sit-ins were organised by the Association for Suitable Housing and the Committee for the Unemployed. On 15 July, authorities used excessive force to prevent people from gathering to protest the state budget. The organizers claimed the budget failed to address the needs of unemployed workers.
Thirty of the 50 protestors were arrested and others were wounded and hospitalised after masked security forces charged the group and beat protestors with batons. According to a Human Rights Watch (HRW) report, one witness who was passing the scene in a car, took photos of the police attacks. The police then stopped his car and confiscated the camera. The same witness reported that he had watched 10 police officers force open the doors of another car before pulling out and beating the occupants.
The government has taken legislative measures to halt the activities of organisations critical of state policies. In November, a ban was imposed on all rallies and protests during a US-sponsored “Forum of the Future,” which was attended by Arab and American leaders. Journalists, bloggers and civil society groups are facing increased harassment as they try to confront these government restrictions.
HRW stated that while Bahrain has been a “poster child for political reform” in the Middle East, police attacks are a worrisome trend showing that Bahraini authorities are becoming more repressive in response to peaceful political activism.
Bahrain’s first private radio station began broadcasting from Manama in October. The station Sawt Al Ghad Bahrain is an extension of Lebanon’s Sawt Al Ghad, one of the most popular Arabic radio stations. It broadcasts music and entertainment programmes but does not provide any coverage of news or current affairs.
