BCHR President takes legal action over Media Smear Campaign
Bahrain Center for Human Rights
22 November 2009
President of the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights (BCHR) Nabeel Rajab filed a court case against Bahraini media proprietor AnwarAbdulrahmantoday(Nov22), for repeated incidences of defamation in Mr Abdulrahman’s English and Arabic language newspapers.
BCHR President takes legal action over Media Smear Campaign
Bahrain Center for Human Rights
22 November 2009
President of the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights (BCHR) Nabeel Rajab filed a court case against Bahraini media proprietor AnwarAbdulrahmantoday(Nov22), for repeated incidences of defamation in Mr Abdulrahman’s English and Arabic language newspapers.
A recent media attack was initiated by the Arabic Akhbar Al-Khaleej (AK) and its counterpart in English, Gulf-Daily News (GDN), and later continued by Al Watan newspaper. Both these newspapers were named by the BCHR in a report oncounterfeit human rights activists and GONGOS in Bahrain. Since exposing various fake ‘human rights campaigners’ and government supported ‘independent’ organisations, as well as prominent figures, their roles and some of the financial rewards they receive from government-linked sources, the BCHR and its president have been faced by a fierce media smear campaign initiated by a number of daily newspapers, electronic forums and TV.
AK is the oldest existing newspaper in Bahrain and its owner, Anwar Abdulrahman, is well known for his close ties to Shaikh Khalifa Al-Khalifa, a leading member of the ruling family and the only Prime Minister Bahrain has known since 1970.
Al Watan newspaper is the media arm and product of a covert operation, funded and managed by the Royal court, exposed in the Al-Bandergate leak. It is well known for its sectarian incitement, antagonism and provocation against dissidents and human rights defenders.
“On the front page of AAK , November 13th issue, there were two marked bogus news about myself,” BCHR President Nabeel Rajab said.
“The first was positioned at the top right corner of the first page, titled “With my money and not the soft talk”, in which the editor of the AK falsified that, “In the recent election carried out in CARAM Asia, Nabeel Rajab won the membership of the its board due to the financial and political support offered by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards and Intelligence in Iranian Embassy in Malaysia.AK further stated that, “Nabeel won the highest number of votes from the organizations which received Iranian money from him”.
“The second defamatory piece, situated in the lower right corner of the first page of the same issue was titled “For refusing to indicting Iran, Nabeel Rajab was ejected from a European Conference”. Here, the AK editor falsely narrated that, “The Bahrain Kingdom Forum published a picture distributed by news agencies showing the expulsion of Nabeel Rajab, president of BCHR, in a European conference yesterday because he refused to condemn Iran, Ahmedi Nejad , the executions, and the latest killings of Iranian human rights activists”.
“This lie was also published in the GDN issue of the same day. It was titled, and placed on the front page, as, “Activist expelled from forum”, and reiterated the same story as the Arabic version; ” A Bahraini human rights activist was expelled from a European conference yesterday for refusing to condemn Iranian President and the recent government crackdown on protesters. Bahrain forums have posted a news agency picture showing the expulsion of the now-dissolved Bahrain Center for Human Rights president Nabeel Rajab from the conference”
“In Al Watan, for three consecutive days, there were statements by some members of the GONGOs mentioned in the BCHR report, calling for prosecution of members of “unregistered” organisations which “aim to tarnish Bahrain’s image” considering their acts to be of “internal and external state security crimes” . Moreover, loyalist parliamentarians expressed their support in prosecuting those “seeking to undermine the reputation of Bahrain”, considering their organizations infiltrated by spoilers” . MP Abdulla Al-Dossary accused members of the “illigitimate establishments , like the BCHR, who have relations with foreign embassies, and deliver false information about Bahrain”. MP Lateefa Al-Qaood, a female member of Parliament backed by the Royal Court, stated that “the Bahrain center does not have any official status and works for a foreign agenda”. Salafi MP, Mohammed Khalid, who is known of his Hate speeches and statements, stated that: “This center is dissolved for several reasons as it has exceeded the red lines in what so-called human rights”.
“Media statements were produced to support GONGOs, with the Ministerial Cabinet and Prime Minister “calling international organizations and bodies to rely on official indicators and reports to make reports more accurate and realistic”. The PM noted that “some of these reports lack precision in reflecting the reality as it relied on unofficial sources ineligible to provide these organizations with the accurate data that reflect the reality in Bahrain”.
“It is to the misfortune of the AK and GDN editors, who failed to show any level of professionalism when referring to a picture taken by members of the Bahraini Embassy in Washington DC who attended a briefing in 15 October 2008 on religious freedom in Bahrain called upon by the US Congress Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission. The picture shows Nabeel Rajab and two other activists from Bahrain- Dr Abduljalil Alsingace and Ms Maryam Al-Khawaja, as well as Dr Toby Jones – who were also invited by Congressman Frank Wolf, Chairman of the commission, to share their views and reports about the State-orchestrated violation of the religious freedom in Bahrain. At the time of the conference, the three Bahraini participants were faced with a media smear and defamation campaign stigmatizing them with names, and calling them stooges of the USA. This same photo is now being used to accuse Nabeel Rajab of being a stooge of Iran.”
Briefing session on the “Impact of political reform and religious freedom in Bahrain- Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission and the Congressional Task Force on International Religious Freedom
(15 October, 2008, Rayburn House- Office Building 2168, Washington DC- USA)
Background:
A few weeks ago, a similar campaign was launched by Al Watan newspaper and Bahrain TV. Al Watan posted the detail TV interview made by of its columnist, Sawsan Alshaer, who is also a presenter on Bahrain State TV. In that TV program, Hasan Mousa Shafeei, one of the figures mentioned in the BCHR documentary report about GONGOs and bogus organizations, was hosted to share the defamatory attack on Nabeel Rajab and other activists in Bahrain. Hasan Shafeei works as consultant in Bahrain Embassy in London to runa homepage dedicated to attacking human rights organizations and defenders in Bahrain.
It is understood that this fierce defamation and smear campaign against the BCHR and its president, Nabeel Rajab, is a counter reaction to the efforts of reporting and professional documentations of various human rights violations. This campaign has included intimidation and the targeting of Nabeel, his wife and family, through telephone calls and SMS, the post and cyber space. Many cases in the past have been filed by Nabeel Rajab through the Public Prosecution (PP), but have not been pursued or taken seriously.
The BCHR denounces such acts, which appear to have the silent consent of the Authorities, to suppress activists and human rights defenders. The BCHR has vowed to report and document human rights violations, irrespective of the source of violations, as a contribution towards protection and maintenance of such precious values. Intimidation by media organisations with close links to government will not alter the BCHR policy of being objective and credible when dealing with human rights issues. The BCHR calls on the media and Bahraini Authorities to remedy their record on human rights by genuinely respecting and encouraging the promotion of human rights, instead of attacking and demoralizing those defending them in Bahrain.
————————————————–
“㤙㇊ 捞枭椠ȇኒ歑” Bogus Human Rights Organizations and Activists www.bchr.net/ar/ngos www.anhri.net/bahrain/bchr/2009/pr1112.shtml
http://www.aaknews.com/pdf.aspx?iid=11558
http://gulf-daily-news.com/source/XXXII/239/pdf/Page01.pdf
http://www.alwatannews.net/index.php?m=newsDetail&newsID=46406§ion=4
http://www.alwatannews.net/archive/index.php?m=newsDetail&newsID=46057§ion=4&issueDate=2009-11-17
http://www.bna.bh/?ID=158802p://
http://www.pomed.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/lantos-commission-religious-freedom-in-bahrain-15-oct-2008.pdf
http://media4.dropshots.com/photos/534673/20081029/181222.jpg
http://www.bahrainrights.org/en/node/2472
http://www.fidh.org/Media-campaign-against-Mr-Nabeel,http://www.fidh.org/BHR-002-1008-OBS-171-Slandering,http://humanrightsdefenders.org/en/node/1604
http://www.alwatannews.net/archive/index.php?m=newsDetail&newsID=42424§ion=4&issueDate=2009-10-25