A serious development and forthright turnover on the international conventions and agreements signed on public freedom.

Bahrain’s authorities target the president of Bahrain Center for Human Rights and its members.

17th of April 2011

Bahrain Center for Human Rights expresses its deep concern at the continuing crackdown launched by the authorities in Bahrain on activists and human rights defenders by targeting, prosecuting and raiding homes of the members of Bahrain Center for Human Rights in particular, and the exploitation of media owned by the government to discredit and question their credibility. Security forces, the army and armed civilian militia recently raided the home of a prominent human rights activist, Nabeel Rajab – the President of Bahrain Center for Human Rights as well as Yousif Al-Mahafdhah – a blogger and a senior member in Bahrain Center for Human Rights – in addition to the raid and arrest of Mr. Mohammed Ahmed Sultan, a member in the Media Center at Bahrain Center for Human Rights and who’s fate remains unknown since the arrest.

Bahrain’s authorities target the president of Bahrain Center for Human Rights and its members.

17th of April 2011

Bahrain Center for Human Rights expresses its deep concern at the continuing crackdown launched by the authorities in Bahrain on activists and human rights defenders by targeting, prosecuting and raiding homes of the members of Bahrain Center for Human Rights in particular, and the exploitation of media owned by the government to discredit and question their credibility. Security forces, the army and armed civilian militia recently raided the home of a prominent human rights activist, Nabeel Rajab – the President of Bahrain Center for Human Rights as well as Yousif Al-Mahafdhah – a blogger and a senior member in Bahrain Center for Human Rights – in addition to the raid and arrest of Mr. Mohammed Ahmed Sultan, a member in the Media Center at Bahrain Center for Human Rights and who’s fate remains unknown since the arrest.

On the 10th of April, Bahrain Ministry of Interior published a statement [1] that included the determination of the security to transmit Nabeel Rajab to the military prosecutor for publishing a picture of the citizen Ali Issa Saqer on his social networking Twitter page which they alleged was doctored. Nabeel Rajab had published a picture of the citizen Ali Issa Saqer, who died under torture in one of Bahrain’s detention centers, the picture clearly showed marks of severe torture which Saqer had been subjected to.

Nabeel Rajab stated: “I did not doctor the image. This image shows without any doubt the amount of severe torture which Ali Issa Saqer was subjected to. Other pictures were spread showing the signs of torture on the body of the deceased, and there is more than one video showing the same effects. As for the images the Interior presented in its statement, they are unclear pictures and were taken from a very far angle, though it shows the signs of torture. Furthermore, what Bahraini authorities are spreading against me is to discourage me as a human rights activist and to discredit the reports of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights.”

House of Nabeel Rajab after the raid

Political and media campaigns started against members of Bahrain Center for Human Rights since Sunday 20th of March 2011 and after midnight 20 to 25 masked and armed civilians with guns as well as dozens of riot police raided Nabeel Rajab’s house. The security forces broke into the house, searched, and tampering with its contents in addition to confiscating Rajab’s computer and some files relating to human rights. Upon his arrest, forces cuffed Rajab and placed him in the back of a car that belongs to the Ministry of Interior, where he was subjected to verbal harassment and beatings. He was then taken to Criminal Investigation Department in Adliya where he was questioned and asked about a person the officials were searching for, but Rajab declared he did not know that person. After two hours of interrogation Nabeel Rajab was released, without attribution to any charge [2]. It is worth mentioning that Nabeel Rajab, in addition to being the president of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights, is also one of the members of the Advisory Committee of the Middle East and North Africa at Human Rights Watch and the Deputy Secretary-General of the International Federation for Human Rights [3].

Yousif Al-Muhafdhah

It is worth noting that on the same day that Rajab was arrested and after an hour specifically at 2:30am, another group of masked militia together with riot police raided the house of Yousif Al-Muhafdhah, a blogger and a member of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights, in order to arrest him but he was not at home at the time. The family of Al-Muhafdhah told the Bahrain Center for Human Rights that a group of armed militia escorted by security forces, estimated to be 25 men, broke into the house through a window on the second floor of the house. They searched it without presenting any warrants and threatened the family that they will come back every night if Al-Muhafdhah does not hand himself in [4].

Mohammed Sultan

At Friday dawn (2.30am) 18th of March 2011 a group of armed civilians accompanied by security forces raided the house of Mohammed Sultan (30 years old), a member in the media center of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights, when approximately 30 masked militia and security forces entered the house and searched it thoroughly, in addition to searching the vehicles belonging to the family. The security forces also arrested the younger brother of Mohammed Sultan, Younis Sultan despite the fact that he is not active, does not belong to any political association or even human rights organization. Younis was detained for one week and then released [5].

Dr. Mohammad Saeed Al-Sahlawi

This is not the first time Bahrain’s authorities target members of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights. On the 17th of August, authorities arrested a member of the Center, Dr. Mohammad Saeed Al-Sahlawi and accused him of joining a terrorist network aimed at overthrowing the regime in Bahrain. He was released under a royal pardon on the 20th February of this year. Authorities again, raided Al-Sahlawi’s house to arrest him, less than a month after his release but he had already gone into hiding. His whereabouts and fate remain unknown.

The Bahrain Center for Human Rights is under a massive and fierce media campaign by the government due to the role of the Center in documenting and monitoring human rights violations, as well as providing international media with information of what is happening in Bahrain. Bahrain’s official television aired on the 16th of April 2011 an episode targeting the credibility of the Centre and its president [6]. A government newspaper preceded by publishing his picture, then Bahrain News Agency published in what the authority is calling a terrorist plot last September [7], authorities have recently prevented the Center’s head, Nabeel Rajab, from leaving the country. Rajab was traveling to French capital Paris to attend a meeting of the International Federation for Human Rights, where he serves as Deputy Secretary-General.

On December 2, 2010 Rajab had a similar incident at the Bahrain International Airport when he got harassed by members of the National Security Service when he was heading to Greece, where they detained him for an hour after searching his laptop thoroughly and his mobile phone in addition to threatening him [8]. Members of the Center have been subjected to harassments from time to time including lawyer Mohammed Al Jishi – who is working on human rights issues and defending prisoners of security issues – as well as human rights activist Yousif Al-Mahafdhah who was arrested several times, and who lost one of his trips due to the delay of arresting and interrogating him in Bahrain International Airport by members of the Security Service of Bahrain.

Six special reporttuers of the United Nations warned the Kingdom of Bahrain for not adhering to its human rights commitments, particularly in regards to the freedom of peaceful assembly and freedom of speech. They issued a statement expressing their fear of Bahrain’s government dismissal of their obligations to human rights conventions since mid-February, warning at the same time of what they described as “broken promises” made by the government itself, by multiplying violations of human rights that deteriorate peace and security in the country, considering at the same time Bahrain’s human rights obligations are questionable at the moment [9].

Nabeel Rajab – President of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights – commented on the situation by saying: “The authority is trying to intimidate activists to dissuade them from serving their humanitarian role in defending Bahraini citizens’ rights,” asserting that members of the Center are determined to continue performing their duty in defending human rights and freedom of speech in Bahrain.

Based on the mentioned information, the Bahrain Center for Human Rights calls on the authorities to:

1. Immediately release the detainee and the member of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights, Mohammad Sultan.
2. Release all activists and defenders of human rights.
3. Stop harassing human rights activists and give them the freedom to exercise their human rights activities as guaranteed by international conventions.
4. Abide by the articles of Declaration on Human Rights Defenders adopted on December 9, 1998 by the General Assembly of the United Nations. Article 1 in particular, which states that “Everyone has the right, individually and in association with others, to promote and to strive for the protection and realization of human rights and fundamental freedoms at the national and international levels,” and article 12.2, which states that “The State shall take all necessary measures to ensure the protection by the competent authorities of everyone, individually and in association with others, against any violence, threats, retaliation, de facto or de jure adverse discrimination, pressure or any other arbitrary action as a consequence of his or her legitimate exercise of the rights referred to in the present Declaration.”
5. Respect human rights, fundamental freedoms and the right of privacy in all circumstances that conforms to the international standards of human rights and international instruments ratified by Bahrain.

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