Victims are asked to file complaints through the government-lead prosecution and judiciary!
March 20th 2007
Victims are asked to file complaints through the government-lead prosecution and judiciary!
March 20th 2007
The Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR) closely followed the response of the Ministry of Interior (MOI) Assistant Undersecretary for Legal Affairs, published on the Al-Ayam newspaper, regarding the women activist Ghada Jamshir’s receipt of death threat and her exposure to MOI attempt to set bugs in her house. The BCHR values the comments made by Colonel Mohamed Bu-Hummood that the MOI “pays great attention towards what has been published, especially the complaint withholds allegations of appreciable menace – if found true-as well as it bears direct accusation to the Security Authorities of spying on citizens, which contradicts the provisions the Constitution and Laws ensuring the protection of personal liberty and privacy of citizens of any violation .. “. The (MOI) Assistant Undersecretary requested activist Ghada Jamshir to “put forward an official communiqué identifying the individuals referred to in her complaint so that necessary action is taken to uncover the circumstances of the incident”
The BCHR is aware of the importance of recourse to the judiciary, the decision to lodge a complaint is at the discretion of the individual concerned. However, the BCHR could not advise so, as it would normal do in similar cases in the past. This is due to the negative or adverse results to those cases, which revealed lack of impartiality and neutrality of the criminal investigations and public prosecution, especially when members of opposition or human rights defenders are involved. The recent appointment of 15 new prosecutors revealed the extent of corruption and lack of integrity in the judiciary and the prosecution. The annual report of human rights practices, issued by the US State Department in March 2007, highlighted the lack of independence of the judiciary in Bahrain and the existence of allegations of related corruption. It is to be noted that the US administration is handling the rehabilitation of the Bahraini judiciary.
Following are some bitter experiences of the use of criminal investigations or public prosecution when it comes to attacks against members of opposition and human rights defenders:
The BCHR has made considerable effort to persuade Mosa Abdali, 25 years, active member of the Unemployed Committee, to disclose what he had been through of physical and sexual assault on November 28, 2005, and file a complaint in that regard. The Minister of Interior personally intervened in the case and met with the victim (Mosa) and his family, at the presence of BCHR Vice President. The Minister produced assurance to take necessary measures to uncover the case. The Public Prosecution, however, ill-treated the victim, harassed the witnesses, prevented the lawyer from attending interrogation sessions, refrained from recording any statements concerning the accused of assault, and sought to cast doubt on the occurrence of sexual assault prior to the completion of the investigation. All these acts obliged the victim to cease the cooperation with the prosecution. Mosa, who was exposed to arrest on the charge of participating in an unauthorized sit-in, left the country to Europe, after his release, to escape pursuits, which are still effective against his colleagues in the Unemployed Committee.
The BCHR also requested that Abbas Abdali (28 year)- brother of Mosa mentioned in the previous case-to lodge a suit to the Prosecution after being beaten, on July 6, 2006o, on the head and his body, almost leading to death. Clear indications of the identity of the perpetrators were noted, through the details and witnesses disclosed by the Chief of Investigations to the press. Instead of bringing the perpetrators for interrogation and trial, the victim (Abbas) was arrested and imprisoned for three months on charges of providing false information, where he accused masked security men with the assault. He was negotiated for his release and returned to work for the MOI, in return for relinquish of the case. When he discarded the complaint, he was released, but has not yet been reinstated to work, the criminal investigation nor the public prosecution brought any of the suspects for interrogation, who appeared, from the case file and witnesses against Abbas, to be relatives of some security and prosecution officers.
Prior to these cases, on June 19th, 2005, more than twenty people lodged a complaint to the Public Prosecutor filed by proofs and evidence of physical collective abuse by Special Security Forces, once in front of the Royal Court and the other in Riffa Police Station. This was in the presence of activists and members of the Parliament. The public prosecution refused the victims request to show-up at the security center to inspect the facts. The victims were convinced to head towards the Prosecution office, where they were presented to the forensic doctor and their detailed statements were recorded. Nevertheless, the public prosecution has not lodged a case yet. Rather, the attacks on subsequent protests were repeated by the special forces. Protesters have always been subjected to severe beatings during arrest. No investigation has yet been filed, until today, in any complaints against the security forces.
In connection to the campaigns to defame and discredit political and human rights activists by post and telephonic messages, the president of the BCHR formally filed, more than a year ago, a complaint at Khamees Security Center with regards to subjecting his wife to constant harassment through SMS messages. Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja presented to the police the mobile telephone number and the name of his owner, notably working in the Ministry of Defence. The prosecution has not made a move in that regard. Two years ago, Nabil Rajab, BCHR vice president, also filed a similar complaint to the public prosecutor. Albandar report later disclosed names of persons engaged in such campaigns, and instead of filing a case against them, Rajab was summoned last week before the public prosecution on libel charges against one of those whose names are listed in the report.
The BCHR expresses deep concerns for the lack of fair legal representation and judicial protection of victims and witnesses, including the last issue of the head of the Women’s Petition Committee- Ghada Jamshir. It urges reform of the judiciary and the public prosecution, as well as independent and impartial investigation into the threats of Jamsheer, activists and human rights defenders.