17 Oct 14 | Bahrain, Statements
Dear Mr. Hammond,
We are writing to you in light of your current tour of Gulf Cooperation Council countries regarding the arbitrary arrest and detention of human rights defenders Nabeel Rajab, Zainab Al-Khawaja and Ghada Jamsheer in Bahrain for cases of peaceful expression.
Nabeel Rajab, the President of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights, Director of the Gulf Center for Human Rights (GCHR) and Deputy Secretary General of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), remains in prison following his arrest for a tweet in which he expressed his view about the role Bahrain security institutions play as “incubators of ISIS ideology”. Mr. Rajab had travelled to Bahrain from the United Kingdom following a European advocacy tour that included a panel at the House of Lords.
His detention has been criticised internationally. The United Nations has warned that it sends a “chilling message”. The Norwegian government has recently advised that the arrest of Mr. Rajab sends a negative message and has called for his immediate release. The European Parliament Subcommittee on Human Rights has voiced serious concerns over his arrest and detention and the United States State Department has called on Bahrain to drop the charges against him.
We urge the United Kingdom to add its voice to these universal calls. As a close ally to Bahrain, the UK has influence that could result in steps to release human rights defenders and political prisoners in Bahrain. You will recall that the UK signed a joint statement during the 26th session of the UN Human Rights Council, which urged the government of Bahrain “to release all persons imprisoned solely for exercising human rights, including human rights defenders some of whom have been identified as arbitrarily detained according to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention”. We ask you to follow up on this statement by calling for the immediate and unconditional release of both Mr. Rajab and Ms. Al-Khawaja who have been detained solely for exercising their human right to free expression.
Zainab Al-Khawaja is a prominent activist in Bahrain, who is facing serious charges of “publicly insulting the King” after ripping a photo of him during a court hearing. The case, which runs contrary to Bahrain’s international human rights obligations, was immediately transferred to the Higher Criminal Court in Bahrain meaning that she now faces up to seven years in prison for a peaceful act of expression. It is important to note that Ms. Al-Khawaja is eight months pregnant, and faces the possibility of going into labour in arbitrary detention.
Amnesty International has criticised the decision and called for her immediate release arguing”laws that prohibit insults or the disrespect of heads of state or other public figures are contrary to international human rights law and standards”.
Her sister Maryam Al-Khawaja, Co-Director of the GCHR, is also facing prison on charges of assault brought against her after she arrived in Bahrain on 30 August to try to visit her father, jailed human rights defender Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja, founder of BCHR and GCHR. She was released after two weeks but is due in court on 5 November.
In addition to these cases, women’s rights defender Ghada Jamsheer was arrested and imprisoned on 15 September, on charges of defamation on Twitter. She remains in detention and will face court prosecution on charges related to her freedom of expression on 22 October.
The arrest and ongoing detention of both Mr. Rajab and Ms. Al-Khawaja threaten to destabilise further an already unstable country. It is imperative that human rights advocates are not targeted for exercising their human rights peacefully. The work of human rights defenders often requires criticising governments as noted by the European Union Guidelines on Human Rights Defenders, which call for this role to be “recognised and supported”.
We urge the British government to demand the immediate release of all detained human rights defenders and activists in Bahrain.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Americans for Democracy and Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB)
Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR)
Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (BIRD)
English PEN
Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR)
Index on Censorship
Pen International
Redress
Reprieve
05 Apr 18 | Bahrain, Bahrain Statements, Campaigns -- Featured, Statements
Zainab and Maryam Al-Khawaja
Seven years ago this month, renowned human rights defender and former Index award winner Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja was dragged from his home in Bahrain, tortured, tried in a military court, and sentenced to life in prison for his peaceful role in 2011 protests. Today, 5 April, on Al-Khawaja’s 57th birthday, the undersigned human rights organisations call for his immediate release and for all human rights defenders jailed in Bahrain to be freed.
On Monday 9 April, human rights organisations, friends, and supporters will join two of Al-Khawaja’s daughters, Zainab and Maryam Al-Khawaja, for two events in London:
Protest: Bahraini Embassy, 1pm
Call on the Bahraini Government to release Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja
30 Belgrave Square, Knightsbridge, London SW1X 8QB
Front Line Defenders has been organising monthly protests at the Embassy since January 2018
Conversation with Zainab and Maryam Al-Khawaja, 6:30pm
Hosted by Front Line Defenders and ARTICLE 19
Free Word Centre, 60 Farringdon Road, London, EC1R 3GA
Abdulhadi Al–Khawaja is an internationally-known Bahraini-Danish human rights defender who is the founder and former President of the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights (BCHR), established in 2002, and a Founding Director of the Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR), established in 2011. He was Middle East and North Africa Protection Coordinator for Front Line Defenders until February 2011, when he resigned during the popular movement in Bahrain.
He was violently arrested on 9 April 2011 and charged in connection with his peaceful human rights activities. This was followed by brutal torture, resulting in a broken jaw and requiring several operations, then finally by an unfair trial grossly violating international standards for fair trials and due process. He undertook a number of hunger strikes to protest torture and poor prison conditions.
Al-Khawaja is one of a group of 13 human rights defenders and political activists (the Bahrain 13) sentenced to lengthy prison terms solely for exercising their right to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly. Following a grossly unfair trial, Al-Khawaja was sentenced by the National Safety court (a military court) on 22 June 2012 to life in prison, along with seven other members of the Bahrain 13. As the sentence was being pronounced, Al-Khawaja raised his fist saying: “We will continue on the path of peaceful resistance.”
The current situation in Bahrain is dire. The vast majority of human rights defenders are in jail, in exile, under travel ban, or enduring severe threats and intimidation as a result of their peaceful work. Dozens have been abused and tortured. International NGOs and journalists have been prevented from visiting Bahrain to document the government’s ongoing human rights abuses.
At the same time, Bahrain continues to host events such as the Formula One 2018 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix from 06 to 08 April, during which time any protests are sure to be met with reprisals.
Just two days ahead of the Formula One, on 04 April 2018 at 02am, Lars Aslan Rasmussen, a Danish Member of Parliament, and Brian Dooley, GCHR Advisory Board member, arrived in Bahrain in an attempt to visit Al-Khawaja in prison. They were refused entry on the basis that they posed a “security risk” and deported.
We the undersigned call on the authorities in Bahrain to:
- Immediately and unconditionally free Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja and all other human rights defenders from prison;
- Provide proper access to medical care and sanitary conditions in prison;
- Allow Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja and all prisoners proper access to families;
- Allow international NGOs and journalists free access to Bahrain, including for the purposes of visiting detained human rights defenders; and
- Guarantee in all circumstances that human rights defenders in Bahrain are able to carry out their legitimate activities without fear of reprisals and free of all restrictions including judicial harassment.
Signed by:
Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB)
Arabic Network for Human Rights Information (ANHRI)
Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR)
Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (BIRD)
English PEN
European Center for Democracy and Human Rights (ECDHR)
FIDH, under the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders
Front Line Defenders
Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR)
IFEX
Index on Censorship
PEN International
World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), under the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders
17 Oct 14 | Bahrain, Bahrain Statements, Middle East and North Africa, News and features
Nine human rights organisations called on the British government on Friday to speak out publicly in the case of activists currently being detained in Bahrain. Prominent human rights defenders Nabeel Rajab, Zainab Al-Khawaja and Ghada Jamsheer have all been arrested and face lengthy prison sentences in Bahrain for cases of peaceful expression.
This echoes the message from Maryam Al-Khawaja, a prominent Bahraini activist and co-director of the Gulf Centre for Human Rights, earlier this week.
You can imprison a human rights defender, but you can’t stop the human rights cause, Al-Khawaja told a packed press conference in London on Wednesday, organised by Index on Censorship and the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (BIRD).
She urged UK authorities to speak out about rights abuses in her country, which she said is being run like a business by the ruling Al-Khalifa family. This comes after the arrest of her colleague, 2012 Index advocacy award-winner Bahrain Centre for Human Rights (BCHR) president Nabeel Rajab. He is facing charges of insulting government institutions on Twitter. His trail opens on 19 October.
Also on Wednesday, her sister Zainab Al-Khawaja, who is 8 months pregnant, was sentenced to seven days’ detention for publicly insulting King Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa by ripping up a picture of him in court. She was in court over charges connected to her previous human rights campaigning.
Al-Khawaja, a dual Danish and Bahraini citizen, was herself recently released on bail after being arrested at Bahrain International Airport when trying to enter the country to see her father. She said: “I was stopped at the airport where I was told falsely that my citizenship had been revoked.”
She was then assaulted by police at the airport, and is still recovering from a torn muscle in her shoulder as a result. The police officer who assaulted her later filled charges against Al-Khawaja, presenting a scratched finger as medical evidence.
Al-Khawaja spoke of her time in Isa Town women’s prison, where she spent 19 days; she described poor sanitation and said there were no nurses or doctors available at night and it took 45 minutes for ambulances to reach the facility.
Al-Khawaja’s father, Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja, the founder of 2012 Index award winner BCHR, is serving a life sentence after playing a prominent role in the country’s 2011 pro-democracy protests.
Al Khawaja described how changes could be implemented in Bahrain, saying there is a need for pressure from countries such as the UK and US, who have the capability to make sure the government respect human rights.
“Reform can be implemented and enforced by accountability,” she said.
Nominations are now open for the Index Freedom of Expression Awards 2015. Put forward your free expression heroes here.
Nabeel Rajab Arbitrarily Detained
Please ask your MP to support the campaign by writing to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. (This web app will take you to the website of the Bahrain Institute of Rights and Democracy)
Maryam Al-Khawaja spoke about her arrest, Nabeel Rajab’s case and more in her opening statement
She also described conditions inside Isa Town Prison, where she was held for 19 days
Videos via Truthloader
This article was originally posted on 15 October 2014 and updated on 17 October 2014 at indexoncensorship.org
22 Nov 12 | Uncategorized
International Day to End Impunity is on 23 November, and since the start of the month, the campaign has highlighted activists, journalists, and dissidents who have suffered from impunity. Today the campaign highlights Bahraini activist Zainab Alkhawaja, who has been in and out of prison for her work speaking out against human rights abuses in the country.
It’s hard to keep track of how many times Bahraini Twitter activist Zainab AlKhawaja, 28, has been in and out of jail. AlKhawaja (@angryarabiya) has faced more than a dozen charges this year alone for speaking out about human rights violations in Bahrain, where dozens of people have been killed since pro-democracy protests began in February 2011.
Officially, AlKhawaja has been jailed for “illegally” protesting, insulting the King, and inciting hatred against the regime. A “disrupting traffic” charge was made after she staged a one-person protest outside the prison where her father, human rights activist Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, is serving a life sentence for his role in organising protests.
During her numerous arrests, she has been abused by police, who enforce the will of the regime and thus have not been punished for their crimes. At a June protest, she was seriously injured when security forces shot a tear gas canister at her leg. The cast on her leg did not stop them from handcuffing her and dragging her down stairs when they arrested her after another one-person protest in August. She was kept in jail for two months following that arrest, which was hard on her young daughter.
In its report released on 23 November 2011, the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI) noted a “culture of impunity” for abuses committed by security forces and police during the protests. Yet despite the inquiry being ordered by the King himself, very few people have been held accountable, allowing for ongoing violations.
Despite being an obvious target, AlKhawaja won’t stop protesting. “We have a king who has been killing and torturing his own people. We should have the right to protest against that,” she said after the authorities banned all demonstrations in October 2012.
For more information on the International Day to End Impunity, visit the site here.
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