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Prominent Political and Human Rights Activists Excluded from Bahrain Prison Release
Bahrain has released a significant proportion of its prison population amid rising panic over the spread of Coronavirus, but prominent political leaders and human rights defenders have been excluded, the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (BIRD) and Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB) said today. According to the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights (BCHR), which has been documenting the releases, the overwhelming majority of those who benefitted from early release were foreign nationals or individuals on criminal charges and were largely nearing the end of their sentences. While BCHR found the release did include at least 300 political prisoners, prominent political leaders and human rights defenders will remain behind bars including Hassan Mushaima, Dr Abduljalil Al Singace and Nabeel Rajab, all of whom have pre-existing medical conditions which put them at greater risk from the Coronavirus.
Read the full statement here.
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Ahmed Hasan AlMadhoon
Ahmed Hasan AlMadhoon was a 19-year-old bus driver when he was violently arrested, for unknown reasons, on 14 March 2015. Since then, he has been subjected to torture, enforced disappearance and convicted in an unfair trial. Currently, Ahmed is serving a sentence in Jau Prison. On 14 March 2015, while Ahmed was at a friend’s house, 25 security cars and forces invaded and surrounded the house with no warning. Ahmed’s house had previously been raided on multiple occasions without prior notice. The last raid was four days before his arrest on 10 March 2015 under the supervision of Lieutenant Mohamed Teki Al-Majed, who arrived with two civilian cars backed up by internal intelligence and riot police.
Read the full report here.
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ADHRB at HRC 43 participated on the Universal Periodic Review on Italy
On March 12, 2020, ADHRB delivered an oral intervention under Item 6 Universal Periodic Review (UPR) on Italy. The intervention highlighted concerns related to the lack of practical steps by the Italian government in creating a National Institute for Human Rights; the use of in criminal law and other punitive procedures against NGOs rescuing people in the Mediterranean; and the lack of implementation of the EU guidelines on human rights defenders.
Watch the video and read the full statement here.
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UAE: UN Experts Raise Serious Concerns over Conditions of Detention
On March 17 2020, United Nations (UN) human rights experts urged the United Arab Emirates to conduct an investigation into, and reform prisons where conditions of detention are said to amount to “torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment”. The UN experts are quoted saying: the “UAE has the responsibility to protect the rights of individuals deprived of their liberty, by ensuring that the conditions of detention respect their dignity and mental integrity”.
The UN’s statements follow recent allegations of Ms Maryam Suliman Al-Balushi’s attempted suicide in Al-Wathba Prison in Abu Dhabi.
Read the full report here.
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