2021: The year of systematic policies to whitewash human rights violations in Bahrain

The year 2021 witnessed systematic whitewashing campaigns by Bahrain authorities, stemming from critical events. These included incidents at Jau and Dry Dock prisons such as the Ombudsman office acquitting prison officials of any violations committed against Dr. AbdulJalil Al-Singace, who has been on hunger strike since July 8 to the date in protest against the mistreatment and the confiscation of his research.

Legislatively, authorities whitewashed the extent of commitment to implement the new Restorative Justice Law and the Alternative Sentencing Law. Furthermore, authorities failed to obscure the continued deterioration of the health situation in prisons due to the Coronavirus pandemic as a result of failure to take adequate measures as well as the continued discrimination against political prisoners at various levels. The human rights situation exploded, and Bahrainis rose up after the death of a political prisoner, Husain Barakat, as a result of being infected with the Coronavirus and being subjected to medical neglect, the death of two prisoners, Abbas Mal Allah and Mohamed Mansoor, as a result of the medical neglect of their chronic diseases which they did not receive the necessary health care for, as well as the bloody April 17 attack on political prisoners in Jau Prison due to their protest against ill-treatment and violation of their most basic rights.

Outside prisons, this year has also consisted of the Ministry of Interior’s failed attempts to whitewash violations of religious freedoms during Ashura commemorations. Through this report, ADHRB will attempt to present systematic human rights violations monitored in 2021, which were met with systematic whitewashing by the authorities.

Ahmed Isa Husain

Ahmed Isa Husain was 27 years old when he was arrested at his grandfather’s house in 2016. Since his arrest, Ahmed has been subjected to torture and medical negligence. He is currently serving life imprisonment at Bahrain’s Jau Prison while suffering numerous medical conditions.

On 19 June 2016, Ahmed was arrested by officers in civilian clothing and members of Bahrain’s riot police. He was alone at his grandfather’s house when officers surrounded and raided the property around midnight, who failed to provide an arrest warrant or reasons for his arrest. Ahmed’s family only learned about his arrest from local residents who witnessed the arrest. For an entire week after his arrest, his family knew nothing about Ahmed’s whereabouts until he called and informed them that he was being held at the criminal investigation building.

Officers began torturing Ahmed from the moment of his arrest. While on the bus on the way to the detention centre, officers sat on Ahmed until he felt like he was choking and replaced his handcuffs with dog chains. Ahmed then spent approximately 10 days at the Criminal Investigations Directorate (CID), where he was beaten until he was coerced into signing a confession to the charges against him, which was later used in the trial against him.

Bahrain: Reports

2021: The year of systematic policies to whitewash human rights violations in Bahrain

Profile in Persecution

Ahmed Isa Husain