Torture by Police, Forced Disappearance & Other Ill Treatment In the early years
of the 21st Century, 2000 to 2025 gvnet.com/torture/Bahrain.htm
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CAUTION:
The following links have been culled from the web to
illuminate the situation in Bahrain. Some of these links may lead to websites
that present allegations that are unsubstantiated or even false. No attempt
has been made to verify their authenticity or to validate their content. HOW TO USE THIS WEBPAGE Students If you are looking for material to use in a
term-paper, you are advised to scan the postings on this page and others to
see which aspects of Torture by Authorities are of particular interest to
you. You might be interested in exploring the moral justification for
inflicting pain or inhumane or degrading treatment or punishment in order to
obtain critical information that may save countless lives, or to elicit a
confession for a criminal act, or to punish someone to teach him a lesson
outside of the courtroom. Perhaps your paper might focus on some of the
methods of torture, like fear, extreme temperatures, starvation, thirst,
sleep deprivation, suffocation, or immersion in freezing water. On the other
hand, you might choose to write about the people acting in an official
capacity who perpetrate such cruelty. There is a lot to the subject of
Torture by Authorities. Scan other countries as well as this one. Draw
comparisons between activity in adjacent countries and/or regions. Meanwhile,
check out some of the Term-Paper resources that are available on-line. ***
ARCHIVES *** Rights group:
Bahraini authorities abuse, torture detainees Bassem Mroue,
Associated Press, AP, 25 April 2019 www.fredericksburg.com/news/national/rights-group-bahraini-authorities-abuse-torture-detainees/article_3825ba01-3c08-5565-be75-625714cd860e.html [accessed 12 May 2019] A Bahraini rights
group said Thursday that sexual abuse and torture have been widespread and
systematic in jails in the Gulf island nation during a yearslong
crackdown. The SALAM for
Democracy and Human Rights group released a 30-page report documenting abuses
it says "use the most intimate and personal parts of a person in order
to inflict suffering." Sima Watling, Amnesty
International Gulf researcher, said sexual torture usually takes place during
interrogation in Bahrain and many former detainees refuse to speak about it
to avoid being "stigmatized by one's own family and community." 2020 Country
Reports on Human Rights Practices: Bahrain U.S. Dept of State Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and
Labor, 30 March 2021 www.state.gov/reports/2020-country-reports-on-human-rights-practices/bahrain/
[accessed 5 July
2021] TORTURE AND OTHER
CRUEL, INHUMAN, OR DEGRADING TREATMENT OR PUNISHMENT Domestic and
international human rights organizations, as well as detainees and former
detainees, maintained that torture, abuse, and other cruel, inhuman, or
degrading treatment or punishment by government security officials continued
during the year. Human rights groups
reported accounts alleging security officials beat detainees, placed
detainees in stress positions, humiliated detainees in front of other
prisoners, deprived detainees of time for prayers, and insulted detainees
based on their religious beliefs. Detainees reported that
security forces committed abuses during searches, arrests at private
residences, and during transportation. Detainees reported intimidation, such
as threats of violence, took place at the Criminal Investigation Directorate
(CID) headquarters facility. Some detainees at the CID reported security
officials used physical and psychological mistreatment to extract confessions
and statements under duress or to inflict retribution and punishment. Human rights groups
reported authorities subjected children, sometimes younger than age 15, to
various forms of mistreatment, including beating, slapping, kicking, and
verbal abuse. PRISON AND DETENTION
CENTER CONDITIONS Human rights
activists reported conditions in prisons and detention centers were harsh and
sometimes life threatening, due to overcrowding, physical abuse, and
inadequate sanitary conditions and medical care. Freedom House
Country Report 2020 Edition freedomhouse.org/country/bahrain/freedom-world/2020 [accessed 14 May
2020] F3. IS THERE PROTECTION FROM THE ILLEGITIMATE
USE OF PHYSICAL FORCE AND FREEDOM FROM WAR AND INSURGENCIES? Torture is
criminalized, but detainees frequently report mistreatment by security forces
and prison officials, who are rarely held accountable for abuse. The Interior
Ministry ombudsman’s office has failed to provide a meaningful check on such
impunity. Political prisoners went on hunger strike in August 2019 to protest
poor treatment in custody, including the alleged denial of medical care and
religious discrimination against Shiite prisoners, who said they were
punished and mocked for trying to practice their faith. UN rights experts
condemn military court convictions, cite torture allegations UN High Commissioner for Refugees UNHCR,
Geneva, 30 April 2018 www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=23010&LangID=E [accessed 1 May 2018] Prior to their
conviction, it is understood that the men were forcibly disappeared for
several months, held in solitary confinement in small cells for a prolonged
period and subjected to torture and ill-treatment to obtain confessions which
were then used against them in court. They did not have access to legal
representation until late in the trial proceedings and the court reportedly
refused to investigate the defendants' allegations of torture in custody. Bahrain Military
Court Today Sentences Six to Death Brian Dooley, Contributor, Senior Advisor,
Human Rights First, 12/25/2017 [accessed 25 December 2017] One of those
convicted, telecom engineer Sayed Alawi, had been forcibly disappeared from
his office at state telecommunications company Batelco
in October 2016 and held incommunicado for five weeks without access to a
lawyer or his family. Torture is routine
is such cases in Bahrain as the kingdom's human rights record slides further
into crisis. 2017 has been a disastrous year for Bahrain rights, with the
political opposition shut down, the country's only independent newspaper
forced to close, and regular reports of torture and sexual abuse in custody. Bahraini dissident
dies 'after torture' in regime custody PressTV, 31 July 2016 www.presstv.ir/Detail/2016/07/31/477777/Bahrain-death-in-custody [accessed 2 August 2016] Hayki's family attributed
his death to the severe torture he was subjected to during criminal
investigations over the past 20 days, which had left him unable to speak and
move, Arabic-language Lualua television network
reported. They said Bahraini
regime forces had strung their son up by his hands for five days, and beaten
him on the head and genitals during detention. The late political
dissident had been taken to the Public Prosecutor's Office several times to
sign confessions. He was not able to speak due to fatigue the first time, and
refused to sign what was offered to him the next time. Hayki's family said their
son was not suffering from any disease or health problems before his arrest. Bahrain court jails
six police for torture Agence France-Presse AFP, Dubai, 31 May 2015 news.yahoo.com/bahrain-court-jails-six-police-torture-113613438.html [accessed 18 June 2015] The officers beat
up three prisoners in an attempt to force them to admit to smuggling drugs
and mobile telephones into jail, the source said. "They beat
them excessively and kicked them in their heads and other parts of their
bodies," the source said, adding that the torture caused the death of
one of the inmates. The defendants also
summoned the brother of one of the inmates and tortured him to obtain a
confession, the source added. Dissidents in Jaw
Prison 'subjected to mass torture' in nightmarish building No. 10 Gianluca Mezzofiore,
Senior Foreign News Reporter, International Business Times, 17 April 2015 [accessed 5 May 2015] Hundreds of
prisoners were subjected to tear gas, shot from close range, beaten and
rounded up and taken outdoors, where they were stripped naked and left for
three days. Then, they were crammed inside a tent for 30 days with no access
to toilets or showers. Inmates were called one by one and taken to infamous
building number 10, where further torture took place. Whatever Happened to
Bahrain's Torture Reforms? Emanuel Stoakes,
30 March 2015 foreignpolicy.com/2015/03/30/bahrain-reforms-torture [accessed 9 April 2015] Despite promises of
change, abuses by police and security services remain commonplace in the
kingdom. Normally a calm and
robust man, the 27-year-old cried as he recalled the abuses he suffered at
the hands of Bahraini authorities. The men brought him to the Criminal
Investigations Directorate building in the capital, Manama - and then started
beating him. "They stripped him absolutely naked and they started
filming, taking photos," Darwish said. Jawad
told his wife that during daily interrogations, which lasted up to 12 hours,
he endured near-constant violence, occasionally punctuated by sexual
humiliation and threats to "to rape him using a pipe inserted into his
anus," she said. Thereafter, he was
kept in a freezing cell where guards would routinely beat him and from which
he could hear the screams of other detainees, tortured with electric shocks.
His interrogators told him that if he did not confess to a series of offences
against the state, he would suffer the same treatment. Subsequently he did
just that. He is now being held in Dry Dock detention center in Manama,
awaiting trial. Reports of Torture
Haunt Bahrain's CID Brian Dooley, The Huffington Post, 23
February 2015 www.huffingtonpost.com/brian-dooley/reports-of-torture-haunt_b_6735428.html [accessed 30 March 2015] Asma says the public
prosecutor actually ordered her husband's release after 48 hours in the CID
but he stayed there, incommunicado. She says neither she nor his lawyer were allowed to see him. I called the CID offices
repeatedly last week and on Saturday someone finally answered, confirmed that
Jawad was there but would give no more details. Later that day, Asma says he appeared before the public prosecution
"in very bad physical condition." She says he was forced to confess
to crimes he didn't commit, and was physically and sexually abused. She says
he confirmed to her that he had been "stripped fully naked while
blindfolded and handcuffed from behind, and by a woman he was not able to
see. She handled and abusively interfered with his genitals in a humiliating
and demeaning way,' that he was "forced to listen to other detainees
being tortured by electric shock," he was blindfolded and handcuffed
throughout the period of detention, and he was subjected to death threats. Bahraini activist
'Mohsen Al-Majid' reports torture in detention Bahrain News, 10 January 2015 -- Source :
BCHR, News Code : 663757 www.abna24.com/english/service/bahrain/archive/2015/01/10/663757/story.html [accessed 24 March 2015] pukhtunkhwatimes.blogspot.de/2015/01/bahraini-activist-mohsen-al-majid.html [accessed 18 July 2017] Al-Majid also
stated that he was interrogated in order to extract a confession to his
participation in the killing of a Jordanian police officer in the area of Dimistan village on 11 December 2014. He was threatened
with further torture if he refused to confess to the crime. When Al-Majid
denied the charges against him, the interrogators took turns beating him
until his left ear drum was punctured, and his testicles became swollen from
repeated being kicked. After a reported three days of this treatment, and
Al-Majid continued insistence on denying the charges against him, the
interrogators stripped him of his clothing and sexually harassed him. The
officers reportedly threatened to shoot him in the buttocks with a gun.
Al-Majid feared for his life, and made a confession to what the officers
asked of him. However, despite his confession, the officers continued to beat
him. He was transferred to another building where a Jordanian officer and
others beat him with a plastic hose and metal parts. Human Rights Watch
World Report 2015 - Events of 2014 Human Rights Watch, 29 January 2015 www.hrw.org/world-report/2015/...
Or
www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/wr2015_web.pdf [accessed 18 March 2015] BAHRAIN Bahrain's courts
convicted and imprisoned peaceful dissenters and failed to hold officials
accountable for torture and other serious rights violations. The high rate of
successful prosecutions on vague terrorism charges, imposition of long prison
sentences, and failure to address the security forces' use of lethal and
apparently disproportionate force all reflected the weakness of the justice
system and its lack of independence. Human rights
activists and members of the political opposition continued to face arrest
and prosecution, and the government invested itself with further powers to
arbitrarily strip critics of their citizenship and the rights that attach to
it. Prison in Bahrain:
A Tale of Torture Mohamed Hassan, Global Voices, 11 November
2014 globalvoicesonline.org/2014/11/11/prison-in-bahrain-a-tale-of-torture/ [accessed 25 December 2014] He was shouting as
he was being beaten. Prisoners could hear his screams. The autopsy showed a
disfigured face, a fractured skull, broken ribs, and an exploded kidney. Meet
Hasan Alshaikh, 36 years old, who died as a result
of torture in a prison in Bahrain. He had served more than half his sentence. Remaining handcuffed
with your hands behind your back for a long period drains your strength.
After a while your circulation stops and your limbs become numb. We were
allowed to go to the bathroom once every shift, so we would take the
opportunity even if we weren't in need of the toilet, as it was the only
chance to have our handcuffs removed. During my torture
sessions I was told what I should say to the public prosecutor. They told me
the questions I would be asked and the answers I should give. The fact that I
was asked exactly the same questions by the public prosecutor as my torturers
said, convinced me that the level of co-ordination we used to suspect did in
fact exist in Bahrain. I was warned that
if I complained to the public prosecutor about being tortured I would be
tortured even more. Had my lawyer not tweeted about it, I would have expected
that to happen. Many other inmates had experienced this, as they were
questioned by the public prosecutor without a lawyer present. Bahrain prince does
not enjoy immunity over torture claims, UK court rules Ahmed Aboulenein,
Reuters, London, 7 Oct 2014 www.reuters.com/article/2014/10/07/us-bahrain-britain-nasser-idUSKCN0HW0UB20141007 [accessed 19 November 2014] A British court
ruled on Tuesday that Bahraini Prince Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa,
who has been accused of torturing detainees in Bahrain, does not enjoy
immunity from prosecution in Britain. A Bahraini citizen,
known only as FF, had sought the arrest of the son of Bahrain's king
following allegations that he was directly involved in the torture of three
prisoners in Bahrain during a pro-democracy uprising there in 2011. Bahrain: 600
Detainees On Hunger Strike To Stop Torture In Prison Source : BCHR, News Code : 634437, 30
August 2014 www.abna.ir/english/service/bahrain/archive/2014/08/30/634437/story.html [accessed 16 September 2014] www.bahrainrights.org/en/node/7018 [accessed 18 July 2017] In a statement
released by them, the prisoners stated that detainees are suffering different
types of ill-treatment including beatings, insults, deprivation from using
the toilets, being locked in their cells at all times, insulting their sect,
torture, solitary confinement, and being forced to stand for long hours. They
have also named the officers who are responsible for this ill-treatment and
referenced an incident that took place on 9 August where eight detainees were
reportedly beaten with batons under the supervision of Lieutenant Fahad AlKoohaji. Bahrain slashes U.S. human rights report Azeri-Press Agency APA, Baku, 11 May 2014 en.apa.az/xeber_bahrain_slashes_us_human_rights_report_211096.html [accessed 13 May 2014] Bahrain on Saturday
strongly condemned and questioned the findings of the U.S. State Department 's 2013 Country Report on Human Rights in the
kingdom, APA reports quoting Xinhua. On Bahrain's
efforts to ensure human rights, it said nearly 4, 000 ministry personnel have
received relevant training up to this year. The ministry is also dealing with
"daily rumors on social media" of arbitrary arrests and torture
allegations. "There is a
zero-tolerance policy within the government of Bahrain for torture of any
kind." The majority of prisoners at the country's largest prison, the
Jaw Prison, were convicted of crimes such as murder, illegal drug trafficking
and theft, the ministry said, denying the U.S. report that said political
activists formed the majority of those inmates. Ahmed AlArab:
Severely Tortured for Confessions, Denied Medical Attention Ahlul Bayt News Agency,
23 February 2014 +www.bahrainrights.org/en/node/6772 [accessed 14 September 2014] Throughout the
period of his enforced disappearance, AlArab was
not allowed to contact his family except for sporadic calls that lasted no
longer than a few seconds, during which he was not allowed to give any info
on his whereabouts. When his family inquired about him at Budaiya
police station, the Public Prosecution, and at the Criminal Investigation
Directorate (CID), they all denied his detention and any knowledge of his
whereabouts. "They stripped
me naked, then handcuffed me from the back. They
then hung me from my wrists, while they would move me from my feet to cause
more pain… They covered my face with a cloth, then
poured water on me. I thought I would drown to death every time." Amnesty International Slams Bahrain for
Kids' Torture Fars News Agency FNA, Tehran, 15 December
2013 english.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13920924001363 [accessed 15 Dec 2013] The Al Kahlifa regime is under fire for its brutal crackdown on
rights activists and pro-democracy protesters. In October, Philip
Luther, Amnesty International's director for the Middle East and North
Africa, said, "The (Bahraini) authorities simply slap the label
'terrorist' on defendants and then subject them to all manner of violations
to end up with a 'confession'." Bahrainis have been
staging demonstrations since mid-February 2011, calling for political reforms
and a constitutional monarchy, a demand that later changed to an outright
call for the ouster of the ruling Al Khalifa family
following its brutal crackdown on popular protests. Scores have been
killed, many of them under torture while in custody, and thousands more
detained since the popular uprising started in the kingdom. Physicians for
Human Rights says doctors and nurses have been detained, tortured, or
disappeared because they have "evidence of atrocities committed by the
authorities, security forces, and riot police" in the crackdown on
anti-government protesters. Protesters say they
will continue to hold anti-regime demonstrations until their demands for the
establishment of a democratically-elected government and an end to rights
violations are met. Bahrain: 50 Shi'a activists sentenced amid
torture allegations Amnesty International, News, 30 Sept 2013 www.amnesty.org/en/news/bahrain-50-shi-activists-sentenced-amid-torture-allegations-2013-09-30 [accessed 30 Sept 2013] www.wikileaks-forum.com/bahrain/298/bahrain-50-shia-activists-sentenced-amid-torture-allegations/23575/ [accessed 18 July 2017] www.amnesty.org/en/press-releases/2013/09/bahrain-50-shi-activists-sentenced-amid-torture-allegations/ [accessed 28 December 2017] Torture allegations
- Naji Fateel, a board
member of the Bahrain Youth Society for Human Rights, was arrested on 2 May
2013 from his house in Bani-Jamra. He was held
incommunicado for two days. He alleges the authorities used electric shocks
on sensitive parts of his body, kicked and punched him, and threatened him
with rape. During the first session of the trial on 11 July Naji Fateel took off his shirt
in court to reveal evidence of torture on his back. He was convicted of
setting up an illegal "terrorist" group which aims to suspend the
constitution and harm national unity, among other things, and sentenced to 15
years in prison. Rihana al-Mussawi, another defendant, told the court that she had
been forced to strip by security officers who threatened her with rape to
make her "confess" to terrorism-related crimes. She received a
five-year prison sentence. Mohammad 'Abdallah
al-Singace was also allegedly tortured in detention
and, as a result, he could hardly walk when he appeared before the court. His
brother Dr 'Abdeljalil
al-Singace is a prisoner of conscience who is
currently serving a life sentence in a Bahraini prison. Mohammad 'Abdallah al-Singace was convicted of membership of an illegal
"terrorist" group, among other charges, and sentenced to five
years' imprisonment. Legal rights denied
- Defendants were arrested without warrants. Some were violently removed from
their homes after security forces reportedly smashed down their front doors.
Lawyers complained to the court that they were not allowed to visit their
clients. The court refused to allow defence lawyers
to bring in witnesses, and even some prosecution witnesses were reportedly not
heard. Some defendants, who were already serving prison sentences or were
being held pending investigation in other cases,
were brought before the court unaware that they faced new charges. They did
not have lawyers present at this trial. Bahrain acquits police officers on torture
charges Agence France-Presse AFP, Dubai, 01 July 2013 www.foxnews.com/world/2013/07/01/bahrain-court-acquits-police-torture-charges/ [accessed 2 July 2013] A Bahraini court
acquitted yesterday two police officers, including a woman, on trial for
torturing six Shia doctors during the 2011 uprising against the Sunni regime,
a judicial source said. The two officers had been accused in March 2011 of
having "used force, torture, and threats" against the doctors who
had been arrested over their roles during the uprising, the source added. Authorities say
they are implementing the recommendations of an independent commission of
inquiry called for by the king that confirmed allegations of excessive use of
force by security forces during the uprising. Bahrain blocks visit of UN torture
rapporteur Bill Law, BBC News, 24 April 2013 www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-22265484 [accessed 24 April 2013] The Bahraini
government has postponed indefinitely a visit by Juan Mendez the UN special
rapporteur on torture. According to the
country's official news agency the trip has been called off "until
further notice". This comes just
days after the release of a US State Department report on human rights in
Bahrain which spoke of "significant" violations including torture
in detention. 'I was sexually assaulted and tortured to
extract false confession' - Bahraini medic Russia Today - RT News Network, 30 March
2013 rt.com/op-edge/bahrain-doctors-confessions-torture-077/ [accessed 30 March 2013] Fatima Haji, one of
a group of Bahraini doctors who faced five years in jail but was acquitted in
June 2012, told RT about the physical and psychological torture she
experienced while in police custody. She explained that
she was arrested from her own apartment along with 19 other doctors who
disappeared from their homes, hospitals and operating theatres. None of them were
allowed contact with lawyers or their family during interrogation and they
were forced to sign false confessions, blindly without being able to read
what they were signing. "These
confessions were extracted under severe torture and I mean physical and
psychological torture, we'd been denied sleep for days and had been standing
for days. We were not given food or fluids and were hardly allowed to go the
toilet," Haji said. She added that they
were beaten with wooden sticks and hollow pipes, were electrocuted, sexually
harassed and threatened with death and rape in order to get them to sign a
confession. New Bahrain Torture Claims Prompt Call for
Probe Wall Street Journal, 19 March 2013 online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323393304578358251782285888.html [access restricted] Five detainees
arrested in Bahrain last year said they were tortured in custody, according
to family members, lawyers and an ex-prisoner, accusations that a member of
an official inquiry panel said should be formally investigated. Bahraini princess facing multiple torture
charges BBC News, 23 January 2013 www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-21149779 [accessed 24 January 2013] A Bahraini princess
is facing charges of torturing pro-democracy activists in the Gulf island
kingdom. Medical staff from
the facility went to help injured protesters after security police used force
to disperse thousands of people who had camped out at an iconic landmark,
Pearl Roundabout, in the capital, Manama. At least two people were killed and
hundreds wounded when police attacked with batons, tear gas and birdshot. In
March and April 2011 many of the medical staff were arrested and detained. It
is alleged that Ms al-Khalifa tortured the doctors
at that time. She is also accused
of torturing another person, 21-year-old Ayat al-Qurmazi. She alleges she was
held for nine days, blindfolded, beaten with cables and threatened with rape.
She identified Ms al-Khalifa as her torturer. Torture allegations continue in Bahrain as
UN Special Rapporteur cancels visit Alex Pearlman, Global Post, January 2, 2013 [accessed 4 January 2013] Bahrain's uprising,
one of the last lingering flames of the explosion of the Arab Spring, has
continued since 2011. The government has repeatedly cracked down on
protesters, tortured medical personnel, and imprisoned activists for tweeting
anti-regime messages since protests began over a year ago. Amnesty
International announced that over 1,000 people were arrested in connection
with protests via their annual report on the state of the world's human
rights, and that there were significant allegations of torture throughout the
past year. "[The BICI]
confirmed that many detainees had been tortured by security officials who
believed they could act with impunity; that police and other security forces
had repeatedly used excessive force against protesters, resulting in unlawful
killings," said Amnesty's report. Conclusions and
recommendations of the Committee against Torture U.N. Convention against Torture and Other
Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment -- Doc. CAT/CO/34/BHR
(2005) www1.umn.edu/humanrts/cat/observations/bahrain2005.html [accessed 21 February 2013] 5. The Committee expresses
its concern at: a) the persistent
gap between the legislative framework and its practical implementation with
regard to the obligations of the Convention; b) the lack of a
comprehensive definition of torture in the domestic law as set out in article
1 of the Convention; c) the large number
of allegations of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or
punishment of detainees committed prior to 2001; d) reports of incommunicado
detention of detained persons following the ratification of the Convention
and prior to 2001, for extended periods, particularly during pretrial
investigations; e) the inadequate
access to external legal advice while in police custody, to medical
assistance, as well as to family members, thereby reducing the safeguards
available to detainees; f) the apparent
failure to investigate promptly, impartially and fully the numerous
allegations of torture and ill-treatment and to prosecute alleged offenders
and in particular the pattern of impunity for torture and other ill-treatment
committed by law enforcement personnel in the past; g) the provision of
blanket amnesty to all alleged perpetrators of torture or other crimes by
Decree 56 of 2002 and the lack of redress available to victims of torture; h) the inadequate
availability in practice of civil compensation and rehabilitation for victims
of torture prior to 2001; i) certain
provisions of the draft law on counterterrorism which, if adopted, would reduce
safeguards against torture and could re-establish conditions that
characterize the past abuses under the State Security Law. These provisions
include, inter alia, the broad and vague definition of terrorism and
terrorist organizations and the transfer from the judiciary to the public
prosecutor of authority to arrest and detain, in particular, to extend
pre-trial detention; j) lack of access by
independent monitors to visit and inspect all places of detention without
prior notice, notwithstanding the assurances of the State party that it will
allow some access by civil society organizations; k) the absence of
data on complaints of torture and ill treatment, the results of
investigations, or prosecutions related to the provisions of the Convention; l) information
received regarding limits on human rights non-governmental organizations to
conduct their work, in particular, regarding activities relevant to the
Convention within the country and abroad; m) the different regimes applicable, in law and in practice,
to nationals and foreigners in relation to their legal rights to be free from
conduct in violation of the Convention. The Committee recalls that the
Convention and its protections are applicable to all acts in violation of the
Convention which occur within its jurisdiction, from which it follows that
all persons are entitled, in equal measure and without discrimination, to the
rights contained therein; n) the rejection by
the House of Deputies in March 2005 of the establishment of an independent
National Human Rights Commission; o) the overbroad
discretionary powers of the Shariah Court Judges,
in the application of personal status law and criminal law and in particular,
reported failures to take into account clear traces of violence in medical
certificates following violence against women; p) reports of prisoner beatings and mistreatment during three
strikes in 2003 at Jaw Prison, followed by agreement to establish an
investigative commission whose findings, however, have not been made public. Human Rights
Overview Human Rights Watch www.hrw.org/middle-eastn-africa/bahrain [accessed 5 January 2013] Bahrain's human
rights situation remains critical in the wake of the brutal crackdown on pro-democracy
protesters in 2011. The king established an independent inquiry to
investigate these potential abuses, but it failed to fully implement the
inquiry's recommendations - namely holding senior officials accountable for
crimes such as torture or for failing to free protesters who were jailed for
exercising their right to free expression and peaceful assembly. Clashes
between police and protesters continue, as do reports of deaths from beatings
and excessive use of tear gas. The government continues to impose severe
restrictions on access for international rights groups like Human Rights
Watch. AMNESTY
INTERNATIONAL From
an old article
-- URL not available Article was published sometime prior to
2015 TORTURE AND OTHER
ILL-TREATMENT Many of the people detained
in March and April were taken to police stations and to the Criminal
Investigations Department in Manama, where they were held incommunicado and
interrogated by members of the National Security Agency and other security
forces. Many alleged that they were beaten, made to stand for long periods,
given electric shocks, deprived of sleep and threatened with rape. Many said
they were held incommunicado for weeks after their interrogation ended. The authorities
failed to conduct independent investigations into most of these allegations.
The NSC also failed to adequately investigate defendants' allegations of
torture in pre-trial detention and accepted contested "confessions"
as evidence of guilt. However, in November, shortly before the BICI presented
its report and in anticipation of its findings, the government said it would
amend the Penal Code to criminalize torture and that 20 members of the
security forces were on trial in connection with allegations of torture of
detainees, deaths in custody as a result of mistreatment, and unlawful
killings of civilians. Full details of these prosecutions had not been
disclosed by the end of the year. Aayat Alqormozi, a student who had read out poems during the
February protests, was arrested when she presented herself to the authorities
on 30 March after masked members of the security forces twice raided her
parents' house and threatened to kill her brothers if she did not surrender.
She was held incommunicado for the first 15 days, during which she said that
she was punched and kicked, given electric shocks to the face, forced to
stand for hours, verbally abused and threatened with rape. On 12 June, the
NSC sentenced her to one year in prison after convicting her of participating
in illegal protests, disrupting public security and inciting hatred towards
the regime. She was conditionally released on 13 July after she pledged not
to participate in protests or criticize the government. Her case was referred
to the High Criminal Court of Appeal, which ruled on 21 November that the
case was suspended but without clarifying her legal status. She was at
liberty at the end of the year, but was prevented from resuming her studies
at Bahrain University. DEATHS IN CUSTODY Five people
detained in connection with the protests died in custody as a result of
torture. Those responsible for their torture were said to be among the 20
security officers facing prosecution at the end of the year. Hassan Jassem Mohammad Mekki was
arrested at his home in the early hours of 28 March. Six days later, his
relatives were called to a morgue to identify his body, which they said bore
marks and bruises on the head, neck and legs that appeared to have been
caused by beatings. The cause of death was officially attributed to heart
failure, but no autopsy was known to have been conducted. The BICI concluded
that his death was caused by mistreatment in custody. 'Ali 'Issa Ibrahim al-Saqer died in
custody on 9 April, a few days after police called him in for questioning
about the killing of a police officer during the March protests. The Interior
Ministry said he died while being restrained by police. No autopsy was known
to have been conducted. His body was said to have borne marks suggesting that
he had been tortured. The BICI concluded that his death was due to
mistreatment in custody. Search … AMNESTY
INTERNATIONAL For current articles:: Search Amnesty International Website www.amnesty.org/en/search/?q=bahrain+torture&ref=&year=&lang=en&adv=1&sort=relevance [accessed
25 December 2018] ***
EARLIER EDITIONS OF SOME OF THE ABOVE *** Human
Rights Reports » 2005 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices U.S. Dept of State
Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, March 8, 2006 www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2005/61686.htm [accessed 5 January 2013] 2009-2017.state.gov/j/drl/rls/hrrpt/2005/61686.htm [accessed 3 July 2019] TORTURE
AND OTHER CRUEL, INHUMAN, OR DEGRADING TREATMENT OR PUNISHMENT - The constitution
prohibits torture and other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or
punishment. At the end of
November, Musa Abd Ali, a 24-year-old Shi'a
activist with the "Committee of the Unemployed" filed a complaint
with police alleging that in the early hours of November 28 plainclothes
security personnel abducted him from his home, beat him severely, assaulted
him sexually, and threatened him with further harm unless he ceased his
activities on behalf of the Committee of the Unemployed (see section 2.a.). A
private doctor could not confirm evidence of a beating during the timeframe
alleged by Abd Ali, nor evidence of sexual assault.
Following the doctor's conclusions, Abd Ali changed
his allegation to attempted sexual assault. Ministry of Interior officials
stated publicly and privately that the government had no knowledge of nor
involvement in the incident and, after completing an investigation, referred
the case to the Attorney General's office. On December 13 Abd
Ali withdrew his cooperation with the investigating authorities, after
inconsistencies developed in his allegations. There were no known
instances of officials being punished for human rights abuses committed
either during the year or in any previous year. Controversy continued over
impunity for alleged torturers which the government maintained was granted by
the 2001 general amnesty. In May, the Bahrain Human Rights Society (BHRS) and
the dissolved Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR) in cooperation with the
National Committee for Martyrs and Victims of Torture (NCMVT) briefed the UN
Committee Against Torture on their concerns. They focused on impunity for
acts of torture committed prior to 2001; rejection by courts of all cases
lodged against alleged torturers and of all requests for compensation; and
the absence of redress and rehabilitation mechanisms for victims of torture. Freedom House Country Report - Political Rights: 5 Civil Liberties: 5 Status: Partly Free 2009 Edition www.freedomhouse.org/report/freedom-world/2009/bahrain [accessed 5 January 2013] LONG URL
ç 2009 Country Reports begin on Page 21 [accessed 11 May 2020] In 2008, Bahraini
security forces continued their brutal 2007 crackdown on the government's
most outspoken critics. Dozens of Shiite activists jailed at the end of 2007
for holding public demonstrations alleged the systematic use of torture
during their detainment, including electrocution and sexual assault. After
lengthy delays in their trials, 11 of the activists were sentenced in July to
prison terms ranging from one to seven years. State authorities continued to
detain Shiite activists during the year, arresting over 40 people in March
and April for suspected acts of arson against the property of a member of the
royal family. Twenty-eight of those detained remained imprisoned at the end
of 2008 and were subject to harsh treatment. The judiciary is
not independent of the executive branch. The king appoints all judges, and
courts have been subject to government pressure. Members of the royal family
hold all security-related offices. Bahrain's antiterrorism law prescribes the
death penalty for members of terrorist groups and prison terms for those who
use religion to spread extremism. This legislation has been criticized on the
grounds that its definition of terrorist crimes is too broad and that it has
led to the use of torture and arbitrary detention. In a disturbing trend,
activists arrested in December 2007 claimed that they were subject to regular
torture while imprisoned in 2008. Victims alleged that they faced sexual
assault, electrocution, and regular beatings. Although the government denies
the claims, a court-appointed medical examiner confirmed evidence of physical
abuse in April. All material used herein
reproduced under the fair use exception of 17 USC § 107 for noncommercial, nonprofit,
and educational use. PLEASE RESPECT COPYRIGHTS OF COMPONENT ARTICLES. Cite this webpage as: Patt,
Prof. Martin, "Torture by Police, Forced Disappearance & Other Ill
Treatment in the early years of the 21st Century- - Bahrain",
http://gvnet.com/torture/Bahrain.htm, [accessed <date>] |
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