U.S. urges Bahrain to address ‘disturbing’ abuses
23 November, 2011 – By Arshad Mohammed and Caren Bohan

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States urged its ally Bahrain, home to the U.S. Fifth Fleet, to quickly address abuses laid out in a report Wednesday that said Bahraini security forces used torture to obtain confessions.

A Bahraini government-commissioned panel charged with investigating abuses found that Bahrain’s security forces used excessive force to suppress pro-democracy protests this year, saying five people were tortured to death.

The United States, which has been faulted by rights activists for not criticizing the island kingdom more sharply for the crackdown, appeared to carefully balance its demand for the abuses to be addressed with praise for its Gulf ally.

“We are deeply concerned about the abuses identified in the report and urge the Government and all elements of Bahraini society to address them in a prompt and systematic manner,” Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in a statement.

“We believe the … report offers a historic opportunity for all Bahrainis to participate in a healing process that will address long-standing grievances and move the nation onto a path of genuine, sustained reform,” Clinton added.

Neither Clinton’s statement, nor one from the White House, hinted at any distance between the Obama administration and the royal family that rules Bahrain, although Washington has said it will weigh human rights in decisions about military sales.

Clinton made a point of stressing the “strategic interests” that the two countries share, a likely reference to containing Bahrain’s neighbor Iran, which the United States suspects of pursuing nuclear weapons and accuses of supporting terrorism. …more

Obama Praises Report as Groups Urge Arms Delay
By Jim Lobe – IPS – 23 November, 2011

WASHINGTON, Nov 23, 2011 (IPS) – The administration of President Barack Obama has praised a damning report issued Wednesday in Manama on Bahrain’s crackdown on the democracy movement earlier this year, as human rights groups called on Washington to further delay delivery of a pending 53-million-dollar arms package to the kingdom.

“We welcome today’s report by the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI), which provides a thorough and independent assessment of events in Bahrain since protests first erupted in February,” the White House said in a statement.

“The report identifies a number of disturbing human rights abuses that took place during this period, and it is now incumbent upon the Government of Bahrain to hold accountable those responsible for human rights violations and put in place institutional changes to ensure that such abuses do not happen again,” according to the statement.

It also said Washington “will closely follow” the implementation of King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa’s commitment to carry out the report’s recommendations.

At the same time, several major human rights groups here called on the administration to further delay the transfer of a pending 53- million-dollar arms deal for Bahrain in light of the findings by the Commission, which was headed by the Egyptian-American jurist, Cherif Bassiouni.

“The U.S. shouldn’t sell the arms until there’s clear evidence that the Bahraini ruling family is addressing these very serious issues that the commission found and has taken action on the recommendations,” said Joe Stork, the Middle East analyst for Human Rights Watch (HRW) here.

“The Bahraini security forces have demonstrated over the past few months a willingness to use everything from weapons up to tanks in cracking down against domestic protestors,” said Sanjeev Bery, Middle East/North Africa advocacy director for the U.S. section of Amnesty International (AIUSA).

“Until its government has demonstrated complete follow-through on the recommendations, including the investigation and prosecution of anyone who may have been involved in the abuses, including those who gave the orders, there should be no arms transfers from the United States or any other country to Bahrain,” he told IPS.

Based on more than 5,000 interviews with Bahraini officials, protestors and witnesses, the long-awaited report found numerous serious and systematic violations, including the excessive use of force by the security forces; arbitrary arrests; and the abuse of detainees during the February-March government crackdown. More than 40 people – most of them Shi’a demonstrators – were killed in the violence. …more

[cb editor: While I would like to share in the optimism from Amnesty and others, I find it difficult to grasp why there “should be a turning point” ahead. The need and opportunity for a “turning point” by the al Khalifa regime has presented itself time and again and it could have been pursued at any point along the way. Even today, as the BICI report was released, another protester was killed during Security Force attacks on demonstrators. It seems, incrementalism, couched in Pollyanna “carrot on a stick” approaches to reform, while maybe well intentioned by some, are what have brought Bahrain to the brink of revolution. ]

Bahrain: Critical report should spur human rights ‘turning point’
23 November 2011

Mass protests in Manama earlier this year called for wide-ranging reforms

Amnesty International today urged Bahrain’s government to usher in much-needed human rights reforms after a comprehensive independent report by international experts criticized the use of torture and “excessive force” during protests earlier this year.

The Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI) report, released today amid fresh protests in Manama, was deeply critical of the authorities’ handling of demonstrations in February and March and other abuses in the following months.

It covered hundreds of cases of abuse and included strong recommendations for protecting human rights and delivering justice and reparations to victims.

“We hope Bahrain’s government will view this landmark report as a turning point in how it responds to human rights violations, and will use its recommendations to lay the foundations for far-reaching reform,” said Philip Luther, Amnesty International’s Acting Middle East and North Africa Director.

“The pattern of abuse documented by the BICI – including mass arrests of peaceful demonstrators, widespread torture in detention and dozens of flawed military trials of activists and professionals – must be relegated to the past and Bahraini authorities must fully establish the rule of law and deliver justice to the victims.”

Established by a royal decree on 29 June, the BICI gathered around 9,000 testimonies and interviewed some 5,000 people about abuses during and after pro-reform protests in February and March.

Hundreds of cases were covered, including beatings of protesters by security forces, mass arbitrary arrests of mainly Shi’a opposition activists and widespread torture, with five deaths resulting from torture in custody. In all, at least 35 people have died in connection with the protests, including five security personnel.

The report urged the Bahraini government to immediately establish an independent body made up of representatives of civil society, the opposition and the government; to oversee the implementation of the BICI’s recommendations; to usher in legislative reforms to ensure laws are in line with international human rights standards; and to bring to account those responsible for abuses.

Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa responded to the report by vowing not to repeat the events following the protests in February and March.

In a statement on Monday, Bahrain’s cabinet admitted that security forces had been responsible for “instances of excessive force and mistreatment of detainees”.

It announced new initiatives, including the criminalization of torture – bringing Bahrain’s penal code in line with international standards – and the establishment of an independent national human rights body.

The government also said that it was prosecuting 20 cases against security officers, without giving any further details, and would set up a special fund to compensate victims of the clashes between security forces and protesters.

“The King’s appointment of the BICI was a landmark development, as the commission’s findings and recommendations testify,” said Philip Luther.

“The true test now will be the speed, extent and seriousness with which the government follows through on the BICI’s recommendations.

“In particular, the government must now deliver justice, ensure national laws are adequate to protect rights and work with civil society and opposition leaders to establish a truly independent and effective national body to monitor human rights according to a clear timetable.”

A coalition of Bahraini civil society organizations published their own highly critical report on the protest aftermath yesterday.

The civil society report also called on Bahrain’s international supporters to do more to promote human rights in the Gulf nation. …source

Bahrain’s human rights report: The Cliff’s Notes version
By David Kenner – November 23, 2011 – Foreign Policy

Rarely has a human rights report been accompanied by as much hoopla as the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry’s (BICI) investigation. The report, which examines the government’s crackdown during domestic unrest in February and March, was published on Nov. 23. Its release was accompanied by a televised speech by the BICI’s head, Cherif Bassiouni, accusing King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa’s security forces of operating with a sense of impunity, and using torture and excessive force to quell the protests.

The 501-page tome (warning: large .pdf file ahead) is a tough read. It neglects to name the officials responsible for human rights violations, and often falls back on a “he said-she said” account of events that leaves readers none the wiser about what took place. But there are a few sections of the report that shed new light on the abortive revolution that occurred on the island kingdom in February and March.

The first protester’s death: The first casualty in Bahrain’s crackdown occurred on Feb. 14, when police killed Ali Abdulhadi Almeshaima in the village of Daih. As the report makes clear, Almeshaima’s death galvanized the protest movement, as demonstrators took to the street for his funeral and to express outrage over the killing. The government’s story is that Almeshaima was participating in a demonstration and was killed after the protesters attacked a nearby police unit, while his family claims that he was shot by a police unit in cold blood, “for no apparent reason.”

On page 224, the commission comes down on the side of Almeshaima’s family:

“The death of Mr Almeshaima can be attributed to the use of excessive force by police officers. At the time of the shooting, there were no reports of any disturbances in the Daih area. Furthermore, the fact that Mr Almeshaima was shot in the back at close range indicates that there was no justification for the use of lethal force.”

The death toll: The casualties from Bahrain’s uprising is a matter of some dispute — the Bahrain Center for Human Rights has listed 46 people that it says were killed by excessive force from the country’s security forces. The BICI, however, finds that 35 people will killed during the revolt.

On page 214, it breaks down its death toll: 13 civilians were reportedly killed by security forces, five people died from torture, eight civilians died from unattributed causes, four expatriate workers were killed by both civilians and security forces, and five policy and army officers died during the unrest.

Fake blood: One of the narratives pushed by pro-government supporters is that protesters smeared fake blood over themselves to exaggerate, for media consumption, the brutality of the security forces’ crackdown. Among the government’s charges against 20 imprisoned medical workers, which it accuses of colluding with the protesters, is that they provided demonstrators with donor blood for just this purpose, and also gave atropine to some individuals to imitate nerve gas injuries — again for media consumption.

The BICI report, on page 74 and 75, appears to confirm the rumors that protesters used fake blood in at least one Feb. 18 protest:

“The protesters approached the BDF barricade at approximately 17:00 and demanded access to the roundabout. According to subsequent BDF investigations, the protesters began to verbally abuse the military personnel deployed in the area and to shout anti-government slogans. Reports also indicated that certain individuals among the demonstrators smeared their bodies with red liquid to feign injuries that could be recorded and subsequently aired on the internet and on satellite news channels.”

Torture: The most explosive segment of the report relates to the torture and death of protesters at the hands of Bahrain’s security forces. Strangely, in the case of two of the five protesters who died in police custody from torture, officers tried to cover up their crimes on multiple occasions by listing the cause of death as related to sickle cell anemia.

On pages 238 and 239, the report recounts a witness’s statement about the events that led to the death of Zakariya Rashid Hassan al-Asheri on April 9:

“The witness stated that all the detainees in the same cell were blindfolded and handcuffed, and forced to lie on their stomachs. On one of the mornings, the deceased began to experience hallucinations or confusion, whereby he began banging on the door shouting his name. The prison guards shouted at him to be quiet and when he did not comply, they entered his cell. The witness heard the deceased being beaten and he heard him scream after each beating. The witness then heard a shuffling noise after which the deceased‘s shouts became muffled. The witness then heard a Pakistani say in Urdu, ‘He is dead.'” …source

Press Release of Senator Wyden
Wyden, McGovern Statement on Release of Bahraini Human Rights Report
Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Washington, D.C. – Reaffirming their opposition to the sale of arms to the Kingdom of Bahrain until sustaining human rights improvements are made, U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and U.S. Representative Jim McGovern (D-Mass) released the following statement on the Bahrain Independent Commission’s report on human rights:

“The Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry’s (BICI) report confirms accounts from human rights groups and Bahrainis who have spoken out against the abuses of this year. It is clear that the regime fostered a culture of terror and violently suppressed peaceful political protestors.

We are heartened to hear that the King has agreed to make changes in response to the report. However, these changes must be lasting and significant.

We certainly hope that the King and his government will immediately accept the BICI’s recommendations. We also hope that the regime makes more general changes to give all the people of Bahrain an equal voice in government.

The people of Bahrain are unlikely to stop pushing for freedom, equal opportunity, and representative government. This may require a gradual transition, but that transition must begin or the country of Bahrain, and potentially the entire region, could continue to be rocked by instability.

As we’ve stated before, rewarding regimes that violently suppress peaceful civil dissent and violate human rights with multi-million dollar arms sale is inconsistent with American values and interests. Therefore, we believe it would be inappropriate for the U.S. to finalize the arms sale until we see significant and tangible progress in Bahrain.” …source

cb editor: Quick Analysis – Of course King Hamad’s response is tailored for the politicians that are ready to sell him weapons and give him dispensation for crimes committed in the name of National Safety. On first pass, the report seems little more than a compilation of “alleged” crimes, incidents and other events. Clearly it is incomplete and is limited to a few weeks of events that occurred while King Hamad was “ruling by decree”. Bassiouni emphasizes the “rule by decree” often, which basically grants the King and his Security Forces exemption from accountability for atrocities. King Hamad’s action plan is already underway with the arrest of 20 “Security Forces” as fall guys. King Hamad’s action plan will remedy all that is necessary to return to “business as usual”. It will include a few expulsions of foreign security workers, maybe something more dramatic, a death sentence would add contrast to those he has handed down to the Opposition and it might make him appear even handed.

All the making of a Grand Sham as Bassiouni and crew collect their blood money. On first pass there is nothing in the 501 page document that seems it will facilitate any “real reform” or any other kind of remediation. There will surely be some money to go around to any takers who have been “unjustly” injured or otherwise offended, possibly a pardon or two for some of the detainees. A familiar phase for countries headed for a revolution.

See the Bassioni Report HERE

See King Hamad’s response HERE

Stalinesque Military Tribunals for Civilians – Since July 2011, at least six people have been killed by birdshots or excessive tear gas during the daily protests that have persisted despite regime brutality. To date, around five hundred detainees are languishing in Bahrain’s prisons, most of them sentenced in military tribunals specifically established to deliver summary justice. In Bahrain’s corrupt judicial system, even if cases are appealed in regular civilian courts, the possibility of a fair trial or access to legal counsel is severely diminished. Most detainees have no idea what the nature of charges against them are until they are brought to trial. Punishments are then inconsistently applied. Again, in my husband’s case, he was sentenced to three years on two counts of participating in an illegal assembly consisting of more than five persons and spreading false information that incites hate against the Bahraini regime.

Bahrain’s Independent Commission of Inquiry: A Path to Justice or Political Shield
by Alaa Shehabi – Jadaliyya – 22 November, 2011 – BCHR

Tomorrow, 23 November 2011, the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI), comprised of an international panel of law experts, is due to submit its report following a four-month investigation of the violence that broke out since the February 14 Uprising in Bahrain. Aside from questions of partiality raised by ongoing statements made by its Chairperson, Professor Bassiouni, the more serious question centers on the political purpose that this report will serve. Will it offer justice for victims of the most brutal crackdown in Bahrain’s history? Or will it whitewash the findings by avoiding high-level accountability and offering a political shield for the regime against its critics?

The February 14 Uprising and the Saudi Crackdown

“All those who called for the downfall of the regime [isqat al-nizam] will have a wall fall on their heads. Bahrain is a small island – there is no escape.”

These were the ominous words of the son of the King of Bahrain, uttered on state television in his newly appointed role as Head of the Royal Guard in March 2011. It was a stark warning: no one who participated in Bahrain’s revolt would be spared the regime’s wrath. Many, like myself, felt like a ton of bricks had fallen on our heads. There really was no escape. My own husband, Ghazi Farhan, an apolitical businessman who did not participate in the protest movement, was ambushed in his office parking lot on 12 April by masked armed men and held incommunicado for fifty days before being dragged to a military tribunal and sentenced to three years of imprisonment. He was the liberal and consumer-orientated face of the young generation of Bahrainis who cared little for politics. But that is no longer the case. Much of this has changed. Not just in him, but in many of the youth who have witnessed or experienced such repression.

Ghazi is one of the hundreds of forgotten prisoners languishing in an overcrowded jail that was emptied of common criminals over Ramadan in late Summer 2011 to make room for more prisoners of conscience. In October alone, 208 people were sentenced to a combined total of 2500 years in prison through military tribunals. Since February 2011, forty-three people have been killed, almost 1500 arrested and tortured, and nearly 3000 fired from their jobs. Hundreds of Bahrainis have gone into exile.

The mass persecution of thousands of activists and their families began as punishment for daring to participate in mass protests in which people demanded the end of absolute rule. Those protests brought the regime to the brink of collapse. Some demanded a constitutional monarchy. Others wanted an end to the monarchy altogether. One by one, masked men raided the homes of youths, doctors, lawyers, teachers, and engineers. People were blindfolded and whisked off to undisclosed locations with little or no information given to their distressed families. Fuelled by a public campaign of naming and shaming on state television, thousands were dismissed from their jobs, labeled as “traitors,” and denied the ability to question the accusations made against them. Bahrain’s prisons, infamous for the torture that took place in them during the 1990s, were once again transformed into terror chambers. During his first four days of interrogation at the Riffa West police station, my husband was sleep deprived, whipped on the back and feet, and verbally abused. Four men, including a renowned book publisher, Karim Fakhrawi emerged with battered bodies after a few days of their arrest. The government’s forensic doctors attributed the bruises and marks to “sickle cell anemia” or “kidney failure.” “We will kill you like we killed Karim Fakhrawi, if you do not confess,” my husband was told by his interrogator.

Choosing the route of brutal repression, backed by neighboring Saudi Arabia’s military intervention, may have secured the regime its survival for the time being. Yet the human cost will prove too heavy for such a small island to bear. The regime and its state institutions has been implicated in serious and systematic crimes, which blatantly flouted internationally recognized principles and laws. A regime that has so keenly nurtured its international image as “business-friendly” and rarely made headlines over the last decade—except to announce its role as host of the prestigious Formula One races—now finds itself being referred to as “tyrannical” on the front pages of Western newspapers.

In the aftermath of the crackdown, the government needed a major damage control strategy. One that would allow it to regain some kind of legitimacy in the eyes of the international community, if not amongst its own people. So a regime accused of grave violations of human rights—ones that could very well amount to crimes against humanity—has initiated an investigation to be supervised by panel of renowned international law experts. On 20 July, the commission, comprised of five members headed by Professor Bassiouni, commenced its work. …more

Bahrain’s Ambassador to the United States Responds to Congressional Joint Resolution on Arms Sales, Outlines the Need for Military Readiness in the Gulf

WASHINGTON, Nov. 22, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — The Kingdom of Bahrain responded to a proposed resolution that attaches conditions to future arms sales between the United States and Bahrain. In a letter to Congressional leadership on the Foreign Affairs, Appropriations committees, and the bill’s sponsors, Houda Nonoo, Bahrain’s Ambassador to the United States, outlined the need for military readiness in the Gulf against external threats for both Bahrain and the United States. The full text of the letter reads:

“I would like to address the concerns raised by members of Congress in the joint resolution that recommended attaching conditions to a proposed sale of critical military hardware to the Kingdom of Bahrain. The arms and technology in question would be dedicated to safeguarding Bahrain from external threats. This arms sale, like others before, will go to maintain security in the Arabian Gulf for the U.S. and its regional allies.

“While we recognize the concerns of our friends in Congress, this resolution is based on fundamental misconceptions about the unrest in Bahrain. Earlier this year, the Kingdom of Bahrain faced unrest unprecedented in our history. While many Bahrainis took to the streets to express legitimate demands, radical factions hijacked these protests and resorted to violence. These stories are well documented: the houses of government officials were marked for attack by armed mobs; hundreds of expatriate workers were attacked and several were killed; and, of course, several unarmed police officers were attacked and killed. Evidence suggests that these radical elements were inflamed by foreign actors seeking to undermine Bahrain’s sovereignty. As evidenced by the recent plot against the Saudi Ambassador to Washington, this foreign threat is very credible for the United States and its regional allies.
[Read more →]

Clashes in Bahrain ahead of crackdown report
By Nathalie Gillet (AFP) – 23 November, 2011

MANAMA — Bahraini police clashed with protesters in at least two Shiite villages as tensions escalated ahead of Wednesday’s release of a report on alleged rights abuses during a protest crackdown, activists said.

Protests erupted early morning in Aali village on the outskirts of the capital Manama, where rights activists and an AFP correspondent said police used tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse demonstrators.

A Bahraini man was killed when his car crashed into a wall as police confronted the protesters, according to the activists.

“I saw the police attack. There were a few dozen protesters shouting and chanting. The police attacked them with tear gas, rubber bullets, and sound bombs,” said Mohammed Maskati, head of the Bahraini Youth Society for Human Rights.

Nabil Rajab, a Shiite rights and opposition activist said the victim, Abdelnabi Kadhim, was “apparently not protesting. He was in his car when then police chased after him.”

In an online tweet, the interior ministry said a man died in a traffic accident in Aali, adding an investigation was underway. The tweet made no mention of police involvement.

An AFP correspondent in Aali said dozens of men and women chanted “Hamad must fall,” referring to the Sunni king whose family has ruled the Shiite-majority kingdom for some 250 years.

The smell of tear gas wafted through the air and the streets were littered with empty tear gas canisters and sandals, abandoned by protesters as they fled the police.

Clashes also erupted in the Shiite island of Sitra where mourners protested the November 19 death of a 16-year-old boy killed after being struck by a police car, witnesses said.

The police at the time said the boy’s death was an accident after a police car lost control and struck him.

The clashes occurred just hours before the much-anticipated release of a report by the Independent Commission of Inquiry, which was commissioned by the king to investigate allegations of human rights abuses in the bloody crackdown in February and March on anti-government protesters. …more