Bahrain – Adam Shapiro finally gets to Meet jailed HRD Abdulhadi Al Khawaja
jimloughran’s blog – Front Line Defenders

The drive out to the military court building took us on a main road bypassing villages and eventually newly built apartment buildings.

We were about 20 minutes outside of downtown Manama, and heading to a military base in order to visit with Abdulhadi Al Khawaja, father of Zainab Al Khawaja who was driving fast in the hope of getting to see her father. We were late on the road because Zainab was at the appeal hearing of her husband who was sentenced to a 5-year prison term.

At the military court building, Abdulhadi and his 13 other co-defendants are brought into two rooms where family members are allowed to spend 3 hours with them every two weeks. They are allowed to bring clothes, books, food and other things to the men, most of which is permitted to be taken back to the prison. When Zainab and I arrived, colleagues from other human rights organizations had already tried to get in to see Abdulhadi but had been turned away. I checked in with the military police guards and headed to the door where Zainab was waiting. She opened and I rushed in in front of her, and headed straight for her dad, standing at the front of the room. Normal Arabic greetings were shortened to a quick “Salaam” to others in the room, as I reached out my hand to grasp Abdulhadi’s. As we greeted in the traditional Arab style (kisses on each cheek), I explained who I was and that I was from Front Line. His face lit up and he almost started laughing. I heard a shout behind me and glanced over my shoulder to see the big military policeman gesturing me out of the room. Abdulhadi held onto my hand to keep me there another minute to tell me a message of thanks to Mary, Andrew and everyone at Front Line. I then left Abdulhadi to his family and chased after the policeman to find out what the deal was.

I finished the day by going to another village, Aker Sharqiya, to observe a protest march. The villagers had asked for human rights organisations to come, knowing that we were here, in part, because of the Bassiouni report. The plan was for the entire march to be in the interior of the village so as to avoid provoking the riot police from attacking. Walking through the village, after the protest, Zainab came up and showed me a rendering of her father’s face on a wall. On another wall in the village it had been painted over by riot police, but this was relatively new. The man I had earlier seen for minutes during his prison visiting time, who has 18 metal plates and 26 screws holding his jaw and face together as a result of the beating and torture he was subjected to, was staring at me from the wall in this poor village with a helicopter buzzing overhead, watching, monitoring. …source

Bahrain King Says Abuses To Be Punished
November 23, 2011 – Radio Free Europe – Radio Liberty

Bahrain’s king says officials involved in abuses during a crackdown on antigovernment protests earlier this year will be held accountable and replaced.

King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa made the pledge on November 23 at the release of a report by an independent commission into the February-March events.

The report concluded that “there have been instances of excessive force and mistreatment of detainees, as well as five deaths as a result of torture” during the crackdown on the protests.

It also said it found no proof of an Iranian link with the incidents. Bahrain has accused Tehran of inciting the protests.

King Hamad vowed to do everything possible so “those painful events won’t be repeated,” adding: “We must reform our laws to bring them in line with international standards.”

On November 21, authorities said 20 members of the security forces had been charged for alleged abuse of protesters during the month of unrest, in which several dozen people were killed and hundreds of others were injured.

The Shi’ite-led protests were calling for greater rights in the Sunni-ruled island nation. …source

Clashes with police follow Bahrain funeral
by Gregg Carlstrom – 27 Nov 2011 – AlJazeera

A’ali, Bahrain – The evening call to prayer in this village on Thursday was punctuated by the explosions of sound bombs fired by Bahraini police.

Tear gas canisters arced overhead as residents crouched on their rooftops and huddled in doorways, chanting allahu akhbar (“God is greatest”) and yasqat Hamad (“down with Hamad”). “This is Bahrain now,” one teenaged boy said, wearing a scarf over his face to shield his identity.

The violence began moments after the funeral of Abdulnabi Kadhem, a local man who was killed here yesterday, allegedly when police jeeps drove him off the road. Hundreds of protesters, some of them throwing stones and Molotov cocktails, marched from the cemetery to the main road, where a large group of police had been waiting all afternoon.

Police responded with a volley of tear gas that sent mourners and protesters alike fleeing into A’ali’s back alleys. Many ducked into houses, where women offered vinegar and perfume to ease the sting of the gas.

“This is Bassiouni’s tear gas,” one woman shouted, between gasps of a perfume-drenched tissue.

She was referring to Cherif Bassiouni, the Egyptian judge who headed the official inquiry into this year’s human-rights abuses in Bahrain.

The commission released its final report on Wednesday afternoon, handing a copy to King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa in a ceremony at one of his palaces. It accused Bahraini security forces of numerous abuses: torture, wrongly killing unarmed protesters, arbitrary arrests, and more.

It recommended a number of reforms, including investigations into torture and human rights training for the police and army.

“These are his reforms,” another woman said bitterly.

But Bahrain’s king has set up a commission to implement the findings of the report. It accused Bahrain of using torture to crush protests in the Gulf Arab state earlier this year.

‘Bassiouni says you are killers’

Several people collapsed from tear gas inhalation on Thursday afternoon, and residents said a number of people were arrested. Police could also be seen trying to break into at least one home to conduct a search.

Reports from A’ali village

These sorts of small-scale clashes have become a routine part of life over the last few months in Bahrain. Police have effectively sealed off A’Ali and other villages, which prevents protesters from massing in one location, like they did in Manama’s Pearl Roundabout earlier this year.

So they provoke the police stationed outside their villages, and the police inevitably respond, often with overwhelming force.

The actual funeral procession was peaceful: Thousands of people marched through the streets of A’Ali, chanting “Down with Hamad”,”Leave, you murderer”, and “The people demand the overthrow of the regime”.

Kadhem died on Wednesday morning. Witnesses said the police, who often drive at high speed down the narrow streets of Bahrain’s villages, drove Kadhem’s car off the road and then collided with him.

Bahrain’s interior ministry said Kadhem drove into a house, but the damage to his car, which was crumpled on the sides, was inconsistent with that statement.

Dozens of police jeeps had gathered outside A’Ali in the hours before the funeral, clearly anticipating a confrontation.

They tried to bar at least one foreign journalist from entering the village to cover the funeral.

“Bassiouni says you are torturers,” one man shouted at the police through a loudspeaker. …more

Bahrain to start new reform talks
Irishtimes.com – November 25, 2011 – societies

Bahrain will start new talks on political reforms and overhaul its security policies but still blames Iran for fomenting civil unrest, the foreign minister said today.

Foreign minister Khalid bin Ahmed al-Khalifa was talking after an inquiry into the unrest and the government crackdown to quell the protests came out with a hardhitting report that described systematic torture of detainees.

He said a national commission called for by the inquiry, headed by international rights lawyer Cherif Bassiouni, to promote reconciliation would go beyond some reforms that emerged from a controversial national dialogue in June.

He said that the main opposition party Wefaq, which commands support among majority Shia, would need to be involved but it should distance itself from daily clashes between riot police and Shia protesters.

“For them to be present we should make sure that all important issues are on the table,” the minister, a former ambassador to London, said.

“Everybody concerned should be in it, and we are taking that as an important step forward. We ask everybody not to keep themselves out of these talks. Keeping yourself out means we won’t be able to discuss all the demands.”

The ruling Sunni al-Khalifa family dominates Bahrain’s government. King Hamad’s uncle Khalifa bin Salman is the world’s longest serving prime minister and the elected lower chamber of parliament does not form cabinets or have full legislative powers.

Shias complain of discrimination in jobs, housing, education and some government departments including the security forces and army.

Bahrain’s government has said it is addressing the concerns. …more

Bahrain 1st-Hand: How Activist Zainab Alkhawaja Defied the Police…And Escaped Arrest
November 26, 2011 – by Scott Lucas – EA World News

Today in A’ali in Bahrain, security forces — as is their standard practice — moved against protesters after a funeral procession for a man killed last week, allegedly after an incident with a police jeep. They used tear gas in an attempt to disperse demonstrators who had blocked roads into the village.

Activist Zainab Alkhawaja (@angryarabiya), despite attempts to dissuade her by fellow demonstrators, went up to the police in a dramatic expression of personal resistance. It was feared for some time that she had been arrested, but she escaped detention. This is her account of what happened:

Hi all, first of all I hope there were no serious injuries after the attack today by riot police on the mourners in Aali.

I have been thinking for awhile about our protests, and tweeting that we should be sitting peacefully in front of police, not running. Today I didn’t run, and as police ran towards me, shooting at the protesters, I remained on my knees holding up a Bahraini flag.

Brave, no. I just read the BICI [Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry] forensic team report of my dad’s testimony about the torture he was subjected to. [Abdulhadi Alkhawaja, a prominent political activist, has been sentenced to life in prison during the current protests.] Going through details of how my father was tortured, I kept thinking… I WILL NOT accept living under this regime.

I expected to get injured with the amount of shooting, but I didn’t and within seconds I was surrounded by riot police. Civilian clothed [plainclothes] police surrounded me & started filming & taking pictures. Someone kept shouting at them, “Not this one, don’t beat her.”

As they ran past me to attack the protesters, one riot police [officer] grabbed the Bahrain flag in my hand and threw it on the ground. Then some of the riot police got back in their jeeps to follow the protesters into the village and attack them there.

I was already in front of them but I stood up and held up my hands in a victory sign. and I started shouting “Yasqot Hamad (Down Down King Hamad)”. So they all got out of their jeeps, some came towards me wanting to beat me but again were prevented from hitting me
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