Bahrain’s slow burn
13 April, 2012 – By Editorial Board – Washington Post

Between an autocratic Arab regime and a popular opposition is slowly worsening. Violence in Bahrain, a Persian Gulf emirate, has killed only a few score in the last year, compared with more than 9,000killed in Syria. But in many respects its uprising resembles that of Syria: The ruling al-Khalifa family, from the Sunni minority, has repeatedly promised, and failed to deliver, political reforms to empower the long-repressed Shiite majority.

Between them, Syria and Bahrain are revealing about Middle East politics. Saudi Arabia, which has led the calls for democratic regime change in Sunni-majority Syria, sent troops to back up the Bahraini autocracy last year. Shiite Iran, which is the strongest defender of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, is calling for democracy in Bahrain.

The United States ought to provide the exception to this sectarian cynicism. President Obama has pledged to support democratic transitions across the region and, in several speeches, has called for reform in Bahrain as well as in Syria. But the administration also has its pragmatic interests: Bahrain is a close military ally, the host of the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet and a key partner in the U.S. strategy for repelling potential Iranian aggression in the Persian Gulf.

The administration has consequently soft-pedaled its calls for change in Bahrain, supporting not regime change nor democracy but “a genuine dialogue leading to meaningful reforms,” as a White House statement on Wednesday put it. Washington’s leverage probably explains some of the regime’s more conciliatory actions, such as the appointment of an independent commission last year that reported on abuses by the security forces and recommended reforms. Still, the regime’s slowness to enact meaningful change and continued persecution of opponents have led the political situation to worsen, rather than improve. In two alarming episodes this week, an improvised explosive device attack on a police checkpoint was followed by the ransacking of a Shiite-owned shopping center by a Sunni mob. …more

editor: As “Three Days of Rage” ensue one can only hope the F1 teams that naively chose to attend the Bahrain “race of shame”, will come to realize the pack of lies fed them by the FIA, Eccleston and King Hamad. Complicit in the lies and greed are the media who have become the great enabler of such lies by their silence about the situation of torture, murder, rape and abuse by MOI polices and other hired security personnel. Bahrain is rapidly becoming the stain on the US State Department and UK Foreign Ministry. So shameful and egregious are the crimes and abuse against the Bahrainis that Western complicity as enablers of such abuse can longer be ignored or tolerated. Either the Western governments goal is to agitate violence from a restrained and largely peaceful opposition or in its ineptitude it is creating an environment and condition the preceded the Iranian Hostage Crisis of 1979.

One has to wonder if there is something more sinister aloft in Bahrain, perhaps agitation of a Gulf Crisis as a provocation for more aggressive response from Iran? What is even more curious is the lay-down, subservient behavior from the Western liberals and left. Aside from some seemly obligatory articles of support in the more progressive blogs, they seem to be cowed in some sort of “Fearful Stupor” or the less paralyzed seem caught-up as cheerleaders in the prelude to a civil-war in Syria being agitated by “friendly” Al Qaeda wings, that were restored after the killing of Osama Bin Laden and are working again at the employ of their previous Masters in the CIA. Phlipn.

Bahraini security forces have frequently shown a reckless disregard for human life during crackdowns on protesters. Firing birdshot pellets at close range is not crowd control – it can be murder. Joe Stork, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch

Bahrain: Investigate Deaths Linked to Crackdown
29 March, 2011 – Human Rights Watch

(Manama) – The Bahraini government should urgently investigate the killing of at least 18 people during violent crackdowns since protests began on February 14, 2011, Human Rights Watch said today. Most were killed by security forces using excessive force, namely crowd-control equipment at extremely close range and live gunfire, Human Rights Watch said. Four government security officers were also killed, according to the Interior Ministry.

The authorities admitted holding four missing persons in the Bahrain Defense Force hospital only after they had succumbed to their injuries. This raises serious concerns regarding the missing persons’ treatment and whether authorities are holding other people without notifying their families, Human Rights Watch said.

“Bahraini security forces have frequently shown a reckless disregard for human life during crackdowns on protesters,” said Joe Stork, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. “Firing birdshot pellets at close range is not crowd control – it can be murder.”

At least 15 people have died since riot police and troops initiated a second round of offensives against anti-government protesters on March 15, Human Rights Watch said. They include Ahmed Farhan, age 24, and Mohammed Eklas, a 50 year-old Bangladeshi citizen, who died in Sitra on March 15. Photographs of Farhan’s body show the back of his head blown open and an empty brain cavity, suggesting that he had been shot at close range. According to media reports, Eklas was run over by a vehicle while trying to help some women during the crackdown, but Human Rights Watch could not independently verify this account. …more

Bahrain: Ongoing repression against political prisoners
2 February, 2012 – UNHCR

FIDH expresses its utmost concern about acts of continued repression on political prisoners that have entered in a hunger strike to protest their continued arbitrary detention as well as the deteriorating human rights situation in the country.

FIDH has been informed that around 250 political prisoners started a widespread national hunger strike on January 29, 2012, after the prominent 14 political and human rights activists, who were arbitrarily detained since March 2011 [1], announced they will begin a hunger strike in the central Jaw prison.

According to the information received, as a response to the hunger strike, part number 4 of the central Jaw prison where the above-mentioned detainees are kept, was reportedly teargassed. A number of them were severely beaten and others were put in solitary confinement. Moreover, those detainees are no longer allowed to make any phone calls, and continue to be denied access to the designated outdoors areas of the prison.

After detainees from the Dry Docks prison announced that they would join the hunger strike, a number of prisoners from different areas in Bahrain were reportedly told that they would be released if they plead for the King’s forgiveness, in addition to saying that they are against the strike and the protests. A number of those who had refused to do so were reportedly beaten severely to the extent that they had to be transferred to the hospital. Some of them called their families informing they were forced to give apologies on camera.

FIDH calls upon the Bahraini authorities to take all necessary measures to put an end to these acts of repression and to order a prompt, effective, thorough, independent and impartial investigation into the above-mentioned acts, where as the result of which must be made public, and those responsible of such acts must be held accountable.

Those political activists and human rights defenders were condemned before military courts in the context of the repression against peaceful protesters. They were handed down harsh sentences including life imprisonment. FIDH, along with other international human rights organisations, has repeatedly denounced the violations of fair trial guarantees during these proceedings. Furthermore, FIDH recalls that pursuant to recommendation N°1720 of the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI) report [2] , “all convictions and sentences rendered by the National Security Courts where fundamental principles of a fair trial […] were not respected” must be reviewed in ordinary courts.

Moreover, FIDH is deeply concerned by the deteriorating situation in the country since the release last November of the BICI report and in particular regarding the ongoing disproportionate use of force and the excessive use of tear gas by the security forces which has led to several deaths over the past weeks. …more

Censorship in pole position
13 April, 2012 – Reporters without Borders

Reporters Without Borders is launching a campaign and a petition condemning the appallingly repressive policies of King Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa’s government since the start of the Arab spring and its current propaganda focus on the Formula One Grand Prix that is to be held in Bahrain from 20 to 22 April.

Foreign reporters have been banned from entering the country since pro-democracy protests began in February 2011. Netizens and journalists, especially photographers, are systematically harassed when they go to demonstrations. There have been countless cases of violence, imprisonment, prosecutions and convictions targeting journalists.

According to the London-based Bahrain Press Association, there have been more than 140 cases of arrests, torture or dismissals of journalists since February 2011. Torture of detainees is widely practiced. Smear campaigns are waged against human rights activists. Two netizens and a media owner have died for defending the right to report the news.

Website filtering has been widened in order to block all content linked to the street demonstrations. Streaming websites that allow video to be streamed in real-time have been blocked. Suppressing photos and video of the unrest has become a question of survival for the regime. It does not want any information about the protests and its brutal crackdown to get out. Nothing must be allowed to alert the international community.

With the direct help of several Gulf neighbours and thanks to the international community’s astonishing silence, the regime is at the same time trying to improve its image and is stepping up diplomatic and public relations initiatives designed to portray Bahrain as a model of political stability and social progress. Let’s prevent any victory for censorship. …source

editor: In the past twenty four hours dozens have been shot with “birdshot” in village protests. The usual barrage of Chemical Gas that fills the air has been curtailed in an obvious effort to “clear the air” for race day. In short, the MOI Police have intensified their use of more lethal and injurious force in order to provide greater comfort for the race teams and fans. Impunity and State Violence of this nature is an invitation to disastrous consequences. Motor Sports unbridled greed will be a stain on Grand Prix motors sports for years to come, as the spineless F1 teams become the moral-less bastards and trod on the blood Bahrainis who are dying for the basic democratic freedoms the racers enjoy. All the while Bahrain’s heartless, shameful King Hamad “force feeds” a hunger striker near death in order to hold his race without a back drop of the murderous unjust detentions of hundreds of political prisoners under torture and mistreatment. Phlipn.

Grand Prix decision masks Bahrain’s political unrest
Frank Gardner – BBC – 13 April, 2012

So Bahrain’s Formula 1 Grand Prix is going ahead after all.

By Sunday night, the racing cars will start being loaded up onto cargo planes in Shanghai and heading west across the Indian Ocean.

By Tuesday, the whole F1 entourage will have arrived in the tiny, troubled Gulf state, ahead of the Grand Prix on 22 April at the Bahrain International Circuit (BIC).

The decision to override concerns about safety and ethics and go ahead is a victory for the Bahraini government, the business community, expatriates and many others.

It is also a setback for anti-government activists and human rights organisations, who fear the whole event will be used by the ruling family to pretend everything is back to normal in Bahrain. It is not.
‘Not much has changed’

Amnesty International has just brought out a new report saying: “The human rights crisis in Bahrain is not over.”

“Despite the authorities’ claims to the contrary, state violence against those who oppose the Al Khalifa family rule continues, and in practice, not much has changed in the country since the brutal crackdown on anti-government protesters in February and March 2011.”
Bernie Ecclestone speaks to reporters in Shanghai (13 April 2012) Bernie Ecclestone said there was no difference between holding a GP in China and Bahrain

The organisation goes on to say: “Holding the Grand Prix in Bahrain in 2012 risks being interpreted by the government of Bahrain as symbolising a return to business as usual.”

Social media websites, which do not always reflect real opinion on the ground, have been alive with discussion on the issue.

Most commentators condemn the decision to go ahead, unaware or perhaps overlooking the fact that this Sunday’s Grand Prix will be held in China.

Last year, China was also criticised by Amnesty for “jailing and persecuting people for peacefully expressing their views”, where “the use of illegal forms of detention expanded, including… detention in ‘black’ jails, ‘brainwashing’ centres and psychiatric institutions”.

Some argue that sport should be above politics; others say it is immoral to hold the event in any either country with a human rights record like that.

Bernie Ecclestone, the Formula 1 boss, who has been one of the strongest proponents of holding a Grand Prix in Bahrain, and whose picture is already being set fire to in certain Shia districts, says: “There is no difference between holding it [in China] or in Bahrain.”
Women protest against the detention of a politician and human rights activist in Bahrain (12 April 2012) Civil unrest has continued since mass pro-demcracy protests erupted in February 2011

Not quite true, say some, pointing out that in China there is no sizeable or visible protest movement demanding that the Grand Prix is called off. …more

editor: It is truly one of the most disturbing choices in Motor Sport history. Ecclestone, Webber and the F1 teams choose to attend a race while King Hamad “force feeds” Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, in the throws of death from Hunger Strike, so they can have their race unimpeded. People such as these are moral-less beings, their breach of morality is simply incomprehensible. Their stain on Bahrain’s Grand Prix can never be erased. Phlipn.

Bahrain Formula One Grand Prix to go ahead
AFP – 13 April 13, 2012

THE Bahrain Grand Prix will go ahead as scheduled according to motorsport’s world governing body.

The Federation Internationale de l’Automobile declared in a statement on its website that it had taken into account concerns over safety after more than a year of pro-democracy demonstrations in the Gulf state.

“Based on the current information the FIA has at this stage, it is satisfied that all the proper security measures are in place for the running of a Formula One World Championship event in Bahrain,” the statement said.

The event in Bahrain, scheduled for next weekend, was the hottest topic of conversation in Shanghai, which hosts the third grand prix of the season on Sunday.

The FIA and many drivers had earlier tried to get the focus back on the Chinese Grand Prix, but the fate of the Gulf race would not go away.
Rec Coverage 28 Day pass

“So, Bahrain?” Red Bull’s Australian driver Mark Webber said, unprompted, to open his media briefing.

“There’s no beating around the bush – it is sensitive out there,” he said, attempting to pick his words carefully.

“We can only go on what the FIA are reading into the situation and obviously we are putting in an enormous amount of trust – I don’t mean ‘we’ the drivers. I’m talking about you guys, photographers, caterers, everybody.”

The FIA last year postponed the Bahrain race before removing it from last season’s schedule over the demonstrations.

The Gulf state says the situation is calm and the race would be a chance for Bahrain to unite, but ongoing protests and violence, including a bomb attack on Monday that wounded seven policemen, had put the event in jeopardy again.

The teams were reportedly keen not to take part, but said they could not make the decision to cancel the race and were looking for the FIA to tell them what to do.

Webber, 35, said there were moral and safety considerations – demonstrators have claimed they will target the race – to take into account.

“It has been distracting. Trying to give a fair and correct position on Bahrain with you guys is something that I try to be fair with and you want to get that right.

“It’s an unusual position for a grand prix driver to be put in.”
…source

Carlos Latuff

Bahrain: UN human rights experts urge immediate release of Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja
13 April, 2012 – United Nations Human Rights

GENEVA (13 April 2012) – Four United Nations human rights experts on Friday urged the Government of Bahrain to immediately release human rights defender Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja who is serving a life sentence handed down by a military court on terrorism-related charges. The call comes amid serious concerns about the lack of due process and fair trial guarantees.

The National Safety Court, a military court, sentenced Al-Khawaja to life imprisonment on 22 June 2011, after his trial alongside a group of more than 20 human rights defenders. An appeal was rejected by the National Safety Court of Appeal on 28 September 2011. Al-Khawaja’s case is now being reviewed by the Court of Cassation which is due to deliver its verdict on 23 April.

“I am seriously concerned that Mr. Al-Khawaja’s trial and sentence are linked to his legitimate work to promote human rights in Bahrain,” said Margaret Sekaggya, the Special Rapporteur on human rights defenders. “This case is sadly emblematic of the overall treatment of human rights defenders in Bahrain.”

Maina Kiai, the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of assembly and association expressed similar concerns about Mr. Al-Khawaja’s detention being directly linked to his human rights activities in the context of the on-going protests in Bahrain.

“Any restriction to the exercise of the right to freedom of peaceful assembly must be proportional and must be closely reviewed with respect to its necessity and reasonableness,” Mr. Kiai.

“Restrictions on the right to peaceful assembly on the grounds of national security should not be used to suppress the legitimate activities of human rights defenders and activists.”

Gabriela Knaul, Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, expressed grave concern about the trial of Al-Khawaja and other human rights defenders who were collectively tried before a military court despite being civilians. It is alleged that the group was held for a significant period of time in incommunicado detention before being allowed to seek legal counsel. Allegations that the defendants made confessions under duress have reportedly not been investigated and evidence obtained under torture was reportedly not excluded from the trial – in contravention of international law.

“The lack of due process which was alleged during the trials must be addressed by the court where his case is currently under review,” Ms. Knaul stated.

The Special Rapporteur on torture, Juan E. Mendez, added that: “The Government of Bahrain has failed to take necessary measures to ensure the physical and mental integrity of Mr. Al-Khawaja in accordance with the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners.”

Mr. Al-Khawaja has been on hunger strike since 8 February 2012. Despite assurances expressed by Bahraini authorities, reports and photos documenting his poor state of health continue to emerge.

“In view of the urgency of the matter, we strongly call on the Government to seriously reconsider the offer by Denmark to transfer Al-Khawaja, a dual citizen of Denmark and Bahrain, on humanitarian grounds, for medical treatment to Denmark,” the experts urged. …more

Protest in Beirut in solidarity with ‘Bahrain uprising,’ Khawaja
Dana Khraiche – 13 April, 2012 – The Daily Star

BEIRUT: Around 100 men and women protested Friday in Downtown Beirut in support of the “uprising in Bahrain” and for the release of imprisoned Bahraini activist Abdul-Hadi al-Khawaja who has been on hunger strike for 64 days.

A line of women in black held large signs with Khawaja’ picture as tens of army soldiers and riot police surrounded the protesters at Riad Solh square in the capital.

Bahraini activists and religious figures flew in to Lebanon to help organize the demonstration in collaboration with the Bahrain Center for Human Rights, which was founded by Khawaja.

“Bahraini people complain of the weak coverage from Arab media of their case, which is based on oppressed people who have been ruled by a backward family for decades and now they have reached the tipping point,” Sheikh Jaafar al-Alawi, a leading figure in a Muslim movement in Bahrain, told The Daily Star.

He added that the problem with the uprising against the government in Manama was being misrepresented as a sectarian, Shiite-led movement.

He stressed that the movement was a purely secular and national one.

“We are grateful for the Lebanese people who embrace Arab opposition members and particularly the Bahraini ones,” he added.

In February of last year, protests by Bahrainis calling for reform were crushed by the government. Bahrain accused Iran of fueling the protests. Tehran denied the allegations.

Recent weeks have seen a renewal of large-scale protests. Last month, thousands of Bahrainis demonstrated near Manama to demand democratic reform.

Describing Lebanon as an oasis of freedom in the “Arabian desert,” Alawi expressed hope that the Lebanese would stand against oppressors everywhere and that Lebanon remains a place where people can express their views freely.

A brief scuffle disrupted the protest when a young group of youths carrying posters slamming President Bashar Assad and Bahraini king Sheikh Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa tried to join in, but the anti-Manama protesters tore their signs and asked the young men to leave. …more

UKs Top Cop and King Hamad Security Contractor Yates’s, says the protests are from a “very small minority – often groups of 15-20 young men. These are criminal acts being perpetrated against an unarmed police force who, in the face of such attacks, are acting with remarkable restraint. “These people are intent on causing harm to the police and the communities in which they live. They are not representative of the vast majority of delightful, law-abiding citizens that represent the real Bahrain that I see every day.

Small Group of law-abiding citizens gather to remember Ahmed Ismail murder by Bahrain Plain Clothes Agents in lead-up to F1 teams decision to tread on the blood of Bahrain’s freedom seekers

When Ahmed was shot, he shouted and tried to run for about 20 feet until he fell. One of the protesters tried to help him walk from the scene until Ahmed fainted. Other youths gathered and carried him inside the village, taking him to a house where he had first aid before taking him to the hospital.

Ahmed lay mortally wounded after filming MOI plain clothes beating peaceful protester and then is him self killed in “drive by” assassination.

Ahmed attending previous Bahrain F1

Funeral March marks the death of Ahmed Ismail 13 April, 2012

And finally the attack on Ahmed’s mourners visiting graveside at the cemetery