Posts from — January 2014

Imagine your daughter stood with a friend outside the FI race course wearing a T shirt, bearing the images of Abdulhadi al Khawaja, the defence lawyer and Ahmed Humaidan, a photo-journalist. Rihana al Mousawi and Nafeesa al Asfoor were arrested on April 20th 2013 at a peaceful demonstration. They were about to be released with no charges when suddenly they were detained, interrogated and charged with attempting to get a bomb into the FI Race! They have been detained for nine months, accused of terrorism and trying to overthrow the regime.

At their first trial on 11th July, Rihana bravely spoke of how she had been stripped and threatened with rape and electric shots if she didn’t confess to the male officers. She was forced to stand as an open door so that the prisoners could see her. She was denied water and food for a day and fell unconscious, with only a 15 minutes’ break between interrogation sessions. All Judge Dhahrini noted down in court was “improper moral treatment!” She was sentenced to five years in October for being a member of the 14th February Coalition in a trial with no proper process, no chance for the detainees to speak or for the defence lawyers to make their case. The Appeal session in on 24th January for the 14th February Coalition and 30th January for the bomb making charge.

Rihanna is a mother of three young children. She has multiple breast lumps but she was refused permission by the prison to get treatment. Her husband got authorisation from the Public Prosecutor, but she missed 4 hospital appointments. She has a dislocation of her jaw joints which requires a special diet and a TMT splint, neither of which she’s been given.

The Appeal will be handled by Ali Dhahrini, son of Judge Dharini who sent them down in the first place. If the lawyers can’t get recognition of their clients’ torture and acceptance of their pre-defence papers, they will walk out in protest.

The international legal and political communities must condemn this situation of illegal trials and forced confessions after torture. Why the silence? There was a lot of pressure for the Pussy Girls and Greenpeace activists. Are the lives of the Bahrainis unimportant?

The situation is getting worse for Ebrahim Demastani who has been on a hunger strike to get medical treatment since 20th December 2013. (See: BCHR article 22.1.2014 and Rula Safur’s statement on his conviction and health in Gulf News 22.1.2014.)
Rula Safur, Head of the Bahrain nurses said he was sentenced to 3 years for helping an injured man who came to his door, and sending him on to hospital. He was accused of “spreading false rumours about the wounded and gathering without authorisation.” He has completed 16 months of his sentence since going to prison on October 12th 2012.

Ebrahim had a prolapsed disc when he was detained in 2011 and when the torturers found out they kicked him in the back and fractured his coccyx.
He was detained again in 2012 and has received no treatment. He is in constant pain.

There is a Court Order for Specialised Treatment but nothing happened. He recently saw a doctor’s assistant who refused to examine him physically or take an x ray. Although the last x ray is three years old.
He has no winter clothes and has been unable to see his lawyer for three months.

Although there is supposed to be a dialogue going on, it is not improving the medical care or conditions for prisoners.
What can you do? Please write to you M.P. or Congressman.

Bahrain Flag to be Replaced on Revolution’s 3rd Anniversary

Perhaps, the most significant move the informal opposition has ever made, since the popular anti-regime revolution sparked in Bahrain was the announcement for a Republic state. The announcement has effectively delegitimized the absolute Monarchy that was imposed by the “self-proclaimed” (king) and dictator Hamad Alkhalifa a decade ago.

The informal opposition movements, namely, Alwafa Islamic Movement, Haqq Movement and Bahrain Freedom Movement have rightly heeded the calls of the masses at the Pearl Square, that the Monarchy was no longer sustainable, and the sovereign people of Bahrain shall embrace their legitimate right to self-determination.

Almost three years have passed since the historic moment at the Pearl Square, when prominent opposition leader Hasan Mushaima (currently serving life imprisonment) announced Bahrain to become a Democratic Republic state. Indeed, the people have had high expectations from the informal opposition movements and supported the announcement with little hesitation.

Turning a country’s governing system from a monarchy into a democratic republic is a nationwide matter. It would certainly lead to critical changes to the entire troubled region of the (Persian) Gulf. It is a challenge the three informal movements have vowed to take. However, so far they have taken no single step forward.

Our people have been paying high price just to keep the revolution alive, hoping that “someday someone will do something”. The two sides in the conflict -the sovereign people and the illegitimate regime- have been in a stalemate.

This wait shall not continue indefinitely.

At this point, the revolution needs “political escalation” the most. An increasing number of decentralized anti-regime factions and social networks have launched a peaceful campaign to replace the current red-and-white flag, which the self-proclaimed king modified without obtaining consent of the sovereign people of Bahrain a decade ago.

Challenging the forged flag is a step on the right direction. Alliance of Youth of Change endorsed the campaign last month.

As no specific flag prototype has been announced yet, Alliance of Youth of Change has made one that reflects the “land”, the “culture” and the “people” of Bahrain. If no design is agreed by February 14th 2014, the Alliance will consider its design and will formally replace the current flag with the new one.

Alliance of Youth of Change will publish the proposed flag prototype by the end of January for consideration.

Alliance of Youth of Change
January 15, 2014

Imperialism and NGOs in Latin America
James Petras – September, 1997

By the early 1980s the more perceptive sectors of the neoliberal ruling classes realized that their policies were polarizing the society and provoking large-scale social discontent. Neoliberal politicians began to finance and promote a parallel strategy “from below,” the promotion of “grassroots” organization with an “anti-statist” ideology to intervene among potentially conflictory classes, to create a “social cushion.” These organizations were financially dependent on neoliberal sources and were directly involved in competing with socio-political movements for the allegiance of local leaders and activist communities. By the 1990s these organizations, described as “nongovernmental,” numbered in the thousands and were receiving close to four billion dollars world-wide.

Neoliberalism and the NGOs

The confusion concerning the political character of the nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) stems from their earlier history in the 1970s during the days of the dictatorships. In this period they were active in providing humanitarian support to the victims of the military dictatorship and denouncing human rights violations. The NGOs supported “soup kitchens” which allowed victimized families to survive the first wave of shock treatments administered by the neoliberal dictatorships. This period created a favorable image of NGOs even among the left. They were considered part of the “progressive camp.”

Even then, however, the limits of the NGOs were evident. While they attacked the human rights violations of local dictatorships, they rarely denounced the U.S. and European patrons who financed and advised them. Nor was there a serious effort to link the neoliberal economic policies and human rights violations to the new turn in the imperialist system. Obviously the external sources of funding limited the sphere of criticism and human rights action.

As opposition to neoliberalism grew in the early 1980s, the U.S. and European governments and the World Bank increased their funding of NGOs. There is a direct relation between the growth of social movements challenging the neoliberal model and the effort to subvert them by creating alternative forms of social action through the NGOs. The basic point of convergence between the NGOs and the World Bank was their common opposition to “statism.” On the surface the NGOs criticized the state from a “left” perspective defending civil society, while the right did so in the name of the market. In reality, however, the World Bank, the neoliberal regimes, and western foundations co-opted and encouraged the NGOs to undermine the national welfare state by providing social services to compensate the victims of the multinational corporations (MNCs). In other words, as the neoliberal regimes at the top devastated communities by inundating the country with cheap imports, extracting external debt payment, abolishing labor legislation, and creating a growing mass of low-paid and unemployed workers, the NGOs were funded to provide “self-help” projects, “popular education,” and job training, to temporarily absorb small groups of poor, to co-opt local leaders, and to undermine anti-system struggles.

The NGOs became the “community face” of neoliberalism, intimately related to those at the top and complementing their destructive work with local projects. In effect the neoliberals organized a “pincer” operation or dual strategy. Unfortunately many on the left focused only on “neoliberalism” from above and the outside (International Monetary Fund, World Bank) and not on neoliberalism from below (NGOs, micro-enterprises). A major reason for this oversight was the conversion of many ex-Marxists to the NGO formula and practice. Anti-Statism was the ideological transit ticket from class politics to “community development,” from Marxism to the NGOs.

Typically, NGO ideologues counterpose “state” power to “local” power. State power is, they argue, distant from its citizens, autonomous, and arbitrary, and it tends to develop interests different from and opposed to those of its citizens, while local power is necessarily closer and more responsive to the people. But apart from historical cases where the reverse has also been true, this leaves out the essential relation between state and local power—the simple truth that state power wielded by a dominant, exploiting class will undermine progressive local initiatives, while that same power in the hands of progressive forces can reinforce such initiatives.

The counterposition of state and local power has been used to justify the role of NGOs as brokers between local organizations, neoliberal foreign donors (World Bank, Europe, or the United States) and the local free market regimes. But the effect is to strengthen neoliberal regimes by severing the link between local struggles and organizations and national/international political movements. The emphasis on “local activity” serves the neoliberal regimes since it allows its foreign and domestic backers to dominate macro-socio-economic policy and to channel most of the state’s resources toward subsidies for export capitalists and financial institutions.

So while the neoliberals were transferring lucrative state properties to the private rich, the NGOs were not part of the trade union resistance. On the contrary they were active in local private projects, promoting the private enterprise discourse (self-help) in the local communities by focusing on micro-enterprises. The NGOs built ideological bridges between the small scale capitalists and the monopolies benefitting from privatization—all in the name of “anti-statism” and the building of civil societies. While the rich accumulated vast financial empires from the privatization, the NGO middle class professionals got small sums to finance offices, transportation, and small-scale economic activity.

The important political point is that the NGOs depoliticized sectors of the population, undermined their commitment to public employees, and co-opted potential leaders in small projects. NGOs abstain from public school teacher struggles, as the neoliberal regimes attack public education and public educators. Rarely if ever do NGOs support the strikes and protests against low wages and budget cuts. Since their educational funding comes from the neoliberal governments, they avoid solidarity with public educators in struggle. In practice, “non-governmental” translates into anti-public-spending activities, freeing the bulk of funds for neoliberals to subsidize export capitalists while small sums trickle from the government to NGOs.

In reality non-governmental organizations are not non-governmental. They receive funds from overseas governments or work as private subcontractors of local governments. Frequently they openly collaborate with governmental agencies at home or overseas. This “subcontracting” undermines professionals with fixed contracts, replacing them with contingent professionals. The NGOs cannot provide the long-term comprehensive programs that the welfare state can furnish. Instead they provide limited services to narrow groups of communities. More importantly, their programs are not accountable to the local people but to overseas donors. In that sense NGOs undermine democracy by taking social programs out of the hands of the local people and their elected officials to create dependence on non-elected, overseas officials and their locally anointed officials. …more

Bahrain: 651 Citizens Sentenced in Security Cases During 2013
6 January, 2014 – Bahrain Youth Society for Human Rights

The Bahrain Youth Society for Human Rights stated today that during the year 2013 the Bahraini Courts issued imprisonment verdicts against 651 citizens based on security charges related to the protests that kicked off on 14 February 2011.

The BYSHR confirmed that he Bahraini Courts had issued verdicts in 95 cases, and the charge “assembling and riot” was the most common in 2013.

The BYSHR explained that 10 citizens were sentenced with life imprisonment, and 153 citizens were imprisoned with 15 years.

The BYSHR indicated that 120 citizens were sentenced with 10 years and 219 citizens were sentenced with 3 to 5 years in prison, while 149 citizens were sentenced with 1 month to 2 years in prison.

Mr Mohammed Al-Maskati – president of the BYSHR – stated that the Bahraini Courts used freedom restricting laws to punish the protestors.

Mr Al-Maskati explained that since 14 February 2011 the Bahraini Authorities have been arresting and trialling citizens with charges related to freedom of opinion and expression.

Worth mentioning, Judge Sheikh Mohammed bin Ali Al-Khalifa – from the ruling family – was the most to issue verdicts during 2013. …more

SEE FULL REPORT HERE

Today Hussain Hubail, 21, a photographer detained since July 31st, had a medical appointment at the hospital with him mum.

Hubail collapsed last Thursday, as he suffered from a heart spasm, and was taken to Salmaniya Hospital for treatment, where he remained in the intensive care unit for several hours and then in the short intensive care unit.

When his condition got stable he was transferred to the Dry Dock Prison again. Hubail stayed in Salmaniya hospital complex for nearly 12 hours and was unconscious.

Hubail suffered several months ago from beams contraction of the heart muscle, shortness of breath, high blood pressure and fainted several times in prison. He told officials about his condition, but they largely ignored it for two months before they allowed his visit to the doctors at the Salmaniya Medical Complex for treatment.The prison administration don’t give him his medication to reduce blood pressure, which he needs once a day, but only once a week.

The regime use the lack of medical care to control the prisoners which has lead to a number of deaths. Hubail goes to court on January 27th and we would like to get him out on bail immediately.

We’re looking at precedents for release due to illness. Nabil Taman was released because of cancer, and Naser Bader El Raas, for his heart condition. Ali Al Awani was released today because of cancer also.

I’m contacting Irish and British medics to get support. Please contact your Congressman to take action for Hussain.

Bahrain accuses Tehran of training opposition militants
4 January, 2014 – The Peninsula

Protesters carrying Bahraini flags and photos of Shia scholar Isa Qassim march during an anti-government rally organised by main opposition group Al Wefaq in Budaiya, west of Manama, yesterday.

DUBAI: Bahrain accused Iran’s Revolutionary Guards yesterday of providing opposition militants with explosives training in order to carry out attacks in the Gulf kingdom, announcing that it had arrested five suspects.

Bahrain is ruled by a Sunni Muslim dynasty but has a population that is majority Shia. The government crushed a mostly Shia-led uprising in 2011 and has long accused predominantly Shiite Iran of meddling in its affairs.

Chief prosecutor Osama Al Oufi said the intelligence service reported last month that “Bahraini Ahmed Mahfuz Mussawi, currently living in Iran, had planned terrorist bombing operations targeting institutions and places vital to the sovereignty and security of the kingdom.”

Quoted by state news agency BNA, he added that five people had been arrested and “admitted joining a group to carry out terrorist attacks… and travelled to Iran to receive training in Revolutionary Guards camps and then received sums of money.”

On Monday, Bahraini authorities said they had seized a boat smuggling explosives made in Iran and Syria into the country.

Since the 2011 uprising, which called for democratic reforms, demonstrations have regularly been held in Shia villages around the capital, often sparking clashes with security forces. At least 89 people have been killed in Bahrain since the protests began, according to the International Federation for Human Rights.

Several bomb attacks have taken place in recent months, including one that targeted a Sunni mosque close to the royal court in July but caused no casualties.

Tensions escalated over the weekend as authorities interrogated top Shia opposition leader Ali Salman.

The head of the main Shia bloc Al Wefaq was released after a day of questioning, but was charged with incitement to religious hatred and spreading false news endangering national security. …more

Bahraini riot police attack on Imam Redha Mosque
5 January, 2014 – Shia Post

Security forces in Bahrain have attacked on a Shia Mosque and Hussainia in Sanabis village on Sunday evening, The Shia Post reported.

The extensive and persistent use of tear gas against civilians by Bahrain’s security forces since over two years was unprecedented in the 100-year history of its use throughout the world.

The Bahraini government has resorted to the policy of “collective punishment” of the nation by regular crack downs on the people who peacefully protest against government’s discriminatory policies.

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 the regime’s 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 began in the Persian Gulf state.

Protesters say they will continue holding anti-regime demonstrations until their demands for the establishment of a democratically-elected government and an end to the rights violations are met. …more

West, Saudi Arabia relieved at death of al-Majed
5 January, 2014 – By Finian Cunningham – PressTV

One thing is for sure about the death of al-Qaeda commander Majed al-Majed in a Beirut hospital this weekend – Western and Saudi intelligence will be relieved at his demise.

Dead men don’t talk, as they say, and that fact may spare the United States, Britain and Saudi Arabia from incriminating disclosures that could have surfaced if he had stayed alive – disclosures that would expose their collusion in terrorist violence raging across the Middle East.

Inevitably, there will be suspicions that al-Majed – a Saudi national – was killed while in Lebanese custody. He was arrested by Lebanese intelligence personnel reportedly in the southern port city of Sidon only days before his death was announced on Saturday. During his brief period in custody he was undergoing questioning while suffering from chronic kidney disease.

Al-Majed’s career as a terrorist certainly gained him enough enemies seeking revenge. But keeping him alive would have been of more advantage to the Lebanese – and to his Hezbollah, Syrian and Iranian enemies – for the valuable information that could have been obtained about his al-Qaeda group, known as the Abdullah Azzam Brigade.

This so-called brigade was involved in terror attacks across the region, including Lebanon and Syria. While al-Majed’s outfit was on official terror lists of the US and Saudi Arabia, there is evidence that the group was less of an outlaw to these states and more of an agency for their covert aims.

Al-Majed’s group claimed responsibility for the deadly bomb attack on the Iranian embassy in Beirut on November 19. That attack killed at least 25 people, including the Iranian cultural attaché, Hojjatoleslam Ebrahim Ansari, and injured more than 150 others.

Of pressing interest about al-Majed’s organization are the covert links between his group and al-Qaeda generally, and its Western and Saudi sponsors. Any disclosures would have been acutely damaging to US, British and Saudi state intelligence.

Such information could have shed more light on the shadowy role of Saudi and Western intelligence in their covert support of the al-Qaeda terror network, not just in Lebanon, but also in neighboring Syria and Iraq. Violence in these countries has been escalating over the past three years, with a combined death toll well over 100,000.

For nearly three years, Western governments and the corporate media have been hawking a narrative that Syria’s violence is the result of the government forces of President Bashar al-Assad cracking down on a pro-democracy movement. Somehow, mysteriously in the Western version, the anti-government forces in Syria have now become dominated by “extremist jihadists”, whose violence is, in turn, “spilling over” into Iraq and Lebanon.

The Western narrative also lays blame on Iran and Russia for supporting Assad, as well as Shia Hezbollah as a factor provoking violence inside Lebanon.

However, despite this threadbare Western depiction, an increasingly more plausible account for the upsurge in regional violence is that systematic covert Western support for al-Qaeda affiliates has fuelled the growth of a Frankenstein terrorist monster, which is now running amok. …more

Human Rights Defender Hussein Ali Abdul Nabi, released on bail on 29th November faces Bahrain Court of Injustice 27th Feb 2014

Bahrain: Arrest of youth activist and human rights defender Mr Hussein Ali Abdul Nabi
13 September, 2013 – frontline defenders

On 6 September 2013 the Bahraini authorities arrested Mr Hussein Ali Abdul Nabi, a youth activist and human rights defender. He was taken to Al Hidd police station, and may have been moved to another location since.

Hussein Ali Abdul Nabi is a young member of the documentation department of the Bahrain Youth Society for Human Rights (BYSHR).

Hussein Ali Abdul Nabi was arrested on 6 September at a colleague’s house in Arad, a town on the Muharraq island, before being taken to Al Hidd police station. A prosecutor has ordered a 45-day detention period for the human rights defender pending the investigation of charges of illegal gatherings and assaulting security agents. On 8 September he was allowed to make a 15 second call to his family.

As a member of the documentation department of BYSHR, Hussein Ali Abdul Nabi received training on how to document human rights violations, what he did afterwards in several villages on behalf of BYSHR.

Front Line Defenders believes that Hussein Ali Abul Nabi was arrested as part of an ongoing campaign against BYSHR. In July 2013 evidence appeared that BYSHR Board Member Mr Naji Fateel was subjected to torture while in custody, allegations which the authorities have to date failed to investigate.

Meanwhile, Naji Fateel’s trial is still ongoing and has so far been marred with irregularities, falling well short of international minimum standards for a fair trial. Front Line Defenders has recently issued several updates on Naji Fateel’s case, including on 26 July 2013, 12 July 2013, 23 May 2013 and 9 May 2013 in addition to the original urgent appeal on 2 May 2013.

In the light of the continued failure to investigate the credible claims that Naji Fateel was tortured while in custody, Front Line Defenders is concerned that Hussein Ali Abdul Nabi may be subjected to ill-treatment or even torture while he remains detained, and insists that the Bahraini authorities ensure that the physical and psychological integrity of the human rights defender is respected at all times.

…source

Eight Photograhers in Danger
5 January, 2014 – Anonymous Contribution

Hussain Hubail is a freelance photographer, 21 years old, he photographs opposition protests in Bahrain, has had his work published by Agence France-Presse and other news outlets. In May, independent newspaper Al-Wasat awarded him a photography prize for his picture of protesters enshrouded in tear gas. Voice of America has published his photos. More of his work can be found HERE

Mr Hubail was accused of being part of 14Feb media network, calling and participating at unauthorized demonstrations, inciting the regime hatred and having connection with some Bahraini opposition living in exile.

Hubail mentioned while he was interrogated, that he was forced to stand for 3 days, punched and kicked, and was exposed to insults and humiliation.

He was taken to the prosecutor 14 Aug 2013 to confirm his testimony without a lawyer, and then in the afternoon, the prosecutor visited him at dry dock prison, where he is now to renew his detention for 45 days, on the unauthorized marches charge.

He is suffering from heart pains, shortness of breath and hasn’t been transferred to the hospital, the prison clinic gave him some random medicine according to his mom. It took the authorities two months to take him to the hospital to get proper treatment.

Lieutenant Fawaz AlSameem who was summoned to be a witness in the next court session is the same person who interrogated them and was responsible for their torture. Next court session on the 27th Jan 2014.

Qassim Zain Aldeen, 25 years old, freelance cameraman, He was arrested in 2012 for more than 6 months, then arrested again on Friday 2nd Aug, He films opposition protests in Bahrain, has had his work published by local websites and blogs.
He was accused of participating in illegal gathering, now accused of vandalism in prison.

Ahmed Humaidan, freelance photographer, arrested on the 29th December 2013 is in jail, accused of attacking a police station in Sitra with Molotov cocktails, No evidence. Next court session is 29th Jan 2014.

Trial hearings showed there is no evidence against Humaidan, He had been tortured during his detention through psychological pressure to extract confessions under threat.

Abdulla Al Jerdabi, photographer, still arrested since 13 Sep 13, accused of participating in illegal gathering.
He was beaten by police forces, on the way to the police station which caused his knee bruises that are still painful, and a cut under his lips.

When the officer realized that he was a photographer he threatened him to face a dark era. Released on 30 Oct 2013.
But he was transferred from Al Khamis police station to Nouaim police station to arrest him again., He’s accused of illegal gathering and possession of iron bars aiming to attack police.

Jassim Alnuiami, online activist, Scriptwriter and works with a production team to produce videos, Arrested 31 July 2013, in a raid on his house in Sehla, and all his electronic devices were confiscated. He was taken to the CID building for 3 days, where he was beaten, tortured, threatened and insulted, he stated to his family that he was beaten while blindfolded on his head, kidneys, and on his private parts.

He was threatened that his mom and sisters will be raped if he didn’t confess.

He is accused of participating in an illegal gathering, and publishing false news, using social media to Inciting hatred against the regime and other accusations related to his online activities.

Lieutenant Fawaz AlSameem who was summoned to be a witness in the next court session is the same person who interrogated and tortured him. Next court session 27th Jan 2014.

Ahmed AlFardan, NurPhoto photographer, 23 years old, who also does photography for Demotex and Sipa press agencies Arrested on the 26th Dec 2013. Around 16 police car surrounded his house around 3:00 in the morning, around 10 masked policemen in a civilian clothes raided his house, confiscated his cameras and laptop, No arrest warrant.
AlFardan was arrested on 8th Aug 2013, outside a cafe near his home by two plain clothed policemen. The police, who told him they needed to ‘speak with him for five minutes’, took him to a car where he was beaten – one policeman punched him while the other choked him, He was told by the policemen that their ‘manager’ wanted him arrested – but this could be avoided if he agreed to work with them.

He was promised cameras and money in exchange for any information about Tamarod (August 2013) rallies, media, and journalists. He was asked to photograph clashes and protests, and then provide the policemen with the pictures – and if he didn’t comply there would be consequences. The policemen showed him a pistol and told him that they can reach him anywhere “we can raid your house, I can come to you anytime, I know your number, I know your home, I can arrest anyone from your family. I can arrest you and charge you for more than 15 years in jail with any charge”. He was released few hours later.

According to Al-Fardan, the same person who threatened him, is the one who arrested him, where he remained in CID for several days where he was beaten, and got two broken ribs, he is now in Dry Dock prison and needs a health care, which he does not got. Prevented from meeting his lawyer.

Hassan Matooq, photographer, charged with publishing false and malicious news and statements, and inciting public contempt and hatred of the regime, Also taking photos of the protesters at Pearl roundabout and delivering the images to the media tent, and participating in an illegal gathering. – Sentenced for 3 years since March 2011.

Mahmood AbdulSaheb, photographer, charged with publishing false and malicious news and statements, and inciting public contempt and hatred of the regime, Took photos of the protesters at Pearl roundabout and delivered them to media tent., Participated in an illegal gathering. – Sentenced for 3 years since March 2011.