Bahrain Regime incapable of Crushing Dissent, loses PR Battle with its lies and deceit

INSIGHT: Bahrain – Losing the PR War on Human Rights
2 May, 2013 – By Brian Dooley

Bahrain’s government seems determined to sabotage its own image. It complains that it’s misunderstood and unfairly criticized, but then continues to make decisions that baffle or enrage its international allies. Foreign criticism of Bahrain’s poor human rights record is increasing.

Earlier this week, the U.S. Commission of International Religious Freedom cited “increased rhetoric from official media outlets inflaming sectarian tensions and demonizing the Shi’a Muslim population,” and a failure to hold any senior official to account for torture.

insight hrf INSIGHT: Bahrain Losing the PR War on Human RightsThe criticism is much more detailed and sharper than in last year’s report and matched the tone of the U.S. State Department country report on Bahrain two weeks ago which also revealed a growing frustration with the regime in Manama, a regime which continues to shoot itself in the foot with a series of terrible PR blunders. Last week, for example, the Bahraini government announced that United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture Juan Mendez will not be permitted to visit Bahrain this month. Mendez’s trip, scheduled for May 8-15, had been on the books since he was last refused access in early 2012. At that time, the regime made repeated promises that things would be different for Mendez’s May trip.

After he received notice of the cancellation, Mendez issued a statement noting, “Due to the sensitivity of my mandate there will never be a perfect time for my visit, something that is true for any country that I may visit. … The Government is facing many challenges in light of the on-going tensions in Bahrain. I would have conducted my visit in the spirit of cooperation and expected the Government to share that approach; regrettably, this does not appear to be the case.”

“Since 2011, not one senior regime official has been held accountable for the widespread torture of detainees in custody.” – Brian Dooley, Human Rights First

Mendez’s trip cancellation is certainly a shocker, even to those of us who have become accustomed to these access games. It also comes just weeks after the appointment of Bahrain’s Crown Prince to the post of deputy prime minister, a development that initially read as a signal to Washington that some real reform might be about to start.
reu bahrain2 300 02may13 INSIGHT: Bahrain Losing the PR War on Human Rights

Riot police arrest a protester during an anti-government rally in Bahrain’s capital, Manama, December 17, 2012.

The bottom line is that despite their repeated promises from Bahrain’s leaders, not much has changed in the Kingdom. Just after the Crown Prince’s appointment, he and the rest of Bahrain’s cabinet endorsed proposals to introduce a five-year jail sentence for anyone convicted of insulting the king. Such moves try the patience of international allies and sympathy for the regime seems to fading fast.

Earlier this month, the United Kingdom, Bahrain’s close ally, released its 2012 annual report on human rights and democracy. It featured Bahrain’s torture record, noting that impunity was a “deep-rooted problem.” It also stressed that the “current number of officials being investigated is low, and actual convictions even lower.”
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