A 20-year-old Bahraini student is on the eighth day of a hunger strike

Bahrain:Student is in danger because of her hunger strike in solidarity with her brother in custody
June 11th, 2011

A 20-year-old Bahraini student is on the eighth day of a hunger strike.

Miss.Asma Darwish, better known as “eagertobefree” on Twitter, a business student who studies at Bahrain Polytechnic, began an open hunger strike on Saturday the 4th of June.

“I am demanding freedom for my brother, Mohamed Ghuloom Darwish (23 years old), my uncle and my cousin. I had to take this decision because nothing else is left for me to do. I don’t know where my brother is, and I have not heard from him for more than 20 days”. She informed the BYSHR

Mr.Darwish, a professional photographer who owns Abulphoto Photography, was arrested at 2 am on the 22nd of May; masked men and riot police first burst into his parents’ house, and when they did not find him they took his eldest brother , and later released him when they found him in his sister’s house in Sanad.

Miss.Darwish,stated to the BYSHR: “When the riot police break into our house, I was sleeping. I woke up with shock, and my legs started to shake, I was afraid. One of the masked men was yelling at me and threatening me of arrest as well. They have insulted every religious symbol in the house by removing them and throwing them disrespectfully on the floor. My mom got really sick at that moment as she suffers from a heart disease”

She is one of the brightest students in Bahrain Polytechnic. Although she is on a hunger strike, but that did not stop her from attending all her classes, and passing all her exams.

The Bahrain Youth Society for Human Rights (BYSHR) expresses its deep concern regarding the medical condition of Miss.Asma Darwish, and requests international organizations to immediately intervene to determine the conditions of prisoners in Bahrain. …more