Brazilian “non-lethal” arms killing Bahrainis
Tear Gas in Bahrain: Suppression and Suffering Through “Lethality Reduction”
December 19, 2011 – John Horne – EA Global
Visiting the website of Condor Technologies, a Brazilian “non-lethal” arms company accused this week of exporting tear gas to Bahrain, one is instantly impressed that they have thought very hard about how to present their business. The front page picture asks us to ponder: what on earth is “Lethality Reduction”?
On Sunday in Bahrain, a funeral was held for Abdulali Ali Ahmed, a 73-year man who choked to death in his home from tear gas inhalation. The funeral itself was attacked by police with tear gas.
This was a far from unprecedented development. The streets of Bahrain have been filled all week — indeed, all year — with the acrid, poisonous toxicity of tear gas. Abdulali’s death comes a week after the death of a 5-day-old child, Sajeda Faisal Jawad, killed in similar circumstances, and at least ten more deaths from tear gas have reportedly occurred in Bahrain since the wave of protests in February.
Footage from this week’s protests indicates a possible escalation of the use of tear gas, with activists reporting a new, harsher, “yellow” variety and police trapping people in buildings that have been gassed. The tactics also suggests that security forces are putting up a “smoke screen”, obstructing and preventing filming so police can beat protesters without the risk of being captured on camera.
Several companies in different countries stand accused of exporting tear gas to Bahrain. Canisters produced by French company SAE Alsetex and American firms Defense Technology (Federal Labs) and NonLethal Technologies have been identified by activists. British companies, similarly, have been doing good business with the Bahraini government. Indeed, in 2010, according to CAAT, the UK Government identified Bahrain as a “key market for UK arms exports” and granted export licenses to sales of “tear gas and crowd control ammunition, equipment for the use of aircraft cannons, assault rifles, shotguns, sniper rifles and sub-machine guns”. …more
