It has been suggested that the US government limit arms sales and security cooperation with Bahrain due to allegations of serious human rights abuses in the Gulf country’s judicial and police system.
In a 61-page report released today, The Court is Satisfied with the Confession: Bahrain Death Sentences Follow Torture, Sham Trials, Human Rights Watch (HRW) and the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (IBRD) highlight what they say they are and persistent. human rights violations in Bahrain’s justice system.
They allege that Bahraini courts have rejected credible allegations of torture and ill-treatment of suspects and have consistently violated defendants’ fair trial rights, adding the right to suggest and cross-examine prosecution witnesses.
“On a case-by-case basis, the courts found that the defendants were guilty of the crime of murder and sentenced them to death solely or mainly on the basis of confessions that the defendants (or co-defendants) were tortured and ill-treated under duress. treatment,” the report says.
The call to limit security cooperation is likely to meet resistance from the United States and Bahrain, given the incredibly close security relations between the two countries. Bahrain is home to the U. S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet and the U. S. Naval Forces Central Command.
HRW and BIRD have also called on governments elsewhere to act. They said the British government deserves to suspend investment in several government establishments in Bahrain and called on the European Union to take “targeted action” against Bahraini officials guilty of the abuses.
The UK government supports several of the establishments mentioned in the report, adding through its Gulf Strategy Fund, which is controlled through the Foreign Office, Commonwealth and Development (CDF). Members of the UK parliament have in the past called on the government to suspend fund bills to Gulf states accused of human rights abuses.
Through a data access request, IBRD established that in 2020-21, the Gulf Strategy Fund provided Bahrain’s Ministry of Interior, the Interior Ministry’s Ombudsman, and the Special Investigation Unit. All 3 agencies are involved in the report.
Much of the torture and ill-treatment described in the report reportedly took place in the Criminal Investigation Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Meanwhile, the Ombudsman’s Office of the Ministry of Interior and the Special Investigations Unit (SIU) are accused of failing to properly investigate cases of torture, even when there is corroborative evidence from doctors.
“The findings of this report highlight a flagrant lack of oversight and accountability within the CDF,” said Yasmine Ahmed, UK director at Human Rights Watch. “Abuses in Bahrain’s justice formula are well documented and we have raised them with the CDF, from the abuse of young detainees to the detention of dissidents.
“In light of this new report, we call on the UK government. . . Immediately suspend all investments and institutions involved.
Sayed Ahmed Al Wadaei, BIRD’s Director of Defence, also called on the UK Parliament to investigate the UK government-funded education provided to Bahrain’s judiciary. Executions don’t get advantages from taxpayer-funded programs,” he said.
The report presents evidence of serious human rights violations underlying the convictions and death sentences of 8 men. He said the trial and appellate courts rejected credible allegations of torture and ill-treatment interrogations instead of investigating, violated defendants’ rights to fair trials, adding the right to cross-examination of a lawyer, the right to cross-examine witnesses who oppose him, and through the use of reports from secret sources.
One of the cases is that of Zuhair Ebrahim Jasim Abdullah, who was arrested for his alleged involvement in the killing of a police officer. He said interrogators tried to rape him and threatened to rape his wife and gave her electric shocks to her chest and genitals. The courts rejected allegations of torture and sentenced him to death on the basis of his forced confession.
“In case after case, courts have relied on forced confessions, despite credible allegations of torture and ill-treatment by defendants,” said Michael Page, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch.
Joshua Colangelo-Bryan, representative of Human Rights Watch and lead writer of the report, also called on Bahrain’s leader, King Hamad Bin Isa Al-Khalifa, to impose all death sentences without delay and said the government deserves to reinstate the de facto moratorium on executions. . , deserted in 2017.
A Bahraini government spokesman said the country’s corrupt justice formula “operates in full compliance with foreign law” and said the right to a fair trial is enshrined in the country’s charter and laws.
Bahraini police arrive to disperse clashes of protesters after Ali. . . Abdulghani, 17, whose circle of relatives says he died from injuries sustained during a police chase, in the Shiite village of Shahrakkan, south of Manama, on April 5, 2016 (Photo: MOHAMMED AL-SHAIKH/AFP via Getty Images)