When, back in 2001, King Shaikh Hamad bin ‘Issa Al Khalifa of Bahrain freed hundreds of political prisoners and announced a new national charter, there was a real sense of hope that human rights and meaningful political reform were on the way. Sadly, since then, respect for human rights in Bahrain has been in steady decline; in recent months it has been in freefall. The possibly imminent execution of four men sentenced to death in a secretive military court could mark its final collapse.
The four men, Ali Abdullah Hassan al-Sankis, Qassim Hassan Matar, Saeed Abduljalil Saeed and Adbulaziz Abdulridha Ibrahim Hussain, were sentenced to die for killing police officers during protests last month. Three other men, Issa Abdullah Kadhim Ali, Sadeq Ali Mahdi and Hussein Jaafar Abdulkarim, were sentenced to life imprisonment. All 7 maintain their innocence.
The crime for which these men were convicted is of course a serious one, but their convictions came after they were subjected to incommunicado detention, putting them at risk of torture, and after a closed-door trial in a special court created for the current state of emergency. The state of emergency itself (or, “State of National Safety”) gives the government broad and vaguely defined powers with no human rights guarantees at all.
These death sentences also come in the midst of other grave human rights abuses, including torture, detention of protesters, and the deliberate targeting of medical professionals for doing nothing more than their professional duty. These are dark days for human rights in Bahrain, but the King can still pull his government back from the brink. Overturning these death sentences would be a small but important first step.
Trial was not fair being in a military court
and confessions taken under torture >
i wish that they Overturning these death sentences, but bahraini government ready to kill anyone whoever he's, just to keep anti-government protesters silent, and to force them to be silent and stop demanding for change and Democarcy, but if the government do that and I do not recommend, because Bahrain then will go in a dangerous slope and on the verge of an uprising irreversible.
Trial was not fair being in a military court
and confessions taken under torture >
i wish that they Overturning these death sentences, but bahraini government ready to kill anyone whoever he’s, just to keep anti-government protesters silent, and to force them to be silent and stop demanding for change and Democarcy, but if the government do that and I do not recommend, because Bahrain then will go in a dangerous slope and on the verge of an uprising irreversible.
Dear Mr. Evans, thank you for this post,
As a physician I am against capital punishment but considering the malicious cold-hearted nature of the crime (premeditated murder of law enforcement officers) it is hard for me to ask HM the King to overturn the sentences keeping in mind that the law enforcement officer’s family should be taken into consideration for the horrific loss they have been subjected to by sectarian racist rioters who have continuously called for the death of all legally naturalised Bahrainis. To this date the so called opposition have been celebrating and making fun of the death of these law enforcement officers, since they are from different decent to other Bahrainis. I have to also add that they had a fair (although speedy trial I agree) and were given all rights a defendant would require. The court, although military, has senior civilian judges with a lot of experience in the matter. Keep in mind that this is a ‘national security’ issue (similar to the patriot act of the USA) and not just of a standard murder trial.
To your statement ‘deliberate targeting of medical professionals for doing nothing more than their professional duty’ that’s a fallacy based on PHR’s extremely narrow view and conclusions of the situation in Bahrain. These conclusions were based on information that is either exaggerations on the truth or not true at all since they were taken from one side only (by Physicians for Human Rights who only spent 1-week in Bahrain and only spoke to 30-healthacre workers who were involved with the ‘opposition’ movement). The healthcare workers being legally arrested make up less than 0.8% of registered healthcare workers in the Kingdom of Bahrain and there is a reason why they are being arrested.
There were multiple CONFIRMED reports of law abiding doctors being threatened, intimidated and harassed by senior sectarian opposition consultants and nurses who wanted to manipulate their supportive stand point of the current government. There were also confirmed reports of these same sectarian opposition consultants holding governmental law enforcement officers as hostages in SMC and refusing treatment to suffering patients just because they are of a different nationality, ethnic origin and/or sect. One of these is a patient of mine who was kept in SMC as a hostage for 24-hours (with NO treatment although he had multiple fractures of the skull and a brain contusion) by Ali Al-Ekri and Ghassan Dhaif (both consultants at the SMC). He was eventually freed by the Ministry of Interior and air-lifted via helicopter to the RMS.
Since the incidents of the 14th of February 2011 there have been numerous incidents of abuse from healthcare workers in the SMC and health-centres who have utilised their status as healthcare professionals to manipulate, intimidate, threaten and torture colleagues and patients alike: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GcYPO2whuA. An example being the recently arrested Ali Al-Ekri a Consultant at the SMC. He spearheaded both an intimidation campaign to any doctor who disagreed with his sectarian political stand point and unjustifiable sectarian political campaign against the government. He (and his arrested colleagues) has committed the following violations of not just a legal nature but of a humanitarian nature:
1. He turned SMC into a political platform to spread anti-government hate calling for the overthrow of the current regime (and the death of Al Khalifa: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4mqydOTpJc) which most of the Bahraini people DO NOT WANT. This has caused incredible chaos in the SMC the last 4-weeks thereby jeopardising patient’s lives and well being. Patients felt terrorised and were forced to seek treatment elsewhere since the SMC was considered a one sect hospital ONLY.
2. He turned the SMC into a political hub for bias international media like Press TV and Al Alam (both Iranian) but not for any other media. He has had direct links with Iran to overthrow the current Bahraini regime.
3. He has bullied and threatened anyone who would speak out against his malicious political agenda against Bahrain which is of purely sectarian nature. Doctors lived in fear and some either resigned or stopped going to work due to the continuous intimidation from the above mentioned senior colleagues.
4. He has called for racist genocide and ethic cleansing of naturalised Bahrainis of different decent like Syrians, Jordanians and Pakistanis – he has threatened anyone who treats these patients of being put on a ‘black-list’ and dealt with accordingly.
5. He has spent most of his time forming vigilante groups of consultant and nursing colleagues to spread his spiteful sectarian racist agenda.
6. He High jacked the Bahrain Medical Society with his senior colleagues and issued press releases condemning the government (since it is the official representative of the all doctors in Bahrain) although most of its members do NOT agree with him – recently over 500 doctors signed a petition in support of the government and condemned the sectarian agenda/position that the society took without the approval of its members or public.
All of the above facts are documented and proven and I would be more than happy to provide you with legal statements, videos and all evidence I have at hand.
It will be un Wise to carry out the executions the anti-government protesters are stel Peaceful this will change if the executions are carryed out as bahrain will be pulled in a dark stage where the outcome is unknown for bouth parts
Unfair trial And non-transparent and not by international standards -Confessions taken under torture prosecution unacceptable
Dear Mr. Evans, thank you for this post,
As a physician I am against capital punishment but considering the malicious cold-hearted nature of the crime (premeditated murder of law enforcement officers) it is hard for me to ask HM the King to overturn the sentences keeping in mind that the law enforcement officer’s family should be taken into consideration for the horrific loss they have been subjected to by sectarian racist rioters who have continuously called for the death of all legally naturalised Bahrainis. To this date the so called opposition have been celebrating and making fun of the death of these law enforcement officers, since they are from different decent to other Bahrainis. I have to also add that they had a fair (although speedy trial I agree) and were given all rights a defendant would require. The court, although military, has senior civilian judges with a lot of experience in the matter. Keep in mind that this is a ‘national security’ issue (similar to the patriot act of the USA) and not just of a standard murder trial.
To your statement ‘deliberate targeting of medical professionals for doing nothing more than their professional duty’ that’s a fallacy based on PHR’s extremely narrow view and conclusions of the situation in Bahrain. These conclusions were based on information that is either exaggerations on the truth or not true at all since they were taken from one side only (by Physicians for Human Rights who only spent 1-week in Bahrain and only spoke to 30-healthacre workers who were involved with the ‘opposition’ movement). The healthcare workers being legally arrested make up less than 0.8% of registered healthcare workers in the Kingdom of Bahrain and there is a reason why they are being arrested.
There were multiple CONFIRMED reports of law abiding doctors being threatened, intimidated and harassed by senior sectarian opposition consultants and nurses who wanted to manipulate their supportive stand point of the current government. There were also confirmed reports of these same sectarian opposition consultants holding governmental law enforcement officers as hostages in SMC and refusing treatment to suffering patients just because they are of a different nationality, ethnic origin and/or sect. One of these is a patient of mine who was kept in SMC as a hostage for 24-hours (with NO treatment although he had multiple fractures of the skull and a brain contusion) by Ali Al-Ekri and Ghassan Dhaif (both consultants at the SMC). He was eventually freed by the Ministry of Interior and air-lifted via helicopter to the RMS.
Since the incidents of the 14th of February 2011 there have been numerous incidents of abuse from healthcare workers in the SMC and health-centres who have utilised their status as healthcare professionals to manipulate, intimidate, threaten and torture colleagues and patients alike: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GcYPO2whuA. An example being the recently arrested Ali Al-Ekri a Consultant at the SMC. He spearheaded both an intimidation campaign to any doctor who disagreed with his sectarian political stand point and unjustifiable sectarian political campaign against the government. He (and his arrested colleagues) has committed the following violations of not just a legal nature but of a humanitarian nature:
1. He turned SMC into a political platform to spread anti-government hate calling for the overthrow of the current regime (and the death of Al Khalifa: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4mqydOTpJc) which most of the Bahraini people DO NOT WANT. This has caused incredible chaos in the SMC the last 4-weeks thereby jeopardising patient’s lives and well being. Patients felt terrorised and were forced to seek treatment elsewhere since the SMC was considered a one sect hospital ONLY.
2. He turned the SMC into a political hub for bias international media like Press TV and Al Alam (both Iranian) but not for any other media. He has had direct links with Iran to overthrow the current Bahraini regime.
3. He has bullied and threatened anyone who would speak out against his malicious political agenda against Bahrain which is of purely sectarian nature. Doctors lived in fear and some either resigned or stopped going to work due to the continuous intimidation from the above mentioned senior colleagues.
4. He has called for racist genocide and ethic cleansing of naturalised Bahrainis of different decent like Syrians, Jordanians and Pakistanis – he has threatened anyone who treats these patients of being put on a ‘black-list’ and dealt with accordingly.
5. He has spent most of his time forming vigilante groups of consultant and nursing colleagues to spread his spiteful sectarian racist agenda.
6. He High jacked the Bahrain Medical Society with his senior colleagues and issued press releases condemning the government (since it is the official representative of the all doctors in Bahrain) although most of its members do NOT agree with him – recently over 500 doctors signed a petition in support of the government and condemned the sectarian agenda/position that the society took without the approval of its members or public.
All of the above facts are documented and proven and I would be more than happy to provide you with legal statements, videos and all evidence I have at hand.
Dear Mr. Evans, thank you for this post,
As a physician I am against capital punishment but considering the malicious cold-hearted nature of the crime (premeditated murder of law enforcement officers) it is hard for me to ask HM the King to overturn the sentences keeping in mind that the law enforcement officer’s family should be taken into consideration for the horrific loss they have been subjected to by sectarian racist rioters who have continuously called for the death of all legally naturalised Bahrainis. To this date the so called opposition have been celebrating and making fun of the death of these law enforcement officers, since they are from different decent to other Bahrainis. I have to also add that they had a fair (although speedy trial I agree) and were given all rights a defendant would require. The court, although military, has senior civilian judges with a lot of experience in the matter. Keep in mind that this is a ‘national security’ issue (similar to the patriot act of the USA) and not just of a standard murder trial.
To your statement ‘deliberate targeting of medical professionals for doing nothing more than their professional duty’ that’s a fallacy based on PHR’s extremely narrow view and conclusions of the situation in Bahrain. These conclusions were based on information that is either exaggerations on the truth or not true at all since they were taken from one side only (by Physicians for Human Rights who only spent 1-week in Bahrain and only spoke to 30-healthacre workers who were involved with the ‘opposition’ movement). The healthcare workers being legally arrested make up less than 0.8% of registered healthcare workers in the Kingdom of Bahrain and there is a reason why they are being arrested.
There were multiple CONFIRMED reports of law abiding doctors being threatened, intimidated and harassed by senior sectarian opposition consultants and nurses who wanted to manipulate their supportive stand point of the current government. There were also confirmed reports of these same sectarian opposition consultants holding governmental law enforcement officers as hostages in SMC and refusing treatment to suffering patients just because they are of a different nationality, ethnic origin and/or sect. One of these is a patient of mine who was kept in SMC as a hostage for 24-hours (with NO treatment although he had multiple fractures of the skull and a brain contusion) by Ali Al-Ekri and Ghassan Dhaif (both consultants at the SMC). He was eventually freed by the Ministry of Interior and air-lifted via helicopter to the RMS.
Since the incidents of the 14th of February 2011 there have been numerous incidents of abuse from healthcare workers in the SMC and health-centres who have utilised their status as healthcare professionals to manipulate, intimidate, threaten and torture colleagues and patients alike: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GcYPO2whuA. An example being the recently arrested Ali Al-Ekri a Consultant at the SMC. He spearheaded both an intimidation campaign to any doctor who disagreed with his sectarian political stand point and unjustifiable sectarian political campaign against the government. He (and his arrested colleagues) has committed the following violations of not just a legal nature but of a humanitarian nature:
1. He turned SMC into a political platform to spread anti-government hate calling for the overthrow of the current regime (and the death of Al Khalifa: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4mqydOTpJc) which most of the Bahraini people DO NOT WANT. This has caused incredible chaos in the SMC the last 4-weeks thereby jeopardising patient’s lives and well being. Patients felt terrorised and were forced to seek treatment elsewhere since the SMC was considered a one sect hospital ONLY.
2. He turned the SMC into a political hub for bias international media like Press TV and Al Alam (both Iranian) but not for any other media. He has had direct links with Iran to overthrow the current Bahraini regime.
3. He has bullied and threatened anyone who would speak out against his malicious political agenda against Bahrain which is of purely sectarian nature. Doctors lived in fear and some either resigned or stopped going to work due to the continuous intimidation from the above mentioned senior colleagues.
4. He has called for racist genocide and ethic cleansing of naturalised Bahrainis of different decent like Syrians, Jordanians and Pakistanis – he has threatened anyone who treats these patients of being put on a ‘black-list’ and dealt with accordingly.
5. He has spent most of his time forming vigilante groups of consultant and nursing colleagues to spread his spiteful sectarian racist agenda.
6. He High jacked the Bahrain Medical Society with his senior colleagues and issued press releases condemning the government (since it is the official representative of the all doctors in Bahrain) although most of its members do NOT agree with him – recently over 500 doctors signed a petition in support of the government and condemned the sectarian agenda/position that the society took without the approval of its members or public.
All of the above facts are documented and proven and I would be more than happy to provide you with legal statements, videos and all evidence I have at hand.
Mohammed, if your allegations are true then you will not be averse to the international community establishing an enquiry into the protests and the aftermath. Clearly you are continuing the Bahrain gov line that the rest of the world (and its media) is wrong and the AlKhalifa propaganda is right. In these situations there will be wrongs by both sides, however are you going to allow the world to judge.. I don't think so.
Mohammed, you are understandably afraid, which is evidence of the terror the Bahraini government is imposing. Amnesty International works for you and all of us to try to ensure that our human rights are respected.
Monica
It will be un Wise to carry out the executions the anti-government protesters are stel Peaceful this will change if the executions are carryed out as bahrain will be pulled in a dark stage where the outcome is unknown for bouth parts
Unfair trial And non-transparent and not by international standards -Confessions taken under torture prosecution unacceptable
Dear Mr. Evans, thank you for this post,
As a physician I am against capital punishment but considering the malicious cold-hearted nature of the crime (premeditated murder of law enforcement officers) it is hard for me to ask HM the King to overturn the sentences keeping in mind that the law enforcement officer’s family should be taken into consideration for the horrific loss they have been subjected to by sectarian racist rioters who have continuously called for the death of all legally naturalised Bahrainis. To this date the so called opposition have been celebrating and making fun of the death of these law enforcement officers, since they are from different decent to other Bahrainis. I have to also add that they had a fair (although speedy trial I agree) and were given all rights a defendant would require. The court, although military, has senior civilian judges with a lot of experience in the matter. Keep in mind that this is a ‘national security’ issue (similar to the patriot act of the USA) and not just of a standard murder trial.
To your statement ‘deliberate targeting of medical professionals for doing nothing more than their professional duty’ that’s a fallacy based on PHR’s extremely narrow view and conclusions of the situation in Bahrain. These conclusions were based on information that is either exaggerations on the truth or not true at all since they were taken from one side only (by Physicians for Human Rights who only spent 1-week in Bahrain and only spoke to 30-healthacre workers who were involved with the ‘opposition’ movement). The healthcare workers being legally arrested make up less than 0.8% of registered healthcare workers in the Kingdom of Bahrain and there is a reason why they are being arrested.
There were multiple CONFIRMED reports of law abiding doctors being threatened, intimidated and harassed by senior sectarian opposition consultants and nurses who wanted to manipulate their supportive stand point of the current government. There were also confirmed reports of these same sectarian opposition consultants holding governmental law enforcement officers as hostages in SMC and refusing treatment to suffering patients just because they are of a different nationality, ethnic origin and/or sect. One of these is a patient of mine who was kept in SMC as a hostage for 24-hours (with NO treatment although he had multiple fractures of the skull and a brain contusion) by Ali Al-Ekri and Ghassan Dhaif (both consultants at the SMC). He was eventually freed by the Ministry of Interior and air-lifted via helicopter to the RMS.
Since the incidents of the 14th of February 2011 there have been numerous incidents of abuse from healthcare workers in the SMC and health-centres who have utilised their status as healthcare professionals to manipulate, intimidate, threaten and torture colleagues and patients alike: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GcYPO2whuA. An example being the recently arrested Ali Al-Ekri a Consultant at the SMC. He spearheaded both an intimidation campaign to any doctor who disagreed with his sectarian political stand point and unjustifiable sectarian political campaign against the government. He (and his arrested colleagues) has committed the following violations of not just a legal nature but of a humanitarian nature:
1. He turned SMC into a political platform to spread anti-government hate calling for the overthrow of the current regime (and the death of Al Khalifa: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4mqydOTpJc) which most of the Bahraini people DO NOT WANT. This has caused incredible chaos in the SMC the last 4-weeks thereby jeopardising patient’s lives and well being. Patients felt terrorised and were forced to seek treatment elsewhere since the SMC was considered a one sect hospital ONLY.
2. He turned the SMC into a political hub for bias international media like Press TV and Al Alam (both Iranian) but not for any other media. He has had direct links with Iran to overthrow the current Bahraini regime.
3. He has bullied and threatened anyone who would speak out against his malicious political agenda against Bahrain which is of purely sectarian nature. Doctors lived in fear and some either resigned or stopped going to work due to the continuous intimidation from the above mentioned senior colleagues.
4. He has called for racist genocide and ethic cleansing of naturalised Bahrainis of different decent like Syrians, Jordanians and Pakistanis – he has threatened anyone who treats these patients of being put on a ‘black-list’ and dealt with accordingly.
5. He has spent most of his time forming vigilante groups of consultant and nursing colleagues to spread his spiteful sectarian racist agenda.
6. He High jacked the Bahrain Medical Society with his senior colleagues and issued press releases condemning the government (since it is the official representative of the all doctors in Bahrain) although most of its members do NOT agree with him – recently over 500 doctors signed a petition in support of the government and condemned the sectarian agenda/position that the society took without the approval of its members or public.
All of the above facts are documented and proven and I would be more than happy to provide you with legal statements, videos and all evidence I have at hand.
Mohammed, if your allegations are true then you will not be averse to the international community establishing an enquiry into the protests and the aftermath. Clearly you are continuing the Bahrain gov line that the rest of the world (and its media) is wrong and the AlKhalifa propaganda is right. In these situations there will be wrongs by both sides, however are you going to allow the world to judge.. I don’t think so.
Mohammed, you are understandably afraid, which is evidence of the terror the Bahraini government is imposing. Amnesty International works for you and all of us to try to ensure that our human rights are respected.
Monica
They shouldn't . The protestors were peacful at the begining but they were treated with Brutality
They shouldn’t . The protestors were peacful at the begining but they were treated with Brutality
Unfair trial!!
Unfair trial!!