Bahrain 3 years on

With the third anniversary of the Bahraini uprising today, Americans for Democracy and Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB) and Creative Peace Initiatives hosted a panel on human rights in Bahrain featuring Joshua Colangelo-Bryan (Senior Attorney, Dorsey & Whitney), Brian Dooley (Director, Human Defenders Program at Human Rights First), and Shadi Mokhtari (Professor, American University).  Jeff Bachman (professorial lecturer, American University) moderated.  The Bahraini government was not represented.

Photo credit: ADHRB

Joshua Colangelo-Bryan focused on what has happened since the spring of 2011, when massive pro-democracy demonstrations broke out. King Hamad then issued a royal decree establishing a “state of national safety” (i.e., a state of emergency). The decree established special military National Safety Courts to investigate a variety of crimes. These operated from April to October 2011 and were a vehicle for political prosecutions. The King eventually appointed a commission of international jurists (the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry) to examine events during the spring and summer of 2011. The Commission found that over 300 people were convicted of charges relating to their exercise of freedom of expression.

One of the cases in the military courts featured high-profile activists and leaders of the Coalition for a Bahraini Republic. The group, as its name suggests, advocates democracy and a republic in Bahrain. Military prosecutors described that advocacy as an attempted coup and charged members of the coalition for attempting to overthrow the government. Hasan Mushaima, an opposition leader, was charged for leading Bahraini youth in demonstrations and for giving interviews. He was given a life sentence for trying to overthrow the monarchy. Doctors and nurses from the Salmaniya clinic in Manama were accused of broadcasting false news of injured opposition members during the protests. Defendants in those cases argued they were exercising political free speech, but those claims were ignored. There were no public hearings and the accused were denied access to counsel. Allegations of torture were not investigated.

When the military courts were discontinued, civilian courts re-heard the same cases. Bahrainis hoped the administration of justice would improve. These courts declared that for an act to qualify as terrorism, force had to be used. But force does not have to entail the use of weapons. Force is any means of moral pressure on the government to change. This includes non-violent, peaceful demonstrations. All convictions on those terms were re-affirmed.

Accountability cases were also tried in the civilian courts. Security forces killed many people during protests, events related to protests, or custody. The charges brought against the security forces were minor, resulting in light sentences.

The facts are not the subject of legitimate dispute. Information about the cases cited was not provided by defendants, but by judges in Bahrain. All you need is a court verdict to see exactly what is happening in these cases. It tells you everything about the criminal justice system in Bahrain.

Brian Dooley cited Dostoevsky:  “The degree of civilization in a society can be judged by entering its prisons.” The cream of civil society is inside Bahraini prisons. Slowly but surely, there is growing international recognition of this. The struggle for human rights in Bahrain is becoming more prominent.  But there is no end in sight or sense of how the situation can improve.

In May 2011, President Obama told the government of Bahrain, “you cannot have a real dialogue when parts of the peaceful opposition are in jail.” It was true then and it is true now. The situation has not changed. No senior government official has been charged with any crime. Political opposition leaders are largely in prison. Repression is increasing – people have been stripped of their citizenship. Despite international pressure, political prisoners have not been released.  Protests have become more violent and the Bahraini economy looks increasingly susceptible to a drop in oil prices.

Unless there is a full political dialogue, next year we will be talking about a much more dire situation. The United States is not doing enough. The US government has not figured out how to use the presence of its Fifth Fleet to push for reform. Unless you have a security force that reflects the community it serves, there are always going to be grievances and reasons for unrest. The US could apply direct pressure using its military relationship. US officials should tell the Bahraini military that they will not receive support unless they change the unfair representation of Bahraini society.

Shadi Mokhtari said political prisoners are central figures in contemporary politics wherever we observe protests and uprisings in the Middle East. Their role has been as important behind bars as when they were free and engaged in activism. In a sense, political prisoners/prisoners of conscience play a role in perpetuating resistance, even if in more hidden forms. The presence of political prisoners, news of them, and activism around them galvanizes resistance.

Looking at Bahrain, the immediate future looks bleak, due to a combination of factors. The role of foreign powers has been very significant. The spotlight has been turning away from Bahrain. People lose interest when the trajectory of events darkens. There are segments of the international community that could be outspoken and choose not to be.

When King Hamad issued the decree for an independent international commission, he was trying to coopt human rights by creating his own human rights institution. After the report was released, the King vowed to create to implement the recommendations. He did so without making any significant changes.  The royal family succeeded in buying time and diffusing criticism that had peaked early on.

The long-term prognosis for Bahrain is positive. There has been a normative shift in the Middle East. Living under repression is no longer acceptable, particularly in a country like Bahrain where the population is well educated and politically sophisticated.  Resistance to the monarchy will persevere.