ZAINAB AL-KHAWAJA court sessions postponed: AMNESTY JAPAN

Update info:: 12 Sep 2014 (Suspended)
Latest info:: 6 Apr 2014 (Updated); 7 Aug 2012

Country:: KINGDOM OF BAHRAIN
Subject:: Zainab Al-Khawaja
Gender m/f: f
Period:: 12 Oct 2014

Distribution date:: 7 Aug 2012
UA No:: 232/2012

Bahraini activist Zainab Al-Khawaja was arrested on 2 August 2012 and has been charged for allegedly tearing up a picture of Bahrain’s King. Her detention was extended on 4 August to seven more days pending investigation.

Zainab Al-Khawaja was arrested in the evening of 2 August 2012 when she was protesting alone outside the capital, Manama, at al-Qadam roundabout in Budaya road, Two days later her detention was extended for a further seven days and she was charged with "destroying government property", as she had allegedly torn up a picture of Bahrain’s King while detained in May.

In the past nine months Zainab Al-Khawaja has been arrested and released several times. She has been put on trial several times for "illegal gathering" and "insulting officials" . She is still facing three more trials. The first is an appeal hearing on a charge of "insulting an officer" in a military hospital. She had been acquitted of this charge on 2 May but the prosecution appealed and the appeal hearing is now under way; the next session will be on 16 October. She faces two further trials: the first trial together with Ma'suma Sayyid Sharaf, for "illegal gathering" and "inciting hatred against the regime" has been postponed until 5 September. The second, for obstructing the traffic during a protest has been postponed until 1 November.

Zainab al-Khawaja was reportedly injured in the leg when she was hit by a teargas canister fired by riot police breaking up a protest she was monitoring a few weeks ago. It is not clear whether she has been given any medical treatment in detention. Amnesty International considers Zainab Al-Khawaja to be a prisoner of conscience held solely for peacefully exercising her rights to freedom of expression, assembly and association.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Zainab Al-Khawaja is a Bahraini activist: her father, Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja, is one of 13 prominent opposition activists sentenced by a military court to harsh prison terms in June 2011.

Zainab Al-Khawaja was first arrested in December 2011 and released a few days later. She was charged with "illegal gathering" and "inciting hatred against the regime" and her trial is ongoing. On 21 April 2012 she was arrested again, after sitting down on a highway close to the Financial Harbour in protest at her father’s detention and the general poor human rights situation in Bahrain. She was released on 29 May after paying a fine of 200 Bahrain Dinar (around US $530) for insulting a police officer, but she still faces an appeal hearing for "insulting an officer" in a military hospital.and another trial , for obstructing the traffic during a protest has been postponed until 1 November.

The human rights crisis in Bahrain is ongoing. Despite the authorities’ claims to the contrary, state violence against those who oppose the Al Khalifa family rule is continuing, and in practice, not much has changed in the country since the brutal crackdown on anti-government protesters in February and March 2011.

The Bahraini authorities have been vociferous about their intention to introduce reforms and learn lessons from events in February and March 2011. In November 2011, the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI) set up by King Hamad bin ‘Issa Al Khalifa, submitted a report of its investigation into human rights violations committed in connection with the anti-government protests. The report concluded that the authorities had committed gross human rights violations with impunity, including excessive use of force against protesters, widespread torture and other ill-treatment of protesters, unfair trials and unlawful killings. The report also urged the government to establish immediately an independent body made up of representatives of civil society, the opposition and the government; to oversee the implementation of the BICI’s recommendations; to usher in legislative reforms to ensure laws are in line with international human rights standards; and to bring to justice those responsible for abuses.

So far, however, the government’s response has only scratched the surface of these issues. Reforms have been piecemeal, perhaps aiming to appease Bahrain’s international partners, and have failed to provide real accountability and justice for the victims. Human rights violations are continuing unabated. The government is refusing to release scores of prisoners who are incarcerated because they called for meaningful political reforms, and is failing to address the Shi’a majority’s deep-seated sense of discrimination and political marginalization, which has exacerbated sectarian divides in the country.

Zainab Al-Khawaja was previously the subject of UA 117/12 (MDE 11/026/2012) and updates.

Update info:: 12 Sep 2014 (Suspended)
Latest info:: 6 Apr 2014 (Updated); 7 Aug 2012

Country:: KINGDOM OF BAHRAIN
Subject:: Nafeesa al-‘Asfoor, Rayhana al-Mousawi
Gender: f
Period:: 12 Oct 2014

Distribution date:: 6 Apr 2014
UA No:: 232/2012

The trial of two women protesters for attempting to enter the Formula 1 circuit during a protest at the Bahrain Grand Prix last year resumed on 25 March. They told the court they had been tortured. One of them has already been sentenced to five years in prison in a separate case.

The trial of Nafeesa al-‘Asfoor and Rayhana al-Mousawi, which started on 12 December 2013, resumed on 25 March before the High Criminal Court in Bahrain. Both women are being tried on charges of “possession of explosives” and “planning to commit terrorist acts” under the anti-terrorism law, after they attempted to enter the Formula 1 circuit during a protest at the Bahrain Grand Prix last year. Both of them deny the charges. During a hearing on 12 January Rayhana al-Mousawi told the court that she had been tortured and forced to sign a “confession” during her interrogation. She also reportedly told the court that when she complained about her treatment before the Public Prosecution, a member of the prosecution office threatened that she would be sent back for more interrogation, unless she signed the incriminatory “confessions”. The judge apparently asked her to leave the courtroom rather than order an investigation into her torture allegations.

During their hearing on 25 March the defence witnesses provided their testimonies and the trial has been postponed until 16 April.

Both women have submitted formal complaints to the Special Investigations Unit (SIU) and the Ombudsman for the Ministry of Interior, to have their allegations of torture and other ill-treatment investigated. The SIU is said to have conducted an initial interview of both of them as victims of torture but no results have been made public yet and no one is known to have been brought to justice in connection with their torture allegations.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

In the run up to the April 2013 Formula 1 Grand Prix in Bahrain, clashes between protesters and the security forces increased and continued during the event, resulting in dozens of arrests. Afterwards, on 24 April, the Bahraini government cancelled a planned visit by the UN Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment, Juan Mendez, for the second time in two years.

Rayhana al-Mousawi and 49 men were convicted on 30 September 2013 for their involvement in the “14 February Coalition” and received sentences of up to 15 years in prison. Rayhana al-Mousawi was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment ‘‘for belonging to and sharing activities with a terrorist organization [the 14 February Coalition]”. Amnesty International raised concerns about the unfairness of the trial.

Their trial fell far short of international standards for fair trial. Many in the group alleged they were tortured, sometimes with electric shocks, to force them to “confess”. The court relied on their “confession” instead of ordering an investigation into their torture allegations. Defendants were also arrested without warrants. Some were violently taken from their homes, apparently after the security forces smashed down their front doors. Lawyers complained to the court that they had not been allowed to visit their clients. The court refused to allow defence lawyers to call witnesses, and some prosecution witnesses were apparently not heard, depriving the defence of the right to cross examine witnesses. Some defendants, who were already serving prison sentences or were being held pending investigation in other cases, were brought before the court unaware that they faced new charges. They did not have the assistance of lawyers at this trial.

One of the defendants, ‘Abd ‘Ali Khair, was apparently sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment just for forwarding an email containing a statement by the “14 February Coalition”

In March 2014 the Bahraini government listed the “14 February Coalition”, together with two other groups, as a terrorist organization after a bomb blast killed three policemen.

The “14 February Coalition” is a movement of several Bahraini youth groups, named after the date when Bahrain's uprising began in 2011, and is led by anonymous people who organise protests mainly via social media websites.

More than three years since the uprising in Bahrain and the subsequent fanfare of reform, prisoners of conscience (including many arrested during the protests) remain behind bars and the rights to freedom of expression, association and assembly are still being suppressed. In recent months more people have been jailed simply for daring to express their views, whether via Twitter or during peaceful marches. Bahraini courts have appeared more concerned with toeing the government’s line than offering effective remedy to Bahrainis and upholding the rule of law.

Names: Nafeesa al-‘Asfoor, Rayhana al-Mousawi

Gender m/f: f

UA: 75/14 Index: MDE 11/012/2014 Issue Date: 28 March 2014

Update info:: 12 Sep 2014 (Suspended)
Latest info:: 6 Apr 2014 (Updated); 7 Aug 2012

Country:: KINGDOM OF BAHRAIN
Subject:: Zainab al-Khawaja
Gender: f
Period:: 12 Oct 2014

Distribution date:: 12 Sep 2014
UA No:: 232/2012

Bahraini activist Zainab Al-Khawaja was released on bail on 16 February and has had her trial postponed several times since. She is now due in court on 14 October on two separate charges: “destroying government property” and “insulting a police officer”.

Zainab Al-Khawaja was released on bail on 16 February after nearly a year in prison serving a series of short sentences for an array of charges. They included “destroying government property”, “insulting a police officer”, “illegal gathering”, “rioting” and “inciting hatred against the regime”.

She was due to appear in court in two separate cases, but her court sessions have been repeatedly postponed since her release. She is due to appear in court on 14 October. In the first case, Zainab Al-Khawaja is accused of “insulting a police officer” after she defended a prisoner who was humiliated by a prison guard at a women’s detention centre south of the capital, Manama, in June 2013. In the second, she is accused of “destroying government property” after she ripped up pictures of the King while detained at a police station in ‘Issa Town on both 4 and 6 May 2012. Should Zainab Al-Khawaja be detained again solely for peacefully exercising her rights to freedom of expression, association and assembly Amnesty International would consider her to be a prisoner of conscience.

The day after being released, Zainab Al-Khawaja told Amnesty International that she would like to thank the organization and its members for all the support they had given her, and said she was honoured by what they had done for her.

No further action is requested by the UA network as the next trial session may well be postponed yet again. Many thanks to all who sent appeals. Amnesty International will continue to monitor Zainab Al-Khawaja’s case and take further action as necessary.

Name: Zainab al-Khawaja

Gender m/f: f

Further information on UA: 232/12 Index: MDE 11/022/2014 Issue Date: 22 August 2014