FIDH welcomes the decision of the Lower Criminal Court of Manama to release Nabeel Rajab, President of the Bahrain Center of Human Rights (BCHR) and Deputy Secretary General of FIDH on 27 June 2012, after 14 days of detention. However, FIDH remains concerned about the ongoing judicial harassment against Nabeel Rajab as four legal cases have been opened against him (a final verdict was reached in one of the cases on 28 June 2012 [1]) since May 2012 [2].
FIDH has repeatedly called on Bahraini authorities to drop all charges against Mr. Rajab as it considers that these proceedings are merely aimed at curtailing his freedom of expression and human rights activities. The Bahraini government has intensified its control over the population’s freedom of expression, and has continued its practice of arbitrary imprisonment of Bahraini human rights defenders.
On 28 June 2012, for the first time since the beginning of the uprising, NGOs’ concerns over the continued repression in Bahrain have been relayed by States at the international level. Twenty-eight governments joined together to deliver a declaration to the UN Human Rights Council that calls on Bahrain to cease the grave human rights violations being carried out against pro-democracy activists, and to end the use of excessive force against protesters in the country.
“This mobilisation is a first step that has to be commended; an end to the silence surrounding the situation of Bahrain for more than a year by the Council. FIDH calls on the Council to build on this positive step and take action by adopting a resolution condemning the continuing violations, by calling for the immediate implementation of the recommendations made by the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry, and by establishing a monitoring mechanism over it,” says Souhayr Belhassen, FIDH President.