Beaten, tortured and detained in Bahrain

15 Apr 2011 02:29

Source: Content partner // Helen Victoria
Thompson//Women without Borders//SAVE

http://www.trust.org/trustlaw/news/beaten-tortured-and-detained-in-bahrain/

One woman has died and up to 30 are still detained in
undisclosed locations in Bahrain, during a violent
government crackdown on protesters.

Women are arrested and tortured by government forces in
order to deter their relatives from continuing to
protest, said Lebanese freelance journalist Zeinab
Al-Saffar in an interview with SAVE.

"The message the government forces are sending is: If
you don’t calm down, we will attack your women," said
Al-Saffar, who has close ties with citizens in Bahrain.
Bahiya Abd Rassoul AL-Aradi, a woman in her thirties
from Al-Manama, died on March 21 due to a bullet wound
to the neck. Three of the missing women are believed to
be pregnant, and many more are mothers. "We want these
children to have their mothers back," said Al-Saffar.

In total, over 600 people have disappeared since the
unrest began in February. The youngest is Ali Ahmad
Abass Yehia Thamer, who is under 12-years old. Several
have died during their imprisonment, including the
prominent businessman and member of opposition party
Wefaq, Kareem Fakhrawi. The authorities refuse to
release the bodies, blaming the deaths on chronic
diseases, such as diabetes or heart problems, according
to Al-Saffar. Police have also been entering the
Al-Salimiya Hospital to arrest wounded protesters and
hospital staff. Other women have been abducted at
check-points or at their homes late at night.

In many cases, whole families are held in captivity.
Zainab Alkhawaja, the daughter of prominent activist
Abdulhadi Alkhawaja, is on hunger strike to protest the
arrest of her father, husband, brother-in-law and
uncle. She announced her protest action through her
blog, addressing herself to US President Barack Obama,
as she said that her own government has "proven that
they do not care about our rights, or our lives."

Protests began on February 14, inspired by the
uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt. For a month,
demonstrators peacefully demanded reform, but did not
aim to oust the current regime. The protests, which
often centred on Pearl Square and its iconic
pearl-topped monument, escalated until Bahrain saw its
biggest demonstrations ever, with an estimated 200,000
people taking to the streets - about a fifth of the
national population.

On March 14, King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa declared a
3-month state of emergency and cracked down on the
protesters, choosing violence over dialogue. Aided by
neighbouring countries such as Saudi Arabia and the
United Arab Emirates, he invited foreign troops into
Bahrain in an attempt to quell opposition to his
regime. The government demolished the monument in Pearl
Square last month, as it has come to represent the
spirit of the protest movement.

The protesters have now changed their demands, aiming
to topple the regime and achieve wide-ranging
constitutional changes.

Despite the severity of the crisis in Bahrain, few
reports have surfaced in the international media. The
government in Bahrain is enforcing a media blackout,
and Bahrain is also a close ally of the United States,
hosting a large US naval base. US politicians such as
Hillary Clinton have expressed tempered criticism of
the government’s behaviour.

Women in Bahrain have been taking an active part in
anti-government demonstrations. The population of
Bahrain is only 800,000, and since 2002, various
reforms have introduced improved political and social
rights for women. They are economically active, and
Al-Saffar expects that in the event of a new regime,
women’s voices will be louder in the reform process
than they have been in countries like Egypt.

Amnesty International is organizing a petition calling
on King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa to conduct full
inquiries into the deaths of protesters, guarantee the
right to peaceful protest and freedom of association,
and release all opposition activists immediately.

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