Arbitrary detention and judicial harassment of Nabeel Rajab

Bahrain

July 26, 2012

URGENT APPEAL - THE OBSERVATORY

The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint programme of theInternational Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the World Organisation AgainstTorture (OMCT), has received new information and requests your urgent intervention in thefollowing situation in Bahrain.

New information:

The Observatory has been informed by reliable sources about the ongoing judicialharassment of Mr. Nabeel Rajab, President of the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights(BCHR), Director of the Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR) and FIDH Deputy SecretaryGeneral1.

According to the information received, on August 5, 2012 the Higher Appeal Court isscheduled to consider an appeal filed by Mr. Rajab's lawyers' in relation to a 3-monthdetention sentence issued against him on July 9, 2012 by the 5th Lower Criminal Court, foralleged libel through a tweet posted on his twitter account on June 2 (see backgroundinformation). Following the July 9 sentencing, Mr. Rajab's lawyers immediately filed twoappeals: the first to request that the three months imprisonment sentence be commuted intocommunity work (in accordance with Article 371 of the Bahraini Criminal Code) - which wasquashed by the court - and the second to request the suspension of the sentence.

Regarding the second appeal, a hearing took place on July 18, 2012, and Mr. Nabeel Rajabwas brought to the court handcuffed and reportedly placed inside a glass cell. The judgedecided to postpone the hearing to July 24, 2012, in order to examine the case file, andrefused to release Mr. Rajab on bail. On July 24, he again refused to release Mr. Rajab onbail, and announced that a final decision regarding the request to suspend the sentencewould be issued at the next hearing scheduled for August 5, 2012.

On July 16, 2012, another hearing took place in relation to another case in which Mr. NabeelRajab is accused of “involvement in illegal practices and inciting to gatherings and calling forunauthorised marches through social networking sites” (see background information). Mr.Rajab's lawyers requested that this case be merged with another similar case where NabeelRajab is accused of “participation in illegal gathering and calling for a march without priornotification”, in the capital, Manama. The court agreed to merge these two cases, and thenext hearing for both cases will take place on September 26, 2012.

Mr. Rajab remains arbitrarily detained in Jaw Central Prison since July 9, 2012, in a buildingthat is not regularly used for prisoners. He is being held with two other cell mates, and he isnot allowed to see other prisoners. He reportedly suffers from a skin allergy caused by theprison cloth, and has been denied the right to see the prison doctor. He has not beenallowed to receive clothes from his family either. His family was able to visit him for the firsttime on July 19, 2012, and reported that he was brought to the visits centre handcuffed, andthat he was not allowed to talk to other prisoners.

1

The Observatory denounces the ongoing arbitrary detention and judicial harassment of Mr.Nabeel Rajab, which seems to merely aim at hindering his human rights activities and atstifling his attempts to fight corruption in Bahrain. The Observatory also recalls that normally,courts issue fines for libel cases, and not imprisonment sentences.

The Observatory calls for the immediate and unconditional release of Mr. Rajab, and isextremely concerned about the fact that four cases have been filed against him since May2012, and that three of them are still pending.

More generally, the Observatory urges the Bahraini authorities to put an end to all acts ofharassment – including at the judicial level – against Mr. Rajab, and to comply with therelevant international norms and standards, in particular the United Nations (UN) Declarationon Human Rights Defenders, adopted by the UN General Assembly on December 9, 1998,and international human rights standards and international instruments ratified by Bahrain.

Background information:

On July 9, 2012, Mr. Rajab was arrested by masked police officers at his house2 after hehad tweeted the following on June 2: "Khalifa, leave the residents of Al Muharraq, its Sheikhsand its elderly. Everyone knows that you are not popular here, and if it wasn't for thesubsidies, they wouldn't have gone out to welcome you. When will you step down?".

In addition, three other cases were brought against Mr. Rajab over the past months:

- The first of them on charges of “insulting the statutory bodies”, pursuant to Article 216 ofthe Penal Code, for which the court issued its final verdict on June 27, 2012 and sentencedhim to pay a fine of 300 Bahraini dinars. Mr. Rajab was released on the same day and thetravel ban against him was lifted. Such charges had been pressed against him in relation totweets he posted to denounce the lack of investigation, by the Ministry of Interior, into thekillings of civilians.

- The second on charges of “participating in an illegal assembly” and “calling others to join”,in relation to a protest organised on March 31, 2012 in Manama to denounce the detention ofthe founder of GCHR, former President of the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights (BCHR),and former MENA Director at Front Line, Mr. Abdulhadi Al Khawaja.

- The third on charges of “involvement in illegal practices and incitement to gatherings andcalling for unauthorised marches through social networking sites” (see above).

Actions requested:
The Observatory urges the authorities of Bahrain to:

2

i.ii.

iii.iv.v.

Guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of Mr. Nabeel Rajab and allhuman rights defenders in Bahrain;

Release Mr. Nabeel Rajab immediately and unconditionally as his detention seemsto merely sanction his human rights activities and is contrary to national andinternational law;

Provide Mr. Nabeel Rajab with appropriate medical treatment in appropriate medicalfacilities;
Put an end to any act of harassment, including at the judicial level, against Mr.

Nabeel Rajab and against all human rights defenders in Bahrain;
Conform in any circumstances with the provisions of the Declaration on HumanRights Defenders, adopted on December 9, 1998 by the United Nations General

Assembly, in particular:

- its Article 1, which states that “everyone has the right, individually or in association withothers, to promote the protection and realization of human rights and fundamentalfreedoms at the national and international levels” ;

• - its Article 6 (c) which states that “everyone has the right, individually and inassociation with others to study, discuss, form and hold opinions on the observance,both in law and in practice, of all human rights and fundamental freedoms and,through these and other appropriate means, to draw public attention to thosematters” ;

• - and its Article 12.2 which states that “the State shall take all necessary measures toensure the protection by the competent authorities of everyone, individually and inassociation with others, against any violence, threats, retaliation, de facto or de jureadverse discrimination, pressure or any other arbitrary action as a consequence ofhis or her legitimate exercise of the rights referred to in the present Declaration”.

  vi. Ensure in all circumstances respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms inaccordance with international human rights standards and international instruments ratifiedby Bahrain.

  Addresses:

• · Cheikh Hamad bin Issa AL KHALIFA, King of Bahrain, Fax: +973 176 64 587

• · Cheikh Khaled Bin Ahmad AL KHALIFA, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Tel: +973 172 27

  555; Fax : +973 172 12 6032

• · Cheikh Khalid bin Ali AL KHALIFA, Minister of Justice and Islamic Affairs, Tel: +973

  175 31 333; Fax: +973 175 31 284

• · Lt. Gen. Cheikh Rashed bin Abdulla AL KHALIFA, Minister of Interior, Tel: +973

  17572222 and +973 17390000. Email: info@interior.gov.bh

• · Permanent Mission of Bahrain to the United Nations in Geneva, 1 chemin Jacques-

  Attenville, 1218 Grand-Saconnex, CP 39, 1292 Chambésy, Switzerland. Fax: + 41 22758 96 50. Email: info@bahrain-mission.ch

  Please also write to diplomatic representations of Bahrain in your respective countries.

  ***

  Paris-Geneva, July 26, 2012

  Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.

  The Observatory, a FIDH and OMCT venture, is dedicated to the protection of Human RightsDefenders and aims to offer them concrete support in their time of need.
  

1 Mr. Rajab is also a member of the Advisory Committee of Human Rights Watch's MiddleEast Division and Chair of CARAM Asia.
2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nENlacyy3Sw&feature=youtu.be

3