188 violations and Shutting down “Al-Wasat” restores the public space of the press to the year 1999
Bahrain Press Association: Press Freedom Status in Bahrain in 2017:
188 violations and Shutting down “Al-Wasat” restores the public space of the press to the year 1999
- The shutting down of “Al-Wasat” newspaper and the arbitrary dismissal of its staff brings the country back to the atmosphere that preceded the reform project.
- Documenting 22 final judgments by Bahraini courts against journalists, photographers and Internet activists.
- At least 11 people were arrested, 88 investigation cases and 25 cases of targeting Internet users, most of which are directed to Twitter users.
- The expulsion of citizen Ibrahim Karimi to Iraq, as one of the most severe penalties against freedom of expression.
- Observing of two cases of torture, death threats and sexual abuse of lawyer Ibrahim Sarhan and Internet activist Yousef Al-Jamri.
- Withdrawing the licenses of foreign correspondents, arresting them and imposing fines on them for “working without a license” and targeting the German News Agency (DPA) photographer Mazen Mehdi, and hitting him in the back.
- The Gulf crisis with Qatar was reflected negatively as the authorities imposed further restrictions, and two arrests have been already taken place; the arrest of the prominent lawyer, Issa Faraj, and captain Hamood Sultan.
London – 31 December 2017 – Bahrain Press Association: The year 2017 marked total crackdown on press and media freedom in Bahrain. The closure of Al-Wasat newspaper, the only independent newspaper in the country, and the arbitrary dismissal of 150 of its employees and workers bring the country back to the atmosphere that preceded the advent of the reform project. The time when newspapers and government media outlets present only the official discourse of the state, which is politically oriented and far from the reality the political crisis in the country.
With regard to the systematic targeting of media freedoms and freedom of expression, the Bahrain Press Association has documented 22 judgments issued by Bahraini courts this year against journalists, photographers and Internet activists who have been convicted in explicit cases of opinion and expression. The most prominent charges this year included blasphemy and insulting a religious symbol, insulting the Council of Representatives, insulting the king, insulting the judiciary, assaulting a member Parliament, inciting hatred against the regime, organizing unauthorized rallies, circulating false statements, and disseminating and circulating fake news and hoaxes in wartime.
The Association also recorded the arrest of at least 11 persons and 88 cases of investigation and interrogation under the same charges as well as 4 cases of obstruction of work, there was two cases of citizenship stripping. Among these, there are at least 25 targeted Internet users, most of which are Twitter users, as Twitter has become a platform for the security apparatus to hunt down independent and opposition figures. The expulsion of the Bahraini citizen, Ibrahim Karimi, to Iraq this year upon convictions of managing “Freej Karimi’s” Twitter account is one of the most severe penalties on opinion and expression.
This year, the security complex of Muharraq, a branch of the National Security Agency, emerged as a place for interrogating and threatening activists and journalists as well as torturing them. The Bahraini Press Association observed 2 cases of torture, death threats and sexual assault on the lawyer Ibrahim Sarhan after he gave a statement to Al-Mayadeen TV channel following a sit-in dispersal. The other case was the activist Yusuf Al-Jamri, who emerged in recent years by covering the social and political events via his Twitter account.
In addition to the withdrawal of foreign correspondents’ licenses, they were arrested and fined on charges of “working without a license.” Instances include journalist Nazeeha Saeed, a correspondent for Monte Carlo International Radio and France 24, and the arrest of the AFP photographer Mohammad Al-Sheikh for one day. This year, the security forces shot tear gas canisters at the German News Agency (DPA) photographer Mazen Mehdi on two different occasions while covering the protests, hitting him in the back once.
The Gulf crisis with Qatar represented one of the milestones that had a negative impact on the freedom of the press in Bahrain as the authorities imposed further restrictions on the press and media outlets this year. In official statements, the authorities banned citizens and the media from expressing any public views that are contrary to the official orientation, including “sympathy with Qatar.” In this context, two cases of arrests and interrogations of citizens were documented in the context of video footages of them that went viral on social media in which they expressed independent positions towards the Qatari crisis. The first is the lawyer Issa Faraj Arehma al-Burashid and the second is captain Hamood Sultan the former goalkeeper of the Bahraini national football team and a football pundit for the Qatari Al Kass Sports Channels.
Courts and Judiciary
The Court of Appeal (4 January 2017) upheld the imprisonment of sports journalist Faisal Hayat for 3 months for “insulting a religious symbol” in a Tweet that was deemed offensive to Yazid ibn Mu‘awiya, the Umayyad ruler who reigned 14 centuries ago. The Court of Appeal (5 January 2017) commuted the sentence of photographer Hossam Soror from 15 years to 5 years on charges of “participating in an unauthorized gathering.” A Bahraini court (7 February 2017) fined the Shiite cleric Sheikh Bashar al-‘Ali 50 dinars for “insulting the Council of Representatives.” The Grand Criminal Court (9 February 2017) sentenced the Twitter activist Younis Mohammed Jumaa Shakhouri (36 years) to one year in prison for “insulting the king”, “inciting hatred against the regime” and “violating the law by advocating for unauthorized demonstrations” via social media.
On April 1st, 2017, the Supreme Court of Appeal amended the sentence against Hussain Khamis, who ran a Twitter account called “Bo Khamis,” from 5 to 2 years for “disseminating false statements during wartime” and “insulting the nation’s martyrs on social media.” The second minor criminal court (4 April 2017) sentenced the satirical comic Mansour “Sanqima” to imprisonment for two and a half years with a fine of 50 dinars for charges of libel and slander of former MP Mohammed Khaled on social media; Facebook and Ingram. He was later freed on bail of one thousand Dinars.
The Criminal Court (25 May 2017) fined Nazeeha Saeed, a correspondent for Monte Carlo International Radio and France 24, one thousand dinars over charges of “working without a license as a correspondent for foreign radio despite the expiration of its license.” The Court of Appeal (1 June 2017) upheld the sentence of the former Secretary-General of the Al-Wahdawi political society, Fadhil Abbas, for 3 years for “disseminating false news and rumors during wartime” and “publishing a statement to the media, alluding to military procedures Bahrain is taking with a number of sister countries to restore legitimacy and stability in Yemen. Such statements would question the integrity and legitimacy of the kingdom’s political and military position.”
A Bahraini court (10 July) sentenced Nabeel Rajab, political activist and head of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR), to two years in prison for “committing the crime of broadcasting false and malicious news, statements and rumors about the internal situation of the Kingdom that would undermine its status and prestige.” The Court of Appeal (18 July 2017) upheld the fine of journalist Nazeeha Saeed, a correspondent for Monte Carlo and France 24, for working without a license as a correspondent for foreign radio. The Supreme Criminal Court of Appeal (9 October 2017) upheld the sentence of a fifty-year-old Bahraini to three years in prison for “insulting the judiciary by publishing audio clips on social media in which he insulted a judge, the Supreme Council of the Judiciary and its committee and authorities.
The Court of Appeal (October 26, 2017) supported the dissolution and termination of the National Democratic Action Society (WAAD), the most prominent secular opposition group over charges of “venerating individual sentenced for terrorist glorifying them sentenced over terrorism charges” and “supporting organizations convicted of inciting and practicing violence,” and propagating the forceful removal of the political regime.” The Supreme Criminal Court (30 October 2017) sentenced the online activist Ali al-Miraj to life imprisonment and revoked his citizenship. In what became to be known as “al-Busta” WhatsApp group, the court also sentenced the Al-Wasat journalist, Mahmoud Al-Jaziri, to 15 years in prison over charges of “collaboration with a foreign country and a terrorist organization affiliated with it,” “receiving funds from this country to carry out hostilities and to harm the national interests of Bahrain” and “violating the law by forming, joining and funding a terrorist group.”
The Court of Appeal (30 October 2017) upheld the imprisonment of Hassan Gharib, a photographer, for 5 years for “violating a police security point.” On November 22nd, 2017, the Court of Appeal upheld the sentence of human rights activist Nabeel Rajab, head of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights, for two years for “broadcasting false news” during television interviews with foreign media.
Arrest and Detention Profile
On April 2nd, 2017, security forces arrested the 41-year-old online activist Mahmoud Abdel-Hamid. They raided his house in the village of Bani Jamra at dawn as he “called for a march in Riffa against the new traffic law.” The security authorities also arrested a photographer of the Western Riffa Sports Club Hassan Gharib while covering a match at al-Ahli club southern the capital Manama on May 7th. Moreover, they arrested the online activist Yasser al-Mawali after raiding his house in Muharraq on May 30th, 2017. On June 13th, 2017, the security authorities arrested lawyer Issa al-Faraj Arehma al-Burashid after a Tweet that rejected the boycott of Qatar.
On August 16th, 2017, the security authorities arrested Shiite cleric Mohieldin Al-Mashaal while returning from Kuwait and was charged with “inciting hatred against the regime and insulting a religious sect.” Blogger Rawan Sanqour was arrested from her office (September 18th, 2017) after launching an appeal calling on the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to help ensure the treatment of her brother, detainee Ali Sanqour, who suffers pelvic and leg fractures.
The security authorities (October 22, 2017) detained The football pundit for the Qatari Al Kass Sports Channels and former goalkeeper of the Bahraini national football team, captain Hamood Sultan, after video of him praising the Qatari people was broadcasted. On November 14, 2017, Twitter activist Abdullah Al Hammadi was arrested after publishing on social media news about imposing fees by the General Directorate of Traffic. The security authorities also arrested (November 14th, 2017) Mohammed Qambar, a singer in a club at Amwaj resort over charges of “harming social peace” by referring to the honor of Bahraini women in one of his songs.
Investigation and interrogation
The Cybercrime Unit (20 February 2017) summoned businessman Mohammed Hassan al-Aradi to interrogate him about a complaint filed by the Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry regarding a Tweet in which he criticized the Chamber for its performance.
The former secretary-general of WAAD and the current member of its central committee, Ibrahim Sharif (March 20th, 2017), appeared before the Prosecution of Terrorist Crimes on charges of “inciting hatred against the regime via Twitter.” On April 19th, 2017, the Public Prosecution summoned the Internet activist Saleh al-Khanna on charges of “assaulting MP Hamad al-Dossary.” On April 23rd,2017, the Public Prosecutor’s Office summoned Jafar al-Jamri, a journalist in Al-Wasat newspaper, where he was interrogated about his Tweets, and issued a travel ban on him.
On April 25th, 2017, the Public Prosecution summoned the sports journalist Faisal Hayyat under allegations of “participating in an unauthorized march in al-Daraz”. On April 26th, 2017, Ahmad Radhi, a journalist, was also summoned for “protesting in al-Daraz area” and “participating in an unauthorized march.” On May 24th, 2017, the National Security Agency summoned lawyer Ibrahim Sarhan, the former legal adviser of the Al-Wefaq Society, where he was interrogated about a statement he made to Al-Mayadeen. He was also tortured and threatened with rape, forced sitting on a glass bottle and kicking his genitalia.
The Bahraini Public Prosecutor summoned human rights activist Nabeel Rajab, head of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR) on September 12th, 2017 from his prison for additional charges over online posts on his personal accounts on Twitter and Instagram. Journalist Ahmad Radhi was also interrogated (September 13th, 2017) on charges of “protesting and participating in an unauthorized march and shouting hostile slogans in Bilad al-Qadeem,” a suburb of Manama. On August 1st and 2nd, 2017, the Bahraini National Security Service summoned the Internet activist Yousef al-Jamri for interrogation about his cyber activities as he covers social and political events in social media. Under interrogation, he was threatened with death and sexual assault, and was also forced in insult his deceased father. On October 23rd, 2017, the WAAD’s opposition leader, Ibrahim Sharif, was charged with “insulting the Ministry of Information” on social media. The Northern Governorate Prosecution (October 25th, 2017) interrogated journalist Mohammed Al-Aali of the GDN newspaper and former journalist Zeinab Al-Tajer following the publication of news concerning their coverage of the Northern City Council in 2016.
Impeding the Press Work
The Ministry of Information Affairs (January 16th, 2017) issued a decision to ban Al-Wasat newspaper from using electronic media and to stop the circulation of its electronic version immediately and until further notice. The decision was made upon allegations of “the newspaper’s repeated publication of content that creates division among the community.” The security authorities suspended photographer Mazen Mehdi briefly on January 18th, 2017 during his coverage of the protests following the execution of three Bahraini activists accused of killing an Emirati policeman. Mehdi was later (February 14, 2017) hit by a tear gas canister fired directly at him by the police as he was covering the annual protests in Sitra district, southern Manama, on the sixth anniversary of the 14 of February uprisings.
The authorities at Bahrain Airport (March 22nd, 2017) detained the photographer of the AFP news agency, Mohammed Sheikh, for a day upon his return from a holiday in India. Journalist Mazen Mehdi, a photographer for the German news agency (March 25th, 2017), was shot by a tear gas canister directly to his head while covering the funeral of Mustafa Hamdan, who died two months after being shot in the back by masked gunmen.
The Ministry of Information Affairs (June 7th, 2017) decided to suspend the publication and circulation of Al-Wasat newspaper until further notice over allegations of “violating the law and the repeated publication and broadcast of what divides the society and affects the relations of the Kingdom of Bahrain with other countries, as the newspaper published an article that is offensive to an Arab country.” On June 8th, 2017, the Ministry of Information issued a warning to all media outlets not to “publish or circulate any objection to the decisions of the Kingdom or its allied countries with regard to the crisis with Qatar.” It also threatened legal actions to be taken against any agency that violates the decision. In turn, the Interior Ministry warned (June 8th, 2017) that “sympathy or bias towards the government of the State of Qatar or opposition to the actions of the Kingdom of Bahrain is a punishable crime.”
The Bahraini Ministry of Interior banned (October 18th, 2017) the opposition National Democratic Action Association (WAAD) from organizing a symposium at its headquarters under the title “Balfour Declaration and the strategy of the Zionist enemy in the region.” The security authorities (October 31st, 2017) deported cyber activist Ibrahim Karimi to Iraq after serving a two-year prison sentence and stripped him of citizenship on charges of “insulting the king” via managing a Twitter account called ” Freej Karimi.” The Supreme Military Court (November 2nd, 2017) issued a decree banning all print, video, audio or electronic media from publishing any content regarding a cell accused by the authorities of “an attempt to assassinate the Field Marshal Khalifa bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, Commander-in-Chief of the Bahrain Defense Force.”
On December 8th, 2017, security authorities denied the entry of Greg Carrollton, an American journalist for the Economist and Al Jazeera, to cover the Regional Security Summit “Manama Dialogue.” On December 14th, 2017, sports commentator for Al Kass Sports Channels and former goalkeeper of the Bahraini national football team, captain Hamood Sultan was banned from traveling for the second time through Bahrain International Airport to attend the 23rd Arabian Gulf Cup in Kuwait. However, he was granted travel permission two days later.
The Bahrain Press Association condemns the targeting of journalists, bloggers, and photographers, which it believes has become a systematic and common-practiced behavior. It is also one of the main reasons that led to the decline of Bahrain’s reputation at the international level in terms of freedom of the press. The Association calls on the United States, the United Kingdom, the United Nations and all international organizations and bodies concerned with the defense of freedom of opinion and expression, press and media freedom to exert urgent pressure on the Bahraini government to:
Immediately and unconditionally release all photographers, media professionals, and activists detained for practicing their work in covering protests or exercising their right to freedom of opinion and expression.
Stop arbitrary prosecutions and arrests and judicial trials on charges of “insulting the king,” “spreading false statements” made against Internet activists and media professionals. Charges such as “protesting” for photographers, “inciting hatred of the regime” for politicians, and all charges pertaining to freedom of expression must be revoked.
Securing freedoms of media and the Press, and shutting down the Office of Internet Surveillance in the Ministry of Transportation and Telecommunication, and the abolition of Law No. (47) that regulates the press, publishing, and printing in the country.
Ending the authority’s monopoly of the television, radio and print media and enabling the voice of opposition in the media, including reauthorizing the publication of Al-Wasat.
Call on the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Promotion and Protection of the Right to Freedom of Opinion and Expression to schedule an urgent visit to Bahrain.