BAHRAIN MEDIA ROUNDUP

21st October 2014

Bahrain rattled by UK
court's opening of
door to investigation
of torture allegations
A failed effort by a public
relations company
representing Bahrain and a
UK law rm acting on behalf
of Prince Nasser bin
Hamad al-Khalifa, the
commander of Bahrain's
Royal Guard and head of its
National Olympic
Committee, to
micromanage media
coverage of this month's
lifting of the prince's
immunity by a British court
reects mounting unease in
the island state and
international sporting
associations. The court
decision opens the door to
a British police investigation
into whether or not Prince
Nasser was involved in the
torture of political detainees
that could include three
former players for the
Bahraini national soccer
team.
The ve-day long effort by
UK-based Bell-Yard
Communications Ltd and
London law rm Schillings
was aimed at forcing this
writer as well as The
Hufngton Post to adopt
Bahrain's narrow and partial
interpretation of the court
decision.
Read More
Bahraini activists
remain in prison
despite UN calls for
'dialogue'
Zainab al-Khawaja, one of
Bahrains leading human
rights defenders, spent her
31st birthday in a Bahraini
prison on Tuesday, after a
judge adjourned her case.
Khawaja is eight months
pregnant and could give
birth at any time,
according to the Gulf
Centre for Human Rights.
She was arrested while
appearing in a Bahraini
courtroom on 14 October
she had been standing trial
over allegations that she
ripped up a photograph of
Bahrains King Hamad Al
Khalifa in 2012.
During court proceedings
held last Tuesday over the
allegations, she reportedly
tore up a second picture of
the King in front of the court
and placed it in front of the
judge she was promptly
arrested after the courtroom
was cleared.
Read More
Bahrain's Human
Rights Activist Faces
Jail Time for a
Tweet
Nabeel Rajab is a human
rights activist and
opposition leader in
Bahrain, the tiny gulf state
nestled on the eastern
coast of Saudi Arabia.
When the Arab Spring
sprung in 2011, Rajab,
along with thousands of
other protestors, took to the
streets, calling peacefully
for modest reforms. These
included the release of
prisoners, an end to the
alleged persecution of
Bahrain's majority Shia
population, and meaningful
democracy.
Unfortunately for them, and
for Rajab, Bahrain is one of
the West's favorite
dictatorships. Unlike the
unrest in Egypt and across
the Arab world, the Bahraini
uprising was met with
indifference. While French
and British ghter jets
roared over Libya in support
of the opposition movement
there, and governments
from London to Washington
urged Egyptian President
Hosni Mubarak to step
down, the West continued
to support the regime in
Manama, Bahrain's capital.
Read More
GV Face: In
Conversation with
the Activist Bahrain
Doesn't Want Us
Talking To
The Al Khawaja family has
found itself at the forefront
of protests in Bahrain, ever
since the so-called Arab
Spring made its way to the
tiny island- kingdom on
February 14, 2011.
Prominent human rights
activist Abdul Hadi Al
Khawaja is currently in
prison, serving a life
sentence for his role in the
protests.
Turning to social media, his
daughters Maryam, aged
27, and Zainab Al Khawaja,
aged 31, became vocal on
Twitter, sharing their story
and what was happening in
their country to thousands
of followers across the
world. With 102K and 48.8K
followers on Twitter
respectively, Maryam and
Zainab have been
constantly badgered by the
authorities for speaking up.
Read More