Pinter Prize to AlSingace, calls to stop execution of Saudis & Bahrainis
On Monday 10th October Dr Abduljalil Al-Singace was named PEN Pinter Prize International Writer of Courage 2022. The Writer of Courage is awarded to a writer who is active in defence of freedom of expression, often at great risk to their own safety and liberty. The winner of the PEN Pinter Prize 2022, Malorie Blackman, made the announcement in an address at the British Library whilst accepting her award. Dr Al-Singace was selected as co-winner by Blackman in collaboration with English PEN’s Writers at Risk Programme. PEN Pinter Prize 2022 winner, Malorie Blackman, said: ‘When I first heard of the plight of Dr Al-Singace – engineer, blogger and activist, I was immediately struck by his commitment regarding effecting change in his homeland, including by highlighting the methods used to supress freedom of expression. He has been incarcerated for over a decade and has been on hunger strike and without solid food for over 400 days, which shines a spotlight on an immensely brave man who defines the word courage.’
The khalifi dictators have stopped free transportation to university students at a time when native Bahraini families continue to suffer severe hardship due to spiralling prices. The students have reacted angrily to this decision, many of whom may be forced to withdraw from the university.
The predicaments of the political prisoners and their families has continued. The mother of two political prisoners, Muhsin and Abbas Ibrahim Al Majid is demanding to know their fate. She has not heard from them since the beginning of the month. Political prisoner, Mahmood Naji Ali has been suffering severe headaches and stomach pain without being referred to a specialist. He attended the prison clinic five times without tangible results. Ali Aqeel Al Aali has been suffering chronic diseases for more than one year. He has been trying to get a doctor appointment but his calls have not been heeded.
Juvenile political prisoners at the Dry Dock prison have started hunger strike after their appeals for retrials were rebuffed. Fifteen of them had been sentenced to jail terms ranging from 7 to 21 years while under 18 years of age. They have been asking to be retried by the juvenile court which may protect them against abuse. Their calls have fallen on deaf ears.
On Monday 10th October rights groups appealed to Bahrain’s ruler Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa to commute death sentences of 26 men and take steps to end capital punishment in the Gulf nation. Human Rights Watch and the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy said the men, who include those convicted on “terrorism” charges as well as for drugs, can be executed as soon as the dictator ratifies their sentences. “King Hamad should commute all outstanding death sentences, starting with defendants convicted on the basis of false confessions and those who have been sentenced to death for other than the most serious crimes,” a joint report read. Bahrain should also “take steps to formally end the application of the death penalty in all circumstances”, it added.
On 10th October, The US government was asked to restrict arms sales and security cooperation with Bahrain amid charges of serious human rights abuses against the Gulf state’s police and judiciary. A 61-page report said: “The court is satisfied with the admission: death sentences in Bahrain follow torture, sham trials”. Human Rights Watch (HRW) and the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (BIRD) point to serious and persistent human rights violations in Bahrain’s justice system. They allege that courts in Bahrain have dismissed credible allegations of torture and ill-treatment of suspects and have routinely violated a suspect’s right to a fair trial, including the right to legal counsel and the right to question prosecution witnesses. “In case after case, courts convicted defendants of the crime of manslaughter and sentenced them to death solely or principally on the basis of admissions that the defendants (or co-defendants) were allegedly coerced through torture and ill-treatment,” the report said. The European Saudi Organisation for Human Rights has also appealed to the Saudi authorities to stop executions. It documented 37 cases of people facing death including 8 under-aged youths. At least 3 young men are at imminent risk of execution for “crimes” that occurred when they were under the age of 18. On World Day Against the Death Penalty, calls were made end death penalty!
The Specialized Criminal Court (SCC) in Saudi Arabia has sentenced 10 detained Egyptian Nubians to prison sentences between 10 and 18 years for organizing an event that recognized the participation of Egyptian Nubian soldiers in the October 1973 War. A former member of the local council of Ranieh Governorate, Sheikh Al Hamidi Alfrana has been arrested. He was banned as an imam of prayers and orator of sermons.
In an interview with Arabi 21 media outlet, Raed Jarrar, director of Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN), slammed the administration of US President Joe Biden for adopting a “very weak” position on Khashoggi’s murder, despite promises of making the Saudis “pay the price, and make them in fact the pariah that they are,” adding: “We regret the weakness of President Biden’s position, which was reflected in the US relationship with most of the authoritarian regimes in the Arab world, especially at the level of relations with Israel, the Egyptian regime or the Saudi regime. These relationships have become cheap and disappointing,”
Bahrain Freedom Movement
12 October 2022