10 Jul 17 | Bahrain, Bahrain Statements, Campaigns, Campaigns -- Featured, Statements
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The sentencing of Nabeel Rajab, an Index Freedom of Expression Award winner for his work defending human rights in Bahrain, underscores the decline of freedom of expression in the Gulf country.
Rajab was sentenced on Monday 10 July to two years in prison for speaking to journalists.
“The decision to sentence Nabeel to two years in prison reiterates the draconian approach Bahrain’s government takes toward non-violent dissent. This is a true miscarriage of justice that strips bare even the veneer of legality that Bahraini authorities like to show the rest of the world. Nabeel expressed opinions about the state of his own country and should not be penalised for free speech,” Melody Patry, head of advocacy at Index on Censorship, said.
Rajab, who is president of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights, was sentenced in absentia. He has been hospitalised since April.
Arrested on 13 June 2016, Rajab has spent the last year in pre-trial detention, largely in solitary confinement and deplorable conditions.
Rajab also faces trial on 7 August in a separate case related to his tweeting against the Saudi coalition’s war in Yemen, which Bahrain is part of, as well as speaking out against torture in Bahraini prisons. He faces up to 15 years in prison on other charges, according to the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”94125″ img_size=”full”][vc_basic_grid post_type=”post” max_items=”12″ style=”load-more” items_per_page=”4″ element_width=”6″ grid_id=”vc_gid:1499705443530-4f8668e7-7a47-7″ taxonomies=”3368, 716″][/vc_column][/vc_row]
10 Jul 17 | Index in the Press
Human rights defender Nabeel Rajab has been sentenced to two years in prison in Bahrain for “broadcasting fake news”. A court ruled that he had undermined the “prestige” of the kingdom, the state news agency reports. Read the full article
06 Jul 17 | Bahrain, Bahrain News, Middle East and North Africa, News and features
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The trial of Bahraini human rights activist Nabeel Rajab has been delayed yet again. He was due to stand trial on Sunday 2 July, but this was postponed until 3 July and again until 10 July.
Rajab, president of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights and Index award winner, was arrested on 13 June 2016 and remains in prison despite a court order to release him on 28 December 2016. He faces four separate legal cases, the trials for two of which have been postponed over 20 times.
“We are particularly concerned about Rajab’s health, which continues to deteriorate due to the poor conditions and mistreatment he receives in prison,” said Melody Patry, head of advocacy at Index on Censorship. On 5 April 2017, Rajab underwent major surgery at a military hospital to remove ulcerated tissue from his lower back. He was returned to his cell at East Riffa Police Station two days later against medical recommendations.
“My father’s fate is unknown. He might end up in a prison cell for the next 18 years, so it’s difficult and tiring for him and for our family,” Rajab’s son Adam Rajab told Index today. “However, that does not mean he will ever stop his struggle for rights and freedom.”
“We all know that my father will be released if he guarantees them that he will be silent, but he will not,” Adam added. “He will always be a voice for the victims of human rights abuses and he will always stand against oppressors and dictators. As he always says ‘I am willing to pay the price for freedom and democracy.'”
Index continues to express concern over the treatment of many human rights defenders in Bahrain including women’s rights activist Ebtisam Al-Sayegh, who this week was arrested following a raid on her home and now risks being tortured. [/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]
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09 Jun 17 | Bahrain, Bahrain News, Middle East and North Africa, News and features
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Next week the Bahraini human rights activist and Index on Censorship award winner Nabeel Rajab will have spent one year in prison on charges for which he has yet to be sentenced. Almost six months of his imprisonment, which began on 13 June 2016, has been spent in solitary confinement.
Rajab faces four separate legal charges, the trials for two of which – related to tweets criticising the war in Yemen and torture in Jau Prison, and “spreading false information and malicious rumours” over television interviews he gave in 2015 – have been postponed collectively over 20 times.
“We are particularly concerned about Rajab’s health, which continues to deteriorate due to the poor conditions and mistreatment he receives in prison,” said Melody Patry, head of advocacy at Index on Censorship. On 5 April 2017, Rajab underwent major surgery at a military hospital to remove ulcerated tissue from his lower back. He was returned to his cell at East Riffa Police Station two days later against medical recommendations.
“Rajab’s multiple hospitalisations are also preventing him from attending his court hearings and the judge has persistently refused all requests submitted by his lawyers to release him on bail, despite the length of his detention period in solitary confinement and despite the clear evidence about his fast deteriorating health,” Patry added.
Rajab faces two separate trials next week.
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