Arbitrary arrest and detention of Mrs. Ebtisam Al-Saegh

TheObservatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a partnership of FIDHand the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), requests your urgentintervention in the following situation in Bahrain.

Descriptionof the situation:

The Observatory hasbeen informed by reliable sources about the arbitrary arrest and detention ofMrs. Ebtisam Al-Saegh, Monitoringand Documentation Officer at the NGO Salam for Democracy and Human Rights.

According to theinformation received, on July 4, 2017, at approximatively 12:45am, armed,masked and plain clothed officers from the Bahrain security forces raided Mrs.Ebtisam Al-Saegh’s home and arrested her without any warrant. It is feared thatthe security forces officers might belong to the National Security Agency(NSA).

Following her arrest,Mrs. Ebtisam Al-Saegh was briefly seen by detainees in the morning of July 4,2017, at the Isa Town women’s prison visibly in poor physical conditions beforebeing taken away to an undisclosed location. Detainees who could see Mrs.Ebtisam Al-Saegh reported that she may have been beaten.

Although herwhereabouts were not immediately disclosed to her family, on July 4, 2017, ataround 9pm, Mrs. Ebtisam Al-Saegh called her family from Isa Town women’sprison, where she is being detained in solitary confinement outside ofinterrogation hours. She reported being interrogated for long hours under thoughcircumstances and being forced to sign on false confessions. She also reportedbeing sent to the Ministry of Interior’s clinic in Al Qaalaa, were she wasdiagnosed with low blood pressure.

As of publication ofthis Urgent Appeal, Mrs. Ebtisam Al-Saegh had no access to her family or alawyer. Moreover, no information could be obtained as per potential chargesagainst her.

The Observatory recallsthat in May 2017, Mrs. Ebtisam Al-Saegh was previously held, tortured andsexually assaulted by the NSA at Muharraq police station, where she was beingdetained in connection with her human rights activities[1].

Mrs. Ebtisam Al-Saegh,who together with 22 other human rights defenders in April 2017, was subjectedto a travel ban and falsely accused of participating in “illegal gatherings” inthe city of Duraz[2], is alsothe target of a defamation campaign conducted by the pro-government newspaper Al-Ayam, which accused her offabricating reports on human rights violations in Bahrain. On May 15, 2017,Mrs. Al-Saegh’s car was burnt.

TheObservatory expresses its outmost concerns over the arbitrary detention insolitary confinement of Mrs. Ebtisam Al-Saegh and fears that she might be atrisk of torture while in detention. The Observatory urges Bahraini authoritiesto guarantee her physical and psychological integrity, to allow her to accessher family and lawyer and to immediately and unconditionally release her.

Actionsrequested:

Pleasewrite to the authorities in Bahrain, urging them to:

i. Guarantee, in allcircumstances, the physical and psychological integrity of Mrs. EbtisamAl-Saegh, as well as of all human rights defenders inBahrain;

ii. Immediately andunconditionally release Mrs. Ebtisam Al-Saegh, as well as all detainedhuman rights defenders in Bahrain as their detention is arbitrary since it only aims at punishing themfor their legitimate human rights activities;

iii. Immediatelyallow Mrs. Ebtisam Al-Saegh to access her family and lawyers andguarantee her right to due process and a fair trial;

iv. Order an immediate, thorough,transparent, effective andimpartial investigation into theabove-mentioned allegations of torture, ill-treatment, and physical andpsychological pressure of Mrs. Ebtisam Al-Saegh bysecurity agents during her interrogation in May 2017 in order to identify all thoseresponsible, bring them before an independent tribunal, and apply the sanctionsprovided by the law to them;

v. Put an end toall forms of harassment, including at the judicial level, against Mrs. EbtisamAl-Saegh and all human rights defenders in Bahrain, so that theyare able to carry out their legitimate activities withouthindrance and fear of reprisals;

vi. Comply with all the provisions ofthe United Nations Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, in particular withits Articles 1, 5(b), and 12.2;

vii.Ensure in all circumstances respectfor human rights and fundamental freedoms in accordance with internationalhuman rights standards and international instruments ratified by Bahrain.

Addresses:

• Cheikh Hamad bin Issa AL KHALIFA, King ofBahrain, Fax: +973 176 64 587
• Cheikh Khaled Bin Ahmad AL KHALIFA, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Fax: 0097317 21 05 75; ofd@mofa.gov.bh

• Cheikh Khalid bin Ali AL KHALIFA, Minister ofJustice and Islamic Affairs, Fax: +973 175 31 284

• Lt. Gen. Cheikh Rashed bin Abdulla AL KHALIFA,Minister of Interior, Email: info@interior.gov.bh
• H.E. Mr. Yusuf Abdulkarim Bucheeri, Permanent Mission of Bahrain to theUnited Nations in Geneva, Switzerland. Fax: + 41 22 758 96 50. Email:info@bahrain-mission.ch
• H.E. Ahmed Mohammed Yousif Aldoseri, Embassy of the Kingdom of Bahrain to theKingdom of Belgium, Fax: 0032 (0) 26472274; E-mail:Brussels.mission@mofa.gov.bh

Please alsowrite to the diplomatic mission or embassy of Bahrain in your respectivecountry.

***

Paris-Geneva,July 5, 2017

Kindlyinform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in yourreply.

The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders (theObservatory) was created in 1997 by FIDH and OMCT. The objective of thisprogramme is to intervene to prevent or remedy situations of repression againsthuman rights defenders. FIDH and OMCT are both members of ProtectDefenders.eu,the European Union Human Rights Defenders Mechanism implemented byinternational civil society.

To contactthe Observatory, call the emergency line:

· E-mail: Appeals@fidh-omct.org

· Teland fax FIDH + 33 (0) 1 43 55 25 18 / +33 1 43 55 18 80

· Teland fax OMCT + 41 (0) 22 809 49 39 / + 41 22 809 49 29

[1] SeeObservatory Urgent Appeal BHR 002 / 0617 / OBS 063, published on June 13, 2017.

[2] SeeObservatory Urgent Appeal BHR 001 /0417 / OBS 047, published on April 28, 2017. ​