Judicial harassment and travel ban against 22 human rights activists ahead of Bahrain's UPR

The Observatory for the Protection of Human RightsDefenders, a partnership of FIDH and the World Organisation Against Torture(OMCT), requests your urgent intervention in the following situation in Bahrain.

Description of the situation:

The Observatory has been informed by reliable sources about a wave ofsummons and travel bans targeting at least 18 human rights defenders, includingmembers of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR), the Bahrain Human RightsObservatory (BHRO), the Bahrain Human Rights Society (BHRS), theEuropean-Bahraini Organisation for Human Rights (EBOHR) and Salam for Democracyand Human Rights (Salam), as well as four political activists.

According tothe information received, between April 20, 2017 and April 26, 2017, 22 humanrights activists, including four BCHR members, Mr. Enas Oun, Mr. Ahmed AlSaffar, Mr. Hussain Radhi andMs. Nedal Al Salman, as well as BHROmember Ms. Jalila Al Salman, alongwith BHRS member Ms. Zainab Al Khamees,EBOHR member Ms. Fatima Al Halwachi, Salam member Ms. Ebtisam Al Sayegh, human rights lawyer Mr. Mohamed Al Tajer, journalists Ms. Faisal Hayat and Mr. Ahmed Radhi, Ms. Zainad Mohamed, Ms. RiyhannaMosawi, Mr. Talal Salawi, Mr. Monther Al Khoor, Mr. Sayed Hadi Al Moosawi, doctors Mr. Taha Al Derazi and Ms. Rulla Al Saffar[1]and four members of the political society Waad, were all summoned to appearbefore the Public Prosecutor for interrogation.

The 22individuals are all accused of supposedly participating in “illegal gatherings”in the city of Deraz[2]on January 6 and 14, 2017. Yet none of the 22 ever participated in such allegedgatherings. Travel bans have been issued against the 22 individuals.

The Observatoryfears that the travel bans were preventively issued against the 22 individuals toprevent them from attending Bahrain’s Universal Periodic Review to be held inGeneva from May 1 to May 5, 2017 before the United Nations Human Rights Council.

The Observatoryexpresses its outmost concerns over these new acts of harassment against humanrights defenders in Bahrain, which only aim at sanctioning their legitimatehuman rights activities.

The Observatory urges the authorities toimmediately and unconditionally lift the travel bans against the aforementionedindividuals and to put an end to all acts of harassment, including at thejudicial level, against them and all human rights defenders in the country.

Actions requested:

Please write to the authorities in Bahrain, urgingthem to:

i. Guarantee in all circumstances the freedom ofmovement of human rights defenders, by immediately and unconditionally liftingthe travel ban imposed against the above-mentioned individuals, as it aims onlyat sanctioning their legitimate human rights activities;

ii. Put an end to all forms of harassment againstall human rights organisations and defenders in Bahrain, in particular the aforementionedindividuals, so that they are able tocarry out their work without hindrance;

iii. Comply with all the provisions of the UnitedNations Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, in particular with its Articles1, 5(b), and 12.2;

iv. Ensure in all circumstances respect for humanrights and fundamental freedoms in accordance with international human rightsstandards and international instruments ratified by Bahrain.

Addresses:

• Cheikh Hamad bin Issa ALKHALIFA, King of Bahrain, 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 ALKHALIFA, Minister of Justice and Islamic Affairs, Fax: +973 175 31 284

• Lt. Gen. Cheikh Rashed binAbdulla 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 also write to the diplomatic mission orembassy of Bahrain in your respective country.

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Paris-Geneva, April 28, 2017

Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quotingthe code of this appeal in your reply.

The Observatory for theProtection of Human Rights Defenders (the Observatory) was created in 1997 byFIDH and OMCT. The objective of this programme is to intervene to prevent orremedy situations of repression against human rights defenders. FIDH and OMCTare both members of ProtectDefenders.eu, the European Union Human RightsDefenders Mechanism implemented by international civil society.

To contact the Observatory, call the emergencyline:

· E-mail: Appeals@fidh-omct.org

· Tel and fax FIDH + 33 (0) 1 43 55 25 18 / +331 43 55 18 80

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

[1] Ms. Rulla AlSaffar is the formerPresident of the Bahrain Nurses Society.

[2] Access to the city of Deraz isrestricted and security checkpoint are located at the entrance. Any person whowishes to enter the city must provide an ID and proof of residence in the city.