Slowly Dying In Bahraini Prisons: A Call for Urgent Action

By ECDHR

The European Center for Democracy and Human Rights [ECDHR] co-hosted a high-level virtual event titled ‘Slowly Dying in Bahraini prisons: a call for urgent action’ in solidarity with imprisoned opposition leader Hassan Mushaima and academic Dr. Abduljalil al-Singace, who suffer from multiple health problems, but are being denied proper health care.

To uncover the truth about the gross human rights violations currently happening in Bahrain and to emphasize the urgency of the situation, the event hosted three Bahraini political activists: Ali Mushaima, Yusuf Al Hoori, and Dr. Saeed al-Shehabi.

The speakers aimed to raise as much awareness as possible on the poor situation of Bahraini political prisoners and to highlight the cases of ill-treatment and willful medical negligence and all other human rights abuses perpetrated by the prison guards.

They also had an opportunity to address the international community, in particular, the European Union and the UK, urging them to raise issues of human rights violations in Bahrain, exercise unique political and international pressure on Bahraini authorities to take steps towards democratic reform, put an end to its repressive stance on human rights, and to immediately release all political prisoners, who are merely speaking their minds and demanding their rights.

During the panel discussion, questions from the audience were raised and focused on how best to address the human rights violations in Bahrain, and how to influence any potential change for the better.

In their closing remarks, the moderators called for urgent actions by the Parliaments, the European Parliament, and the Civil Society to put pressure on the Bahraini government and thanked the panelists for being a voice for those who may otherwise be silenced.