Authorities suspend permits of two foreign correspondents

25 February 2010
Alert
Authorities suspend permits of two foreign correspondents
(BCHR/IFEX) - The Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR) expresses its great concern regarding the persistance of the authorities in their campaign to restrict journalists and correspondents of the foreign press and international news agencies. The Bahraini authorities recently suspended the activity of correspondents from certain French and German news agencies.
A news piece published by one of the daily newspapers stated that officials from the Department of Foreign Media at the Bahraini Ministry of Culture and Information held individual meetings on 29 January 2010 with a correspondent of the French news agency, Mr. Mohammed Fadhel, and a correspondent of the German news agency, Mr. Mazin Mahdi, to verbally notify them of the decision to suspend their engagement in the activities represented in providing the abovementioned news agencies with local news related to the Kingdom of Bahrain. The correspondents were not given a formal letter regarding this decision or the reasons behind it.
Government sources that refused to be named informed the BCHR that the reason behind the ban is that both journalists cited a news piece that Bahraini citizens were sentenced to five years in prison on the charge of weapon possession, joining Al-Qaeda and plotting to attack the U.S base in Bahrain.
The Department of Foreign Media of the Ministry of Culture and Information had earlier issued strict verbal instructions for all the correspondents of the foreign press and news agencies to not address any news related to Al-Qaeda or any groups allied with them in Bahrain, but it seems that those instructions did not reach these journalists. The BCHR learned later that the journalists were permitted to engage in their work after publishing the news of their suspension in one of the local newspapers.
The Department of Foreign Media follows the Ministry of Culture and Information administratively, however it overlaps and is linked with the National Security Apparatus (Intelligence) in terms of functions entrusted to it, and it is the organization that issues approvals to the correspondents of foreign press and news agencies. It is currently headed by Sheikh Abdullah bin Ahmed Al-Khalifa, the former vice-president of the National Security Apparatus, and it was previously headed by the current president of the same Apparatus, Sheikh Khalifa Abdullah Al-Khalifa, and they are both members of the ruling family.
This department exercised a lot of pressure in the last few years on correspondents of the foreign press and news agencies. They refrained from issuing permits to some of them, and attempted to impose correspondents, who are closely associated with the authorities on some foreign channels and international news agencies. It has become rather difficult for any reporter to keep his or her job without having the satisfaction of the authorities.
These restrictive approaches of the government of Bahrain contradict its position as a member in the Human Rights Council and as party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and Article 19 of the UDHR, which states, "Everyone shall have the right to freedom of expression; this right shall include freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing or in print, in the form of art, or through any other media of his choice."
Based on the above, the BCHR demands that the Bahraini authorities do the following:
- Allow journalists, correspondents and reporters to engage in their activities freely without, obstructions or restrictions;
- Separate the Ministry of Information from the security apparatuses and allow the foreign press and news agencies to choose their correspondents freely without imposing anyone on them;
- Stop using permits as a way to make journalists and correspondents adjust or submit to pressure.

Increasing Alleges of Torture against the Detainees on Criminal Charges

February 2010
The Bahrain Center for Human Rights is following up with great concern the continuing systematic torture crimes targeted the detainees and those arrested for criminal charges or those detained for the constant protests against the deteriorating political and economic status. While the Human Rights Watch was releasing its report on the return of torture in Bahrain, the officers and officials in the Criminal Investigations Department were subjecting more victims to systematic torture.
The citizen (A.H.) filed a complaint to the BCHR, alleging that he was subjected to severe torture by the officers at the Criminal Investigations Department at Adlyia. Mr. (A.H.) spoke to the BCHR, and after four days of releasing the Human Rights Watch report, about his suffering which lasted for almost four days, where he was arrested while heading back to his residence, and as soon as he descended from his vehicle he was taken aback by several people surrounding him to arrest him for criminal charges.



Torture Scars on the Victim's Feet Due Tying his Feet
He was taken to the Criminal Investigations Bureau, and which is the place he claimed to be tortured and severely beaten in. On the next day of being arrested, he was held in custody for long hours, then he was returned to the office where his feet and hands were tied together in a sitting position, then a rod was inserted between them and then he was hung up in the "Falqa" way, and which is one of the infamous ways of torture of the security apparatuses in Bahrain, and then they beat him with a plastic hose on the sole of his feet until his feet blackened and got swollen. They then brought an arm length black device with two prominent indicators in the front, which was used to stun the victim with electricity several times, until he fell to the floor from exhaustion, however his torturers continued to beat and kick him and stun him in all parts of his body to force him to stand up again. There were clear and visible marks and bruises of torture on different parts of his body backed up with three medical reports from various sources which he had carried with him to prove the wounds and bruises he suffered from in different parts of his body[ ]. The victim claims that the torture he was subjected to was under the direct supervision of two people and they are Lieutenant Ali and Lieutenant Fahad Al-Fadhala[ ].


Copy of the Medical Report from the Police Station Clarifying the Effects of Bruising and Wounds in Different Parts of his Body
The prisoners and detainees on criminal charges are usually met with torture whose severity exceeds the magnitude of torture subjected by the regular detainees, their torturers are even creative in hurting them because of their confidence in that the members of society and civil society institutions do not usually sympathize with detainees pending on criminal cases, and also because those victims or the members of their families are usually reluctant in filing complaints against the torturers to the human rights institutions so as not to embarrass themselves due to the charges against them. In mysterious circumstances, several detainees on criminal and other charges have died in the Bahraini investigation cells in the last months and years[ ]. Each case of death had an explanation by the security authorities; however the BCHR believes hat some of those victims died as a result of severe torture or ill-treatment that was practiced against them while they were held in custody.
The BCHR fears that the systematic torture has become a reality that many detainees on criminal charges are suffering from, and the most recent of them is what was indicated recently by the Bahrain Youth Society for Human Rights about one of the Saudi citizens being subjected to torture in Bahrain[ ].
Nabeel Rajab, President of the BCHR, stated, "The prisoners and detainees on criminal charges or the convicted ones are human beings just like us, they are entitled to their full Human rights like other human beings, and they must be treated on this bases, and their humanity must be respected, abusing or torturing them is a crime against humanity punished by law, the perpetrators of those crimes must be pursued and presented to justice", adding, "If the human rights institutions had not addressed those victims in the previous era due to the abovementioned reasons, this situation should not last long, and the BCHR will soon instigate a monitoring process of what the criminal detainees are subjected to, and it will work on pursuing and exposing the perpetrators of torture against them and will present them to justice.
Bahrain is a State Party to three treaties that prohibit torture and cruel treatment, and they are: The Convention against Torture, The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and The Arab Charter of Human Rights. Torture is also banned by the Bahraini Constitution and the Penal Code and the Code of Criminal Procedure which altogether prohibit the use of torture or any other act that violates human dignity, however all these charters, and covenants, constitutional and legal articles were not a deterrent for the criminals of torture as they remained a dead letter far from being applied.
The BCHR demands the government of Bahrain to:
Stop the systematic torture against all prisoners immediately.
Arrest and trial the ones responsible, and pursue the ones involved in torture crimes, on top of them those whose names were mentioned in the Human Rights Watch Report, and the rest of the reports issued by the Bahrain Center for Human Rights.
The government of Bahrain to adhere to the international commitments, treaties and recommendations which it signed, and among them the recommendations issued by the Committee against Torture of the UN.
_____________________________________________________
[ ] Attached: The medical report of the police hospital as well as one of the public health centers, and Salmanyia Medical Hospital.
[ ] Fahad Al-Fadhala is considered one of the known members in the security apparatuses and who was indicated in the report "Torture Resurrected" by the Human Rights Watch.
[ ] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JeFTWVY0p3U
Al-Waqt Newspaper http://www.alwaqt.com/art.php?aid=17734
Al-Waqt Newspaper http://www.alwaqt.com/art.php?aid=181511
Al-Wasat Newspaper http://www.alwasatnews.com/2534/news/read/227845/1.html

The suffering of migrant workers must be addressed before they reach the point of suicide

The shocking cases of suicides committed by migrant workers in Bahrain reported since the beginning of 2010 are the continuation of a trend that should have been addressed years ago. The BCHR and CARAM[1] Asia condemns the failure of authorities and Bahraini civil society to improve the working and living conditions of migrant workers, which in previous cases has been shown to lead to acts of desperation such as suicide.
"The Universal Declaration of Human Rights starts by stating that all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights," BCHR and CARAM ASIA Chairperson Nabeel Rajab said “Article 3 states that everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person. If Bahrain is really serious about its commitment to Human Rights, and would like to maintain its position as a progressive model for neighboring nations, it must start to honour these very fundamental human rights.
"We have been talking about the shocking rates of suicide for too long already, it is time to take some sincere steps to understand the causes, and to make attempts to affect change."
In January 2010 alone, Bahrain has witnessed two cases of suicide and two cases of attempted suicide by migrant workers. According to the Gulf Daily News[2], 36 out of 131 cases of deaths by suicide in Bahrain in 2008 were Bahraini. The majority of suicides are said to have been committed by poor migrant workers. It was also reported that more than 30% of cases of suicide attempts handled by the government's psychiatric hospitals in 2008 were foreign domestic workers which believed to be mostly Asian. In 2007, out of 120 cases of death by suicide, 27 were Bahrainis. The BCHR previously reported that between January and April 2007 alone five migrant workers in Bahrain committed suicide.
"We should not really be shocked any more by these incidents since we have been seeing them occur for years now, without any attempt to improve the conditions that lead these workers to try and end their lives," Mr Rajab added. "What would drive a 22-year man to try and end his life?”We also know now, thanks to reports by rights groups, activists, social workers and the media, about the conditions in which migrant workers live in Bahrain. Without freedom of movement, in terrible working conditions, in inhumane living conditions. Violations include passports being withheld, salaries not being paid, abuse from employers, little support from the Bahraini government and the sending countries.
"We have been seeing the suicide attempts for years now, and we know well the degrading situation migrant workers are living in. Instead of being shocked we should be taking action to change this situation."
The BCHR and CARAM Asia calls on the Bahraini government to honour its commitment to human rights and the protection of foreign workers in its country. The authorities must use the legal means at their disposal to enforce better standards of work conditions, living conditions and treatment of workers.
The BCHR and CARAM Asia calls on sending countries to stop prioritizing remittances over the health, happiness, rights and safety of their nationals. The BCHR and CARAM Asia recognize that embassies and local representatives of sending countries have taken steps to improve their services to low-wage earning nationals in the last few years. We encourage this practice, but insist that sending countries and their representative’s embassies must take a greater role in being a source of support and information to their citizens working abroad.
The BCHR and CARAM Asia calls on social workers, activists, business people and Bahraini society to work together to create better standards of living and treatment of migrant workers in Bahrain.
"This calls for a change in mentality and practice," said Mr Rajab. "If we are serious about protecting the right to a life of dignity and security then we must work to provide a person in a desperate situation with a better option than ending their life."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[1] CARAM Asia is a Malaysian based regional NGO in Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations. It is an open network of NGOs and CBOs. The CARAM Asia network is involved in action research, advocacy, coalition building and capacity building with the aim of creating an enabling environment to empower migrants and their communities to reduce all vulnerabilities including HIV and enhance their health rights globally.
[2] http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/NewsDetails.aspx?storyid=26

“COMELEC’s misplaced confidence on the smooth implementation of the Automated Election System or AES in Hong Kong and Singapore is far from reassuring

This was declared today by Cynthia Abdon-Tellez, chairperson of Gabriela Women’s Party – HK as the COMELEC unveiled its plans for the AES in the two countries a few weeks ahead of its commencement on April 10.
“Glitches have been found in the test run on the AES done in Manila already. Compounded by the fact that no similar testing has been done overseas, COMELEC’s overconfidence may, in the end, result to derailing the democratic right to vote of the more than 130,000 voters in Hong Kong and Singapore,” she added.
Tellez said that it will be unfair for OFWs in Hong Kong and Singapore to become “lab rats for the AES” as the OAV will be conducted a month ahead of the national polls. She remarked that with hitches still unresolved, there is a big chance that the AES will not only slow down the election process, but worse, cause its failure in the said countries.
“You don’t play with our inalienable right to vote. If the AES is not working as it is foreseen to be, then the COMELEC must immediately do something about it instead of giving false reassurances of its success," she chided.
The group expressed that their worries on the AES is compounded by the lack of any backup plans if in case the AES breaks down during the election and counting period.
“As they said, HK and Singapore’s combined voters is 21% of the total registered OFW voters. If worse comes to worst, then 21% of the OAV voters will not be able to participate in the electoral process,” Tellez expressed.
Additionally, Tellez hit the COMELEC for waiting up to the last stretch before starting the preparations for the AES abroad. Yesterday, the commission announced the holding of trainings of deputized DFA personnel on the AES only this coming March in Hong Kong.
“As usual, the COMELEC is cutting it close. While trained election officers are necessary, how about information and education among voters? Last Sunday in our rounds among OFWs, it became evident that many OFWs are still unaware of the AES, what the process of voting is and how to make sure that their votes can be counted as valid,” she relayed.
Tellez said that these shortcomings may yet again result to disenfranchisement of OFWs like what happened during the registration period wherein the lack of massive information dissemination campaign has resulted to dismal turnout. Only the intervention of many OFW organizations in Hong Kong upped the rate on the last few weeks of the registration period.
“Promises are cheap. The COMELEC should just do its job swiftly and properly,” she concluded.#

Israel NGO Encourages Employers to Force their Non-Jewish Workers to Sign Loyalty Pledges to the Jewish People

Recently an Israeli NGO distributed leaflets in at least two cities calling on Israelis to force their non-Jewish workers to sign documents that pledge loyalty to the Jewish people.
Over the last month the Lobby for Jewish Values, an anti-gentile NGO, distributed leaflets in Safad and Ashdod calling for employers to force their non-Jewish workers to sign a “loyalty pledge” to the Jewish people. The leaflets urged Israelis to make sure that their non-Jewish workers are not idol worshipers and abide by the Seven Laws of Noah: prohibitions of idolatry, murder, theft, sexual promiscuity, blasphemy, eating flesh taken from an animal while still alive, as well as the requirement to have just laws.
The leaflets call on Israelis to force their workers to sign a legal document, which states that if they are caught violating the Seven Laws, their employer has the right to fire them without any warning and without paying compensations.
Rabbi Asher Idan who is behind the distribution of the leaflets in Ashdod claimed that the prohibitions are “only” designed to prevent idol worshiping, but an official in the Lobby for Jewish Values admitted that “the emphasis is on prohibiting hiring Arabs, especially the foreign ones [Palestinians], Chinese and Darfurians”.
Below is the translation of the agreement employers are encouraged to force workers to sign.
I am, the below signed, Mr. ___
Hereby confirm that I promise to uphold the Seven Laws of Noah, as they will be explained to me verbally, and that they are a pledge of loyalty on my behalf to the Jewish people and Jewish values,
and I acknowledge that if I am caught violation any one of them [of the Laws], my employer is entitled to fire me without a warning, and without compensation, without preventing any of the sides from suing,
and I acknowledge that this signature is a legal signature for any purpose,
and I acknowledge that this signature does not mean that I am allowed by the halacha [Jewish religious law] to live in this city, or in any other part of the Land of Israel, and I am here only for “purposes of work and employment”,
and I acknowledge that when it comes to living or requesting to live here in this city or in any other part of the Land of Israel, even temporary dwelling, I am obligated to move away [once the employment is completed] and report to my employer and receive his permission,
and any untruthful or forged signature here is a felony.
This type of religious intolerance seems to be a trademark in coverage of countries like Saudi Arabia, as this kind of blatant racism is ignored by the mainstream media when it comes to Israel.

The plight of Bangladeshi migrant workers in the Gulf

This post was contributed by Kashfia Rahman, a Bangladeshi activist:
Saudi Arabia and other parts of the world have neglected and mistreated migrant workers without being given the basic human rights.
Around 90,000 Bangladeshi migrant workers live and work in Bahrain, 10 per cent of the total population of that country. In the year 2006-07, these migrants sent $80 million in remittances home. But the recent murder of a Bahraini man by a Bangladeshi worker has sparked angry reactions from government officials and politicians. The Bahrain government has put a ban on recruitment of any further ‘untrained’ workers from Bangladesh. Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Malaysia had already put restrictions on Bangladeshi laborers, sparked by earlier incidents. As often highlighted at seminars, foreign remittance is the second highest foreign currency earner for Bangladesh. But indifference from our embassies, corrupt middlemen, flawed immigration policies, lack of a strong government response and disparities in labor laws have placed hard-working men and women in international news headlines for the wrong reasons.

Lebanese rally to close ‘disgraceful’ retention center

Lebanon must immediately close a “disgraceful” retention center where refugees and migrants are held arbitrarily in appalling conditions, activists demanded Sunday.
Braving heavy rain, around 60 people demonstrated outside the General Security Retention Center, an underground facility under Beirut’s Adlieh Bridge. Protestors flanked by almost as many security officials held placards reading: “The Lebanese Guantanamo,” “Asylum is a right, NOT a crime,” and “General Security VS human security.”
Not considered an official prison, the facility, opened in 1996, has no hot water, natural light or fresh air, and in contravention to Lebanese law, male guards are tasked with supervising female detainees. Many of those who have been detained complain of physical violence from guards, poor nutrition and filthy living conditions.
Nadim Houry (video below), from Human Rights Watch, condemns the ongoing detention by the Lebanese General Security of three Iraqi refugees who were ordered to be set free by Lebanese courts.

iLoubnan.info video interview with Marie Daunay, from the Lebanese Center for Human Rights (in French) who called for the demonstration:

400 Migrant Workers Strike in Bahrain due to Unpaid Wages

Nearly 400 workers employed in the company in charge of building the Isa Town flyover have gone unpaid for the last three months, the Gulf Daily News reported this week.
Last Wednesday (February 24), the workers who are employed by the Korean company Sungwon protested in front of the Bahraini Labour Ministry demanding their wages and a plane ticket home or employment in some other place in Bahrain. According to the workers who are mostly from Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Vietnam, their salaries haven’t been paid since November.
In mid-February when the workers threatened to complain to the Labour Ministry, their wages for November alone were paid. After this, Korean workers started leaving Bahrain and the workers are now afraid that the company is closing their office in Bahrain, without paying them their outstanding wages. The workers have been idle in their camps since mid-January because they have no work to do. However, the company promised them that their basic salaries will be paid, since the laborers are not to blame for the lack of work.
The workers lodged a complaint with the Labour Ministry and officials from the ministry promised them that Sungwon will not be allowed to close their office in Bahrain prior to paying them their wages.

Lebanon: “The rights of 90% of maids are violated”

Lebanese television NBN aired a 22-minute interview, on the evening of Monday 22 February 2010, with Dr. Ahmad Ayash, head of a psycho-social studies center, and Mr. John Cassabli, owner of a business which bring maids to Lebanon.
The latter acknowledged the detrimental role of many businesses in the plight of migrant domestic workers. He gave the figure of 90% of migrant domestic workers whose rights are not respected – mistreatment or given one meal per day or etc. He also mentioned cases of rape or sexual enslavement.
He added (minute 19 of the recording which can be found here) the following:
“We are dealing with these case as if a cat died, or a pullet fell of the balcony. Allow me to say: not all of them are dying because of falling while cleaning windows. I just came from a meeting with the consul of Madagascar. He told me that 4 migrant workers died in one week in domestic accidents as if the houses are situated in the middle of highways and as if they were crushed by cars. The consul added that men in houses where they died are involved. I have no confirmation for this, but things are being covered up in police stations under the title of ‘suicide’. No further investigations are done, especially whether or not she was pushed to commit suicide.”
Ethiopian suicides comments: Mr. Cassabli’s remarks and acknowledgments are shocking. How many deaths of migrant domestic workers go unreported because they were not spectacular enough (jumping from the balcony or drinking detergent)? How did Mr. Cassabli reach the figure of “90% of maids are mistreated”?
Originally posted on http://ethiopiansuicides.blogspot.com/

www.slnc.org launched

Dulshani Gunawardena

A website promoting the access to vote for Sri Lankans abroad, www.slnc.org has been launched. It was officially launched by Justice and Law Reforms Minister Milinda Moragoda.

The website is currently collecting signatures for a petition promoting this cause.

Moragoda stated that though the vote is a fundamental human right in any democracy, millions of individuals in Sri Lanka are unable to exercise this right simply due to the fact that they are not physically present in Sri Lanka at the time of the election.

Among the disenfranchised Sri Lankan citizens abroad are those that have migrated primarily for employment and migrants holding permanent residence or citizenship status of the host country.

It is estimated that there are nearly 1.7 million who belong to the former category and they contribute immensely to the country’s economy. Despite the large number of Sri Lankan citizens abroad, the current election laws do not provide access and procedure for them to vote.

Labour standards for domestic workers

A dozen countries in Asia-Pacific say 'yes' in principle to international labour standard for domestic workers - global discussion at ILC in June

Governments, worker and employer organizations in Asia and the Pacific have indicated their general support - in principle - of setting a new international labour standard which could offer better social protection to millions of domestic workers - defined as women and men - who earn their living by working in the homes of others.

An ILO report, 'Decent Work for Domestic Workers,' carries the responses of 75 member States to a Questionnaire on the idea of an international labour standard for domestic workers.

It includes the replies from 13 Governments of member States from the Asia and Pacific region.

Responses were received from 32 worker and employer organizations across the region.

The document was published in preparation of a formal discussion at the International Labour Conference in June on the subject.

This annual Conference brings together Governments, Worker and Employer Organizations from more than 180 member States - the only tripartite meeting of its kind within the UN system - to discuss critical issues in the world of work.

The setting of an international standard for domestic workers would be an historic move to recognize and protect an occupation often under-acknowledged by society. In Asia and the Pacific many domestic workers face indifference at best by the public and can be subject to outright physical and sexual abuse by their employers who are often beyond the pale of labour inspections or redress under national labour laws. Migrant domestic workers are especially vulnerable.

The publishing of the report comes just a few days in advance of International Women*s Day (8 March). This year the various themes to mark the occasion focus on progress for equal rights and equal opportunities in society and in the workplace.

"It is encouraging and timely to see the positive comments coming from member States here in Asia and the Pacific," ILO's Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific Sachiko Yamamoto said.

"Judging by the responses received so far, the indication is that there should be an international standard to better protect domestic workers in Asia and the Pacific."

If the June ILC decides that it is advisable to adopt one or more international instruments, the International Labour Office will draw up, on the basis of the conclusions adopted by the Conference, one or more draft international labour instruments to be considered. It will then be for the Conference to make a final decision on the subject at a future session.

(ILO News)

Job agency cum brothel raided

Daily News - 02 March 2010

A special team from the Women and Children’s Bureau raided a brothel jointly operated undercover as a foreign employment agency in Anuradhapura .
A spokesman for the Women and Children’s Bureau said an agency that was sending women to a brothel in Singapore has been raided by a special team of the Women’s Bureau.
“They have chosen women from poor and low income families to dispatch them for this purpose,” he added. The suspects were arrested and produced before the Anuradhapura Magistrate.

Rafik Jalaldeen