Ahlul Bayt News Agency -Lord Eric Avebury criticised his government for remaining silent on the recent wave of arrests of opposition figures in Bahrain. He said the recent statement issued by the United Kingdom on Bahrain “have failed to call for the release of political prisoners”, adding, the UK even criticised Al Wefaq for boycotting parliamentary elections last November which it bizarrely deemed “transparent”.
“As the crackdown on the political opposition continues to intensify, Britain’s behaviour will provide little incentive for the government of Bahrain to reverse course and engage in meaningful reform and dialogue. On the contrary, it may embolden the regime and encourage more repression”, he said in a blog post last Friday.
Avebury also highlighted the case of Ibrahim Sharif, former Secretary General of the secular Wa’ad society in Bahrain. He outlined, “Sharif’s re-arrest is significant not just because it contradicts the Bahraini government’s narrative of reform, but also because it demonstrates the fallacy of another argument which the monarchy and its supporters have been keen to make: that Bahrain’s political crisis is driven by a sectarian protest movement comprised exclusively of the country’s marginalised Shia majority”. He explained, “Sharif, however, is a secular Sunni Muslim who espouses sectarian unity and non-violence and enjoys the respect of both Shia and Sunni opposition activists in Bahrain. It is perhaps for this reason that the government considers him such a threat”.
His blog also came across the cases of other prominent figures who have faced reprisals from the government in recent weeks, including Al Wefaq board member Majeed Milad who was detained in early July in relation to his participation in a political seminar. Another opposition leader, Fadhel Abbas, who heads the Al-Wahdawi political society, who was sentenced to five years in prison on June 28 for criticising the war on Yemen. The imprisoned Al-Wefaq leader’s assistant Khalil Al Marzouq, also summoned by the Ministry of Interior on June 30 for questioning about a speech he gave.
“With Sharif back in detention, the rest of the Bahrain Thirteen still behind bars and the General-Secretary of the country’s largest opposition bloc al-Wefaq Sheikh Ali Salman recently sentenced to four years in prison for inciting “hatred” and “disobedience” against the regime, the entire leadership of Bahrain’s political opposition is now in jail”, he added.
Lord Avebury also stressed his disapproval of the United States stance for justifying its resumption of military aid to Bahrain on the grounds that unnamed political prisoners – presumably including Sharif – had been released from prison and meaningful progress on human rights reform was being made.
Read the blog
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