Freedom in the World 2001 - Bahrain

2001 Scores

Status: Not Free
Freedom Rating: 6.5
Civil Liberties: 6
Political Rights: 7

Overview

More than a year after the accession of Sheikh Hamad ibn Isa al-Khalifa as emir, Bahrain has seen limited progress toward democratic reform. Members and suspected members of Shiite-led opposition groups campaigning for the restoration of parliament continued to face summary arrest, torture, and forcible deportation in 2000.

Bahrain has been ruled by the Al Khalifa family since 1782. The country was a British protectorate from 1861 to 1971, when British forces withdrew after years of Arab nationalist disturbances. The emir retained a virtual monopoly on power until the adoption of a constitution, which provided for a partially elected national assembly, in 1973. Describing Bahrain's new legislative body as "obstructionist," the emir ordered its dissolution in 1975.

With the Iranian revolution in 1979 and the accompanying spread of Islamic fundamentalism, resentment among Bahrain's majority Shiite population against its Sunni rulers intensified. The government faced an opposition which had grown to include not only leftist and secular elements, but religious ones as well. Religious and secular opposition activists were arrested and exiled in large numbers in the 1980s and 1990s.

Sheikh Isa ibn Salman al Khalifa, who ruled from 1961 until his death in 1999, responded to international calls for political liberalization by appointing a consultative council of 30 prominent business and religious leaders in 1993. The council, or Shura, was expanded to 40 members in 1996. It has no legislative power.

The arrest of a Shiite cleric and several Sunni former parliamentarians in 1994 for petitioning for the reinstatement of parliament and the release of political detainees sparked civil unrest that has killed more than 40 people. According to international human rights monitors, the Bahraini government has arrested thousands of people, sentenced hundreds to prison, and expelled more than 500 people. Security forces routinely raid homes and beat and arrest families for suspected opposition activities. The government flatly rejects criticism of its rights record and blames Iran for inciting unrest. Political analysts and private sector businessmen, however, blame the government's failure to resolve widespread social and economic disparities, particularly unemployment, which stands at about 30 percent in the Shiite community.

Under pressure from the opposition and from international human rights groups, Sheikh Hamad allowed Amnesty International to visit Bahrain in 1999 for the first time in 12 years. He has also released a number of political detainees, including Sheikh Adbul Ameer al-Jamri, a former parliamentarian and leading Shiite activist who had been held without trial for three years. In September 2000, Sheikh Khalifa ibn Salman al-Khalifa, Bahrain's prime minister, appointed four women, one of whom is Christian; a Jewish businessman; and another businessman of Indian descent to the Shura. This was the first time non-Muslims and women were allowed to sit on the council. In November, the government set up a 46-member committee to draw up a national charter. In late December, Sheikh Hamad announced that the charter, which provides for a partly-elected parliament, would go to a referendum. The proposed parliament's responsibilities and powers are still unclear.

Opposition figures continued to campaign for the restoration of an elected parliament with full legislative power. Many observers believe that true political reform is unlikely as long as neighboring Saudi Arabia opposes the spread of democracy in the region. Moreover, Sheikh Hamad has retained his late father's prime minister, who apparently authored the hardline position that the government has taken toward the opposition since 1994. According to exiled reformers, prospects for reconciliation remain weak and the political atmosphere remains volatile.

Political Rights and Civil Liberties

Bahrainis cannot change their government democratically. Political parties are prohibited, and most opposition leaders are currently either imprisoned or exiled. The emir rules by decree and appoints all government officials, including the 15-member cabinet, the 40-member Shura, the urban municipal councils, and the rural mukhtars (local councils). Citizens may submit petitions to the government and appeal to the emir and officials at regularly scheduled audiences.

The interior ministry maintains informal control over most activities through informant networks. Agents may search homes without warrants and have used this authority frequently against Shia. Despite the decreasing frequency of violent antigovernment protests, the London-based Bahrain Freedom Movement (BFM) reported dozens of cases in which security forces arrested and severely beat men, women, and children in early-morning raids during 2000.

The 1974 State Security Act allows authorities to detain individuals suspected of "antigovernment activity," which includes participation in peaceful demonstrations and membership in outlawed organizations, for up to three years without trial. Detainees are subject to torture, forced confessions, incommunicado detention, and inadequate prison conditions. Their lawyers have also been targeted by police. Authorities do not release information about the numbers detained or the identities of detainees, but it is believed that more than 1,000 people remain in prison for political reasons. In March 2000, authorities released Abdelwahab Hussein, a Shiite opposition leader detained in 1996, only to arrest him again the following day without explanation. On July 3, 2000, the government officially announced the retirement of Ian Henderson, a British national who had served as chief of the intelligence service since 1966. In January, British police had launched an investigation into Henderson's alleged role in the torture of pro-democracy Bahraini activists.

The Bahraini government continued to deport people considered to be security threats. According to the U.S. State Department, those who accept foreign citizenship or passports or who engage in "antigovernment activities" abroad forfeit their Bahraini citizenship. The BFM reported numerous forcible deportations in 2000.

The judiciary is not independent. Members of the al-Khalifa family serve as judges in courts at all levels. Courts are also staffed by judges brought from other countries, such as Egypt, on renewable contracts. Security trials are held secretly, the right to an attorney is limited, and verdicts are not subject to appeal. A 1999 decree requires that those convicted in state security courts pay compensation for damages or face extended jail terms. Four Shiite civil judges may not handle cases deemed politically sensitive.

Freedom of speech and of the press is sharply limited. Privately owned newspapers refrain from criticizing the ruling family, while radio and television are government-owned and broadcast only official views. Despite an official ban, an estimated six percent of Bahraini homes had access to satellite broadcasting in 1999. Human Rights Watch reported that Internet access has been easily obtainable since 1995, and according to the BBC, there were some 37,500 Internet subscribers (about six percent of the population) in Bahrain at the beginning of 2000. No authorization is required to launch a website, although authorities have blocked sites and reportedly monitor Internet use. A small number of Bahrainis have been detained or questioned on suspicion of using the Internet to transmit information to opposition groups outside the country. One journalist from The Economist was imprisoned in November with no official explanation. He was released after nine days.

Political parties and organizations are prohibited. Some professional societies and social or sports clubs may serve as forums for political discussion, but they may not engage in political activity. The bar association, the only association exempt from the ban on political activity, was dissolved in 1998. Bahrainis are not permitted to demonstrate, and even peaceful protests are met with intimidation by security officials. Human rights monitors, including the UN Rapporteur on Torture, are regularly denied entry into Bahrain by the government.

Bahraini women may own and inherit property, represent themselves in public and legal matters, obtain passports and leave the country without permission of a male relative, work outside the home, drive without escorts, and wear clothing of their choice. A non-Bahraini woman will automatically lose custody of her children if she divorces their Bahraini father. Labor law does not discriminate against women, but there is discrimination in the workplace, including wage disparity and denial of opportunity for advancement. The government appointed its first woman ambassador in late 1999 and also appointed four women to the Shura in September 2000.

Islam is the state religion, and Bahrainis are overwhelmingly Muslim. The state controls all official religious institutions through monitoring and funding. Non-Muslims, including Jews, Christians, Hindus, and Bahais, are free to practice, maintain places of worship, and display religious symbols. Sunni Muslims enjoy favored status with the government, while Shia generally receive inferior educational, social, and municipal services. Beginning in 1999, Shia were permitted to work in the defense forces and the interior ministry, though only in subordinate positions.

Independent labor unions and collective bargaining are nonexistent. The law restricts strikes deemed damaging to worker-employer relations or the national interest. According to a report issued in October 2000 by the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions, Bahrain has failed to ratify key International Labor Organization conventions on the right to organize, collective bargaining, and workplace discrimination, and thousands of Bahrainis have been imprisoned for attempting to organize. In March, a Bahraini court ruled that 200 Gulf Air workers who were arbitrarily dismissed without prior consultation or representation were ineligible for compensation. Foreigners who come to Bahrain to work as domestics are frequently mistreated and denied pay. Bahraini law does not protect these workers.