Bahrain Fails to Release Human Rights Defender Nabeel Rajab

Human Rights First criticized Bahrain’s failure to release prominent Bahrain Human Rights Defender Nabeel Rajab, President of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights, from prison yesterday. Rajab was eligible for early release yesterday, but remains in jail. “It’s depressing but no big surprise that Nabeel Rajab was not released. Recent weeks have seen an increased targeting of human rights defenders by the authorities and freeing him would have gone against that trend,” said Human Rights First’s Brian Dooley. “It could have been a big day not only for Nabeel and his family, but also for Bahrain. It’s a wasted chance by the authorities not to release him. He shouldn’t have been jailed in the first place, and is only in prison for the peaceful expression of his views against the government.”

Rajab, a leading human rights defender, has been in prison since July 2012 for charges related to freedom of expression. He had served almost three months in prison for tweeting about Bahrain’s prime minister before his conviction was overturned in August 2012. Despite this, he remained in detention before being sentenced to another three years in prison for “participation in illegal gatherings.” Last December, that sentence was reduced to two years by an appellate court. According to usual procedures, Rajab qualified for conditional early release yesterday after having served three-quarters of his two-year sentence. Under article 349 of the Bahraini Criminal Procedure Code no. 46 of 2002, “[a]ny prisoner sentenced to a penalty depriving him of liberty may be conditionally released if he has spent in prison three-quarters of his sentence and has shown trustworthy behavior while in prison, unless his release would cause a threat to public security.” Yesterday, November 29, marked the three-quarter mark for Rajab’s sentence, and his lawyer applied for his conditional release. “Bahrain desperately needs the leadership of figures like Rajab if it is to get itself out of its current impasse, not have them silenced in prison. Yesterday could have a been a day when good sense prevailed and he was allowed home, but it’s just another wasted chance from a government that doesn’t seem to know how to help itself out of its crisis,” said Dooley. Human Rights First calls for the immediate release of the peaceful opposition figures and other political prisoners who have been wrongfully jailed in Bahrain. A new report from Human Rights First titled, “Plan B for Bahrain, What the United States Government Should Do Next,” details the steps the United States should take to support Bahrain’s transition to democracy and the rule of law.