Bahrain

Bahrain: Migrant Workers Denied Pay, Right to Travel

Human Rights Watch — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 09:43:47 -0800

(New York) - Bahrain's Labor Ministry should hold employers who withhold wages and passports from migrant employees accountable, Human Rights Watch said today. Both practices are illegal under Bahraini law, but authorities do little to enforce compliance.

Bahrain: Labor Reforms a Major Advance

Human Rights Watch — Wed, 13 May 2009 13:46:12 -0700

(Beirut) - Bahrain's revision of its restrictive kafala (sponsorship) system will dramatically improve the status of most migrant workers and reduce their risk of exploitation, Human Rights Watch said today. But the protections should be extended to migrant domestic workers, who are especially vulnerable to employer abuse, Human Rights Watch said.

Bahrain: Investigate Abduction, Beating of Rights Activist

Human Rights Watch — Tue, 12 May 2009 07:47:42 -0700

(New York) - Bahrain should immediately begin a thorough and impartial investigation into the abduction and torture of the human rights activist Ja'far Kadhim Ibrahim, Human Rights Watch said today. Men whom Ibrahim believed were working for a Bahraini security agency abducted him on the night of May 7, 2009, and beat him severely with batons.

Bahrain: Coerced Testimony Taints Trial

Human Rights Watch — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 06:45:21 -0700

(New York) - Bahrain's use of televised, coerced testimony and other serious flaws in the criminal trial of an opposition leader and others shows contempt for the right to a fair trial, Human Rights Watch said today.

Bahrain: Drop Charges Against Rights Defender

Human Rights Watch — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 02:52:57 -0700

(New York, March 11, 2009) - Bahraini officials should promptly drop the charges against the former president of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights, Abdul Hadi al-Khawaja, and lift a travel ban against him, Human Rights Watch said today.

Bahrain

Human Rights Watch — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 09:48:39 -0800

Human rights conditions in Bahrain deteriorated in 2008. Despite the important reforms that the king, Shaikh Hamad bin `Isa al-Khalifa, adopted in 2001-02, the government has done little to institutionalize human rights protections in law. The government continues to subject freedom of expression, assembly, and association to arbitrary restrictions.

Bahrain: End Threats to Rights Activists

Human Rights Watch — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 13:42:47 -0800

(New York, November 12, 2008) - Bahrain's government should withdraw a threat by the interior minister to prosecute human rights activists for having met with foreign government officials while abroad, Human Rights Watch said today.

Bahrain: Convictions Tainted by Claims of Abuse

Human Rights Watch — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 17:00:00 -0700

Repeated allegations that confessions were obtained by abuse cast doubt on sentences that a Bahraini court has handed down this week to opposition political activists over violent protests in 2007, Human Rights Watch said today. The convictions of the men rested in part on confessions obtained during their interrogation and detention.

UN: Sri Lanka’s Defeat a Victory for Human Rights Council

Human Rights Watch — Tue, 20 May 2008 17:00:00 -0700

NGOs around the world call Sri Lanka's defeat in today's Human Rights Council elections a victory for the UN body.

Bahrain Should Make Further Commitment to Human Rights if Elected to UN Rights Council

Human Rights Watch — Mon, 19 May 2008 17:00:00 -0700

In a letter to UN member states, a coalition of international NGOs joins Bahraini NGOs in urging the Bahrain government to commit, if elected, to a series of benchmarks demonstrating its commitment to the protection of human rights both nationally and internationally.

On the international level: