Human Rights Watch condemned the sentence issued yesterday against Sheikh `Abd al-Amir al-Jamri by Bahrain's State Security Court.
"This is a terribly harsh sentence," said Hanny Megally, executive director of Human Right's Watch's Middle East and North Africa division. "Bahrain has a history of using arbitrary detention, huge fines and lengthy sentences to silence political opposition, but this is a new low."
Relatives who visited al-Jamri during his detention say that he resisted repeated attempts to pressure him to sign a prepared confession that he ordered arson and sabotage attacks and acted on behalf of a foreign power. The court convicted al-Jamri of spying for a foreign country and directing an organization seeking to overthrow the government, although Bahrain has never made public evidence to support these allegations. At his closed trial, al-Jamri maintained that he had committed no criminal acts, and only called for the restoration of the National Assembly, which Bahrain dissolved in 1975.
Bahraini law severely restricts freedom of expression, association, and assembly. Since creating the State Security Courts in 1976, the government has used them to prosecute a wide variety of vaguely worded offenses. The security courts fail to meet international fair trial standards, including the right to a public trial; the right to appeal the conviction and sentence to a higher tribunal; the right to prepare a defense and communicate with counsel; and the right to examine witnesses.
An elected member of the dissolved National Assembly known for his speeches criticizing the government, al-Jamri has been in prison for more than three and a half years, including nineteen months in solitary confinement. He was arrested after participating in calls by the People's Petition Committee for the release of prisoners, the return of persons forcibly exiled, and the relaxation of restrictions on free expression and association. In 1995 he was also detained for six months without charge after calling for the release of prisoners and the reinstatement of the National Assembly.
The first session of the trial was held in February 1999, over three years after Sheikh al-Jamri's arrest on January 21, 1996 and a full month after the expiration of the maximum administrative detention period allowed in Bahraini law. Only then was he formally charged. Additional court sessions were held on July 4 and July 6, 1999. The four sessions together lasted a little more than three hours and were closed to the public. As in other security court cases, Al-Jamri's lawyers had only very limited access to their client.
"The security courts should be abolished," Megally said. "The laws they prosecute and their rules of procedure practically guarantee an unfair trial."
Seven other opposition leaders arrested at the same time as al-Jamri remain in prison without charge or trial. Like al-Jamri, `Abd al-Wahab Hussain, Hasan Mushaima, `Ali Ahmad Howarah, Hasan `Ali Muhammad Sultan, Ibrahim `Adan Nasir al-`Alawi, Abd al-`Ashur al-Satrawi, and Husain `Ali Hasan al-Daihi have been detained without judicial review in violation of international fair trial standards and Bahraini law.
"In three and a half years Bahrain has not presented a shred evidence that would justify holding these eight people," Megally said. "This raises serious questions about the real reasons for their detention. They should all be immediately released if the government is unwilling to try them before a court that meets international standards."
For Further Information:
In New York: Hanny Megally 212 216 1230
Clarisa Bencomo 212 216 1232
