Bahraini woman poet tells of torture while in custody
Thu Jul 14, 2011 By Richard Spencer, Middle East Correspondent The Telegraph
A young Bahraini woman who was arrested after reciting an anti-government poem to demonstrators in the Gulf kingdom said she was beaten, electrocuted and threatened with sexual assault while in custody.
Ayat al-Qurmezi, 20, became one of the symbols of the protests that hit the centre of the Bahraini capital, Manama in February and March. After she was arrested, reports circulated that she had been whipped and even at one point raped and killed, leading to an improvement in her conditions and her release on Wednesday evening.
Another, addressed to the prime minister, said: "You must go. Take His Majesty with you, and leave your deeds behind." After her family received threats, she gave herself up to the authorities in March and put in a narrow cell at a police station. Meanwhile, Bahrain security forces backed by troops from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates dispersed the protesters. Altogether, about 30 people were killed, while four more protesters died in custody.
"She was beaten with a hose and electrocuted," Miss al-Qurmezi's brother, Yusuf, told The Daily Telegraph on Thursday. "They put the clips on her lips and on other parts of her face.
"They did not rape her but they told her they would. They put her in a narrow cell. Through the wall she could hear the screams of men who were being beaten. They would come and tell her, 'you are next'."
State media and pro-government activists, mostly Sunnis, attacked her and claimed she had incited racial hatred, by insulting naturalised Bahrainis and Indian residents, and called for violence against the king. She was jailed for a year last month by a military court.
One commentator wrote: "Al-Qurmezi was not interrogated because of the poem. Rather, it was because she read the poem in public and insulted the Monarchy, enraging the formerly silent majority who demanded her arrest."
Miss al-Qurmezi said she remained under house arrest and although released early the charges on which she had been jailed had not been dropped. "I hope Bahrain can move away from the crisis to a transition into a better future, without discrimination or sectarianism," she said.
Hundreds of people were detained following the crackdown, including more than 40 doctors and nurses from the main Al-Salmaniya Hospital. Eight leading activists have also been handed life imprisonment.
However, the government has been attempting to restore its reputation in recent weeks, returning trials to the civilian courts, announcing a "national dialogue" with the opposition, and commissioning a high level panel of international human rights experts to conduct an inquiry into the events of February and March.
Greeted by a crowd of hundreds of people at her home, she told her family she had not been sexually assault but threatened as well as being electrocuted with clips attached to her face. She also denied that she had committed treason by attacking the king, saying she wanted reform not revolution. "The demand isn't to overthrow the regime, but we want a real constitutional monarchy," she said to reporters.
Miss al-Qurmezi, a member of the Shia majority who was at teacher training college when the protests began in February, was filmed reciting poems to a huge crowd at Pearl Roundabout, the epicentre of the demonstrations.
One featured a conversation between Satan and King Hamad in which they outlined the complaints of the opposition, mostly Shia calling for the Sunni royal family and elite to share power.
Short Interview
with Ayat in the day of her release [Arabic] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WKwq2bRMTc "In the CID and detention it was worst than jail. I used to get beaten everyday. My room used to be next to the torture room. I'd hear men being tortured all night. If I tell them I can't sleep because of it, they tell me wait a bit then it's your turn"
Reuters: Bahrain puts protest poet under house arrest
DUBAI (Reuters) - A young Bahraini Shi'ite poet sentenced to a year in prison told Reuters Thursday she had been released and placed under house arrest, but would continue to voice demands for democratic reforms to the Gulf island kingdom's constitutional monarchy.
Ayat al-Qurmozi, 20, was released Wednesday afternoon, a month after a military court sentenced her to a year in prison for reciting a poem mocking Bahrain's Sunni rulers and demanding the king step down during pro-democracy protests led by the Shi'ite majority in February and March.
"I hope Bahrain can move away from the crisis to a transition into a better future, without discrimination or sectarianism," Qurmozi told Reuters by telephone.
Bahrain crushed the protests and enforced a fierce crackdown in which hundreds, mostly Shi'ites, were arrested and some 2,000 people sacked from their jobs.
Rights groups said Qurmozi was among some 200 people released after months in jail.
Qurmozi stepped out of her car Wednesday to hundreds of well-wishers celebrating her release from prison, where she said she was beaten and forced to stick her hands in toilets during interrogations.
The government says there is no systematic abuse in its prisons and has vowed to investigate any charges of torture.
Qurmozi said she was made to sign a paper saying she would remain at home, not join protests and not speak to the media.
"I'm not afraid to speak out though. I have something to say and I won't be afraid because of a paper I signed," she said.
The kingdom's rulers blamed sectarianism and Iran's manipulation of its Shi'ite population for the protests. Qurmouzi said in the poem that led to her arrest that Sunnis and Shi'ites were united against Bahraini King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa.
The young poet said she was surprised to learn small protests were still erupting daily in Shi'ite villages around Manama -- most are now demanding the opposition walk out of a national dialogue launched by the government.
Many Shi'ites are angry that not all prisoners have been released, including eight Shi'ite leaders given life terms by a military court. They also doubt the dialogue will ensure political reforms, such as a representative parliament.
"The demand isn't to overthrow the regime, but we want a real constitutional monarchy," Qurmozi said.
More:
- Huffington Post: A Freedom Poet: The Ai Weiwei of the Middle East
- Amnesty International - Urgent Action: Bahraini activist jailed for reading poem
- Amnesty International - Bahraini poet set to face verdict for protest reading
- The Independent - Detained poet 'beaten across the face with electric cable'
- BCHR Report: Death threats and arrest as a direct result of expressing opinion, All in the name of “National Safety”
- English Pen - Bahrain: Poet and writer arrested; fears for their safety
- The Independent - Locked up for reading a poem
- The Telegraph - Female poet brought before Bahrain military tribunal
- Jadaliyya: A Poetry of Resistance: The Disappearance of Ayat al-Qormezi in Bahrain's “Hidden History”
- Documentary about Ayat
- A solidarity campaign for her release on Facebook
- English translation of her poem
Bahrain: Uk Raises Long List Of Concerns About Bahraini Military Tribunals
12 July 2011
In a series of written parliamentary replies published Wednesday, the British government said that it does not know how many political prisoners are currently held in Bahraini jails but that it has raised a long list of concerns about the conduct of military trials, including against 48 health professionals.
Bahrain
Questions Asked by Baroness Tonge
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the number of political prisoners currently held in Bahrain. The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Lord Howell of Guildford): We have made no assessment of the exact number of political prisoners currently held in Bahraini detention centres.
We remain deeply concerned by the imprisonment of leading moderate politicians and the alleged mistreatment of detainees. We continue to press the Government of Bahrain to meet all their human rights obligations.
Asked by Baroness Tonge
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the military trials of doctors in Bahrain; and what representations they have made to the Government of Bahrain regarding this.
Lord Howell of Guildford: Our embassy has been able to attend some of the many trials currently taking place in the National Safety Courts, including the trials of the 48 medical staff. Our primary concerns in the legal process have been the methods of arrest, early access to legal counsel, allegations of abuse in detention, methods of interrogation, alleged coerced confessions, the charges brought against defendants, and the implications that medical professionals may not be allowed to carry out their duties without fear of recrimination.
My right honourable friend the Foreign Secretary raised UK concerns about the trial of medical staff when he met the Crown Prince of Bahrain on 25 May. My honourable friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Mr Burt, also raised the issue in his public statement of 1 June. Our ambassador continues to raise our concerns at the highest level with the Government of Bahrain to ensure that due process is followed in all cases and that human rights are fully respected.
Asked by Baroness Tonge
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the sentences handed down to Bahraini protesters following demonstrations; and what relevant discussions they have had with the Government of Bahrain.
Lord Howell of Guildford: We are deeply concerned by the nature of the charges and we continue to raise our concerns over the conduct of the trials. We repeatedly urge the Bahrainis that due process should be carefully and transparently followed in the National Safety Trials. My right honourable friend the Foreign Secretary raised UK concerns about the arrests of protesters and medical staff when he met the Crown Prince of Bahrain on 25 May. Our ambassador continues to raise our concerns at the highest level with the Government of Bahrain.
Asked by Lord Patten
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Howell of Guildford on 16 June (WA 206), what is meant by the term "real and meaningful reform" in the case of Bahrain.
Lord Howell of Guildford: By the term "real and meaningful reform" the UK Government mean that the reforms which result from the national dialogue must be enough to meet the legitimate aspirations of the Bahraini people. It is not for the UK Government to dictate the exact nature of these reforms. These should be determined by the participants.
FIDH: Letter to King of Bahrain Regarding the Commission Investigating the events which occurred in Bahrain in Feb/Mar 2011
12 July 2011
FIDH welcomes the initiative by His Majesty regarding the opening of an investigation into some of the events and the appointment of a commission of well known and highly respected international human rights experts to lead that investigation; however FIDH would like to highlight some points of concern with regard to the mandate of the commission and in particular to the very limited time frame of the investigation.
Indeed, we understand from the decree Royal Order No. 28 of 2011 that the Commission will investigate and report on the events which occurred in Bahrain in February/March 2011 focusing on but not limited to alleged acts of violence, alleged police brutality, circumstances of arrests and detention, and allegations of torture and disappearance.
In this respect, while recalling that serious human rights violations were committed after March 2011 as reported by reliable sources in Bahrain, by international human rights organizations and by the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, FIDH believes that the investigation should also cover the current situation and in particular the continuing mass arrests of human rights activists and political opponents, the military trials conducted in June 2011, extra-judicial killings, the targeting of people, villages and worshiping places due to their support or involvement in the protests and the four deaths at custody due to torture of Ali Issa Saqer, Kareem Fakhrawi, Zakariya Al Ashiri, and Hassan Makki .
Secondly, FIDH would like to highlight the fact that the mandate of the investigation commission does not include inquiry into the mass sackings of employees due to their sectarian background where the numbers have reached 4000 people, noting that only 2300 are registered .
Furthermore, The mandate does not mention the status of the military trials against peaceful demonstrators and human rights activists. FIDH recalls that no civilian should be brought before military courts as military trials for civilians constitute violations of basic fair trial rights. International human rights bodies over the last 15 years have determined that trials of civilians before military tribunals violate the due process guarantees found in article 14 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which affirms that everyone has the right to be tried by a competent, independent, and impartial tribunal. These bodies have consistently rejected the use of military prosecutors and courts in cases involving abuses against civilians, by stating that the jurisdiction of military courts should be limited to offenses that are strictly military in nature.
FIDH welcomes the prevention of the recurrence of similar events as stated in the mandate; however we are deeply concerned about the lack of accountability processes for those who committed human rights violations. FIDH stresses the importance of fighting against impunity and believes that the recommendations of the investigation commission should encompass this demand.
On June 22nd 2011, 21 prominent Bahraini human rights activists and opponents to the regime were given harsh sentences by the special military court which was set up to prosecute those who have voiced their opinion and demanded their basic human rights. Eight of them were given life sentences while 13 were given two to fifteen years in prison. In this regard, FIDH is asking the Kingdom’s authorities to review the possibility to try again these people before civil ordinary courts if there are serious criminal charges against them or otherwise release them immediately as human rights activism cannot be assimilated to a terrorist activity.
FIDH remains extremely concerned by the reports of torture and ill-treatment of those arrested and detained. Our organizations have documented the case of Abdulhadi Al Khawaja, former Director of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR), who was beaten severely and had to undergo major surgery due to his injuries. Despite the brave display of Mr. Al Khawaja during his hearing, the judges refused to acknowledge his claim of having been subjected to torture. These acts of torture and ill-treatment are not limited to detention centers, but have managed to infiltrate hospitals as well. According to the information we received, in Salamiya hospital, many of those wounded were beaten three times a day. FIDH has learned that torture has been practiced in both military and police hospitals as well.
Furthermore, FIDH condemns the ongoing harassment of journalists, doctors, lawyers, human rights defenders and their families, among which FIDH’s Deputy Secretary General Nabeel Rajab, President of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights, who was prevented from leaving the country and remains under threat and harassment by the security forces.
FIDH stresses the need for the investigation to be thorough, independent and impartial as stated in the mandate. We encourage the commission to meet with representatives of all civil society organizations in Bahrain, international human rights organizations who have been documenting abuses of human rights in the past months, as well as with all political parties from the opposition.
Finally, FIDH believes that the investigation conducted by the Commission should not be exclusive of any other independent international investigation by the UN or an international human rights organization.
We encourage the Government of Bahrain to take into account our recommendations as should be seen as a pre-requisite to any sustainable national dialogue between the Bahraini civil society and the authorities.
Sincerely Yours,