Action Plans Produced at Third Annual Bahrain Conference

Ended the Third International Conference under the title: "Bahrain .. ongoing violations and impunity," its Thursday evening February 13, 2014.

Has kicked off the conference on Thursday morning, after opening on Wednesday evening in February 2014. The conference began two words Avctahitin Prime Bahrain Forum for Human Rights and Chairman Joseph Spring Observatory Bahrain human rights lawyer Mohammed Merchant stressed the need to focus during the conference to address the policy of impunity.

The conferees discussed, during the three sessions attended by a select group of representatives of international human rights organizations, Arab and legal personalities from different countries of the world, a large number of working papers which dealt with:

1.          Artkabat government of Bahrain against the peaceful people of killings, torture and arbitrary arrests and raids, as well as the issue of deprivation of citizenship for opponents.

2.          The absence of justice and accountability and the impunity of the perpetrators; where deliberately courts to exonerate the security men of crimes they commit; come down with the most severe penalties activists peaceful defenders of human rights.

3.          Prejudice to the government of Bahrain to its international obligations, particularly the Convention against Torture and the Convention on the protection of the rights of children, women and others, and retreat from the recommendations of all obligations of the Human Rights Council, the Commission Bassiouni, and the need to ratify the international conventions signed by them.

4.          Identify possible international mechanisms to hold accountable those responsible for abuses in Bahrain.

At the conclusion of the conference read head of Bahrain Forum for Human Rights decisions Joseph Spring Conference which concluded:

1. The establishment of an international network of organizations and human rights and political figures, media and other activists in the areas of human rights to support the Bahraini people in their struggle peacefully in order to obtain their legitimate rights.

2. Adoption of the International Day to End Impunity November 23 days to end impunity in Bahrain so that different events are held in the framework of demand the trial of those involved.

He also presented the recommendations of the conference which is the following:

1.          Invite the international community to put pressure on the government of Bahrain to join the International Criminal Court, and the signing of additional protocols, especially for children and women.

2.          Claim the government of Bahrain to ensure the impartiality and independence of the judiciary, and to ensure the right of litigants to a fair trial.

3.          Accounting involved committing crimes against the Bahraini people, whatever their positions and their positions.

4.          Allow all special rapporteurs of the United Nations concerned with freedom of expression, peaceful assembly, and freedom of religion and belief, and freedom of association to visit Bahrain, and immediately set an appointment to visit the UN Special Rapporteur on torture Juan Méndez.

5.          It called on all states to refrain from exporting weapons to Bahrain to repress the demonstrators, and demand from countries that send their citizens to work in the Bahraini security services to stop being used in repression.

6.          Invite the United Nations and the international community to approve sanctions against the Bahraini government because of its repressive practices against the people of Bahrain and appeal lawyers and jurists to coordinate among themselves in order to activate the role of international justice in the Accounting perpetrators of crimes against the people.

7.          Remove inhibitions in front of the international media to play a role in the coverage of what is happening in Bahrain events freely and without restrictions.

Press Release

The 3 ^rd International Conference on Human Rights on Bahrain organized by Bahrain Forum for Human Rights and its senior partner Bahrain Human Rights Observatory and held on Feb. 12-13, 2014 in Beirut under the title of Bahrain: Ongoing Violations and Impunity.

The event was attended by the elite of the representative of Bahrain, Arabian and international human rights organizations and lawyers from different countries in the world.   

The participants discussed a number of featured papers highlighting the following:

1. Bahrain government's committing of crimes against its peaceful nation inducing crimes, torturing, home raids, arbitrary arrests and denationalization from individuals affiliated to the opposition.

The absentia of justice and holding accountability of those involved in crimes and displacing impunity as Bahrain's courts acquaint security forces from their crimes but issues the harshest sentences against peaceful activists and human rights defenders.

  3. Bahrain is not abiding the international commitment and conventions it signed especially the Anti-Torture Convention and the Protection of Children and Women Conventions. Neither has it implemented any of the recommendations issued by Human Rights Council and Bassiouni's mission. Besides that it is not responding the urgency of ratifying the international conventions it signed.

4. Specifying the potential international mechanisms to hold accountability of those involved in committing crimes in Bahrain.

The attendees have decided to:

1.   Establishing an international network that includes legal, political, media and human rights bodies, individuals and activists to support the Bahraini people in their struggle to meet their legal rights.

2.   Adopting the international day of Impunity on November 23 campaigning to end impunity in Bahrain and bring criminals to justice.

The participants have come to the following recommendations:

1.     Calling the international committee to place pressure on the government of Bahrain to be brought to The International Criminal Court and to let it ratify the additional protocols especially those related to woman and child protection

2.   Appealing to the government of Bahrain to guarantee the independence and neutrality of judicial system and having fair trials to those judged.

3.   Holding accountability of those involved in committing crimes against the Bahraini nation-whoever they might be and whatever ranks they may be occupying

4.   Allowing UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, peaceful assembly, freedom of Religion or Belief, freedom of assembly foundation to visit Bahrain and also to set an urgent appointment to meet the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture

Visiting Professor Juan E Mendez

5.   Calling all of the states to stop exporting arms to Bahrain for they are being used to oppress the protesters. Calling all of the countries that are sending their people to work in security in Bahrain to stop for they are deployed for oppression practices.

6.   Calling the UN and International Committee to issue sanctions against Bahrain government because of its practices of oppression against the Bahraini nation. Calling all of the lawyers and human rights activists to coordinate with each other to activate the role of the international judiciary system to hold accountability of all of those involved in committing crimes against the Bahraini nations.   

7.    Removing all of the obstacles preventing international media from coverage in Bahrain and informing what is going on there freely and with no restrictions.

The call of the conference

By the end of the conference, the gathering calls Bahrain government to immediately release the thirteen Bahraini prominent leaders and activists on top of whom is the head of Bahrain Center for Human Rights along with the other children, women, sick and old people as well.

The gathering also calls for the stop of the house raids and cancelling trials and order of arrests, and list of wanted and forbidden from travel.

It also calls to let the exiled Bahrainis be allowed to come home back and to remove all shapes of force deployed in streets, and to let practice more freedom of expression, peaceful protests, joining associations, and freedom of religion.