Bahrain: Stop the Shipment campaign continues amid more casualties

 As the details of the proposed sale of 1.6 million chemical and tear gas canisters emerged more international groups have joined Bahrain Watch[1] in urging the South Korean authorities to stop it. In addition to Human Rights Watch[2] and Amnesty International[3] Korea office did an urgent action; Korean activists have staged protests and held a press conference organized by 31 Korean NGOs[4] calling for the shipment of these lethal gases to stop. They held a rally at Korea DAPA (teargas export authority) asking them to Stop The Shipment of teargas to Bahrain.

A number of prominent activists, academics and journalists have endorsed the Stop The Shipment campaign, including Noam Chomsky, journalist John Pilger, David Graeber, Norman Finkelstein, Hamid Dabashi, David Barsamian and As’ad Abukhalil[5].

The latest victim of those gas canisters is a 17 years old Bahraini youth who was shot at close range and became unconscious. Abbas Abdulnabi Marhoon[6], 19 years-old, is suffering from severe injuries after he was shot with a tear gas canister in the head on the 16th of October 2013. Witnesses reported that Marhoon was shot directly at the head and was taken, unconscious, to a nearby medical center: the Hamad Kanoo health center. Due to the seriousness of his injuries, Marhoon was transferred to the operation room in the Bahrain Defense Force Hospital. 

More people have been abducted by Alkhalifa regime’s Death Squads. An attack on houses at the town of Demestan on Monday 28^th October two Bahrainis were dragged from their beds by armed militias operated by the regime. Fadhel Abbas and Mustafa Al Majed[7] were taken away to the torture dungeons.

In a significant move the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights[8] will publish the names of government officials who have engaged in human rights violations. From 1^st November until the International Day to End Impunity on  23^rd November the Centre will expose some of those who have tortured and abused Bahrainis in the hope that the international community will take action to end this black era. Every day at 5pm BCHR will release a number of "ID Cards" of individuals of the Bahrain regime who are "Wanted for Justice".

In one of the most outrageous attacks on civil society activities officials of the regime’s interior ministry attacked the largest political society in the country and destroyed a public exhibition[9]. The Al Wefaq Society had announced organising this exhibition including what it termed “the Museum of the Revolution” about the Revolution that had started on 14^th February 2011 and invited the public to attend. It contained personal belongings of some of the martyrs who were slaughtered by the regime’s forces, gas canisters fired by the police, paintings by prisoners and other related articles. The officials came with full force, infringed on the sanctity of the place and confiscated the exhibits. They also warned that they would be charging some officials of Al Wefaq with anti-regime activities.

Meanwhile the people’s protests and demonstrations have continued on daily basis in most areas of the country. On Wednesday 30^th October, the main theme of those protests was “Our country is occupied”. The aim is to highlight the role of the Saudi occupation that started on 14^th March 2011 in the colossal human rights abuses, the destruction of mosques, the wave of mass arrests and the torture that has continued until today. The participants renewed their calls for an immediate end of this occupation and vowed to continue their peaceful struggle to inform the world of the atrocities of this immoral occupation.

In London, Lord Avebury is organising a Press Conference to mark one year after the Bahraini regime’s decision to revoke the nationality of 31 Bahrainis for opposing its policies and calling for fundamental political change. It will be held at 11 am, Tuesday 5^th November at Room G, House of Lords.

Bahrain Freedom Movement

1^st November 2013