Witness Bahrain, in collaboration with the Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR), announced the launch of a Global Week of Action today in support of a call for the immediate release of Bahraini human rights activist Nabeel Rajab. The week of action, which runs from March 21 to 28, asks supporters to support the call for Mr. Rajab’s release. Mr. Rajab is currently serving a two-year prison sentence for allegedly calling for “illegal gatherings.” Americans for Democracy and Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB) applauds the launch of the week of action, and calls upon the Government of Bahrain to immediately release all prisoners of conscience.
Nabeel Rajab has long been recognized as a dynamic human rights activist. Mr. Rajab has worked with international human rights organizations such as Human Rights Watch and the International Federation for Human Rights. In 2002, Mr. Rajab helped found the Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR) with fellow human rights activist and prisoner of conscience Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, and is a member of the Advisory Board of the Bahrain Rehabilitation and Anti-Violence Organization (BRAVO). He has received several awards in recognition of his human rights work, including the Ion Ratiu Democracy Award from the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars and the British Silbury Prize.
Throughout the unrest in Bahrain, Mr. Rajab has been an outspoken critic of the Bahrain government and its abuse of protesters and opposition leaders. As president of BCHR, Mr. Rajab participated in protests and documented countless human rights violations. As a result of his work, Mr. Rajab has faced constant harassment from the government, and has been subjected to, among other things, death threats, arbitrary arrests, and physical abuse.
Some of the activities planned for the Global Week of Action include peaceful rallies, a social media campaign on Facebook and Twitter, a call-in campaign to members of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee to ask for a hearing on Bahrain, and a full week of activities in Bahrain and around the world to raise awareness of Mr. Rajab’s case and the ongoing human rights violations Bahraini activists face every day. For a full list of events and to find out how to get involved, please visit Witness Bahrain’s Global Week of Action website.
Please click here for a PDF of this statement.
