UN Calls on Bahrain to Investigate Violent Attack at Jau Prison and Release Dissidents

30 April 2021 – A spokesperson for the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights issue a statement today condemning “the use of unnecessary and disproportionate force” against a prisoners holding a “peaceful sit-in” at Bahrain’s Jau Prison on 17 April, calling for a “thorough and effective investigation”, for prisoners currently held incommunicado[…]

DENYING THE RIGHT OF EXPRESSION: Patterns of impunity in Bahraini governance against civil society

The Covid – 19 pandemic has contributed to the deterioration of many rights in the Gulf region, including the entitlement to freedom of expression. After the 2011 pro-democracy protests, the Bahraini government has spent an incredible amount of resources towards incarcerating dissident voices, limiting content diversity, and spreading pro-government narratives in the media. However, its[…]

France’s Feminist Diplomacy and Women’s Rights in the Gulf: Rhetoric over Reality

This article was written in collaboration between the ADHRB Paris team and Gender in Geopolitics Institute. France is a vocal advocate for women’s rights internationally, and the “feminist diplomacy” adopted by the French government in 2018 affirms that gender equality is a priority for France. The International Gender Equality Strategy was adopted to improve the[…]

European Parliamentarians call for the Emirati government to be held accountable for systematic violations of human rights 

In an open Letter published on 15 april, a cross-party coalition of EU Parliamentarians have called for urgent action to be taken by the European External Action Service (EEAS) to address the widespread and systematic human rights abuses committed by the government of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The letter, which was published in light[…]

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Alternative Sentences Do Not Undermine Demands for the Unconditional Release of All Political Prisoners and Prisoners of Conscience

On April 2, 2021, Assistant Attorney General Wael Buallay claimed that 126 prisoners would be released under the alternative penal code, knowing that this decision included only one prisoner of conscience. This prisoner of conscience was arrested on charges of reciting Ziyarat Ashuraon September 3, 2020, and had only a mere two months remaining until[…]