Bahrain's new crackdown on dissent

Restricting freedom under the guise of fighting terrorism

By Brian Whitaker

"Bahrain has announced wide-ranging new “security” measures which the prime minister says will give the authorities more power to “combat the scourge of terror and maintain security and stability”.

Khalifah ibn Sulman al-Khalifah, who is an uncle of the king and has served as prime minister for 42 years, claims the move is “in tune with the wishes of the people” though it is widely viewed as an attempt to crack down further on political dissent.

Laws or decrees will be issued to implement the following 22 recommendations from a special meeting of the National Assembly:

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However, Reuters points out that there have been calls for mass demonstrations on August 14 – Bahrain’s independence day – and the regime has threatened that anyone taking part will face the "force of the law". This may explain why the new measures are being rushed through now.

Human rights organisations have been swift to condemn the crackdown. .....

The Bahrain Center for Human Rights views the move as an attempt by the authorities “to legalise human rights violations” and says that terrorism charges against dissenters have been “the go-to accusation of the authorities in Bahrain”......

Meanwhile, there are reports that Mohammed Hassan, a blogger who often worked as an assistant for visiting foreign journalists, was arrested early on Wednesday when police raided his home in Sitra. A computer and telephone are said to have been seized.

The reason for his arrest is unclear. He closed down his blog and stopped using his Twitter account on April 29. "