Bahrain Hunger Striker’s Family Appeals For His Release
Abdulhadi al-Khawaja's lawyer released this recent picture of his client in hospital.
That protest movement was crushed by the Gulf kingdom’s ruling family. Abdulhadi al-Khawaja was one of those protesters.
And he was jailed for life just two months ago for his participation.
Al-Khawaja has been on a hunger strike ever since.
Anchor Marco Werman speaks with his daughter, Maryam al-Khawaja.
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Marco Werman: I’m Marco Werman and this is The World, a coproduction of the BBC World Service, PRI and WGBH Boston. The Arab Spring didn’t last long in the Gulf kingdom of Bahrain. The kingdom’s majority Shiites began to protest in February of last year, seeking a greater political voice, but their protests were quickly crushed in a deadly crackdown by Bahrain’s Sunni ruling family. Well, a year later there are protests in Bahrain again. Last week thousands of demonstrators took the streets to demand the release of a jailed human rights campaigner. Abdulhadi al-Khawaja was jailed for life two months ago for his part in antigovernment protests last year. He’s been on a hunger strike ever since. Al-Khawaja’s families say he’s been abused in the military hospital where he’s been kept during his hunger strike. Maryam al-Khawaja is the daughter of Abdulhadi al-Khawaja and I’d like to know, Maryam, when was the last time you spoke with your father?
Maryam al-Khawaja: The last time I spoke with my father personally was February 8, 2012, when he announced, the night that he announced his hunger strike, but I personally haven’t been able to speak to him again since then.
Werman: And what do you know about his physical condition at present?
al-Khawaja: Well, we don’t really know what condition he’s in at the moment because nobody is being allowed to see him or speak to him. Last we know is what he told my mother when he called her approximately two days ago, what he told her was he was being mistreated. She said that he could barely breathe while he was talking, and part of the mistreatment that he was receiving in the military hospital, which he was tortured in last year, was that for example, they would bring in food into his room knowing that he’s on hunger strike and that he doesn’t eat.
Werman: So he has access to a telephone. Was that telephone call a rarity?
al-Khawaja: That telephone call is a rarity and it’s according to the whims and wants of the people in charge, and they just decide when to allow him to call and when not to.
Werman: For people who don’t know who Abdulhadi al-Khawaja is, tell us about your father and why he was protesting in the first place.
al-Khawaja: Well, my father is dubbed the godfather of human rights in Bahrain, but he’s also an internationally known human rights figure, which means that he’s worked very closely or even in some cases trained a lot of the activists that are working across the Middle East and North Africa region today. So that’s one situation that he’s known he. He took part in the protests in Bahrain and his job was mainly an educational job which was he went around and talked to especially the youth, educating them about what their rights are and what the difference in demanding for example, the fall of the regime or the fall of the government is, and what it means to have peaceful resistance.
Werman: Why is your father in prison?
al-Khawaja: He faced the charges of attempting to overthrow the government and also being part of a terrorist group, amongst other charges, but this was done in a military court and his appeal was also rejected in a military court. Now, he was never given a fair trial according to the international standards, and it’s important to point out that even if he was given a trial in a normal courtroom, which he wasn’t, Bahrain still does not have an independent judiciary system which can provide people with a fair trial.
Werman: Are you worried your father is gonna die in prison?
al-Khawaja: As his daughter of course I am worried that God forbid my father may die, but at the same time I don’t feel that this is a situation for mourning or weakness, but rather it’s a sign or a stand of strength and hope. Even if God forbid my father dies, he will continue to live on in each and every one of us. I don’t feel like this is a situation in which we should be crying or you know, mourning him, but rather it should make us feel proud that someone has dedicated his life to this extent that he’s willing to give it up for human rights and for his country.
Werman: Now, the Bahraini Ministry of Human Rights and Social Development has responded to criticism from groups like Human Rights Watch, who have been watching your father’s case, and the ministry says that critics ignore the positive developments in the country and the continuation of the reform process. How do you respond to that?
al-Khawaja: Well, I mean the thing is that Bahrain has been talking about reforms and progress for more than 10 years now. Since 2001 they’ve been promising a constitutional monarchy and a parliament with full legislative powers, among many, many other things like freedoms and human rights and so on. Since the uprising in Bahrain, which started on the 14th of February 2011, people until this day continue to be killed, arbitrarily arrested, tortured and many other, amongst many other violations that are continuing today at a time when the Bahraini government is saying that they have reformed, that they have changed and that everything is back to normal in the country.
Werman: Maryam al-Khawaja, the daughter of Bahraini hunger striker, Abdulhadi al-Khawaja. We requested a response from the government of Bahrain. In a written statement a spokesperson said that Abdulhadi al-Khawaja’s condition is currently stable and has been confirmed as stable for the last few days by the Bahrain public prosecution, as well as three independent doctors, including an independent Danish doctor. The statement goes on to say that much of the news that is being reported online are rumors and false allegations. We’ve posted the full statement at theworld.org.
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