Bahrain activist group urges pope to speak out on human rights abuses
An American activist group promoting human rights in Bahrain has called on Pope Francis to either back out of his upcoming visit to the Gulf nation or criticize what they say are repressive and discriminatory government practices.
In an Oct. 12 statement, Americans for Democracy and Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB) said that certain acts of friendship toward some religions “does not absolve a dictator of his repression and harassment of others.”
They noted that the majority of the population in Bahrain are Shia Muslims, who they said are “purposely kept down through religious discrimination, harassment, and by force.”
Because of this, the group called on Pope Francis “to reconsider this visit due to the rampant discrimination against Shia in Bahrain or to raise attention to these violations if he chooses to follow through with the visit.”
According to the U.S. State Department’s 2020 Report on International Religious Freedom, the government of Bahrain – whose constitution declares Islam as the official religion and sharia a guiding principle for legislation – continued to question, detain, and arrest clerics and other members of the majority Shia community.
The report stated that both international and local NGOs reported that Bahrani police had summoned roughly 10 people, including clerics, in the days leading up to and following the August Ashura commemoration, one of the most important days of the Shia religious calendar.
Citing Shia leaders and community activists, the report said that the Bahrain government “continued to give Sunni citizens preferential treatment for public sector positions,” and that unemployment rates, poverty, and limited opportunities for professional advancement disproportionately impacted the Shia community.
