HRW asks Bahrain’s Al Khalifah regime to restore citizenship to 100s of nationals

Human Rights Watch has called on Bahraini authorities to restore citizenship to hundreds of nationals, whom have been affected by executive orders or court decisions as the ruling Al Khalifah regime pushes ahead with its heavy-handed crackdown on pro-democracy campaigners, journalists and religious scholars.

Human Rights Watch has called on Bahraini authorities to restore citizenship to hundreds of nationals, whom have been affected by executive orders or court decisions as the ruling Al Khalifah regime pushes ahead with its heavy-handed crackdown on pro-democracy campaigners, journalists and religious scholars.

According to the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (BIRD), Manama regime officials have stripped at least 738 nationals – 232 in 2018 alone – of their citizenship since 2012, rendering most of them stateless.

“Bahrain seems intent on earning the dubious honor of leading the region in stripping citizenship,” Eric Goldstein, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch, said.

He added, “While authorities claim that these acts are linked to national security, they are in fact punishing many people merely for peacefully voicing dissent.”

BIRD highlighted that either civil or military courts have issued all known citizenship revocations since the beginning of the current year.

Human Rights Watch has recorded widespread violations of fair trial in both court systems. The violations include a lack of access to lawyers, especially during interrogation, and confessions under duress.