The Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR) and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) organized an online side event in connection with the 47th Session of the UN Human Rights Council. The event was titled The Use of Torture: Suppression of Dissidents -- The Need for Accountability to End Torture in The Middle East.
In March 2021, GCHR and partner organizations published a report on torture and the lack of accountability in Bahrain, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Syria, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen. On June 21, 2021 GCHR hosted a side event co-moderated by Weaam Youssef, Manager of the Women Human Rights Defenders Programme of GCHR and Gerald Staberock of OMCT.
UN Special Rapporteur (SR) on the Use of Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, Nils Melzer gave an overview of his work. Torture is recognized as absolutely and universally prohibited, and never is lawful and justifiable. At the same time, it is practiced everywhere around the world. In the five years of his mandate, SR Melzer submitted many visit requests and official communications to the governments of Gulf countries, but received no response. He pointed out the issues of persistent lack of due process, use of anti-terrorism measures to justify torture, lack of independent investigations, and the culture of impunity.
FAWCO Member Asma Darwish (AAWE) is Head of Communications for the FAWCO Refugee Network, and Head of Advocacy at the Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR). Asma was one of the panelists at the event, and provided background on the situation of human rights in Bahrain. The BCHR report Bahrain: Torture is the Policy and Impunity is the Norm named victims and survivors, political activists, human rights defenders, prisoners on death row. She and the BCHR team face difficulties due to fears of reprisals. The report included already documented and reported incidents that had been publicly released. Since the 2011 Arab Spring movement, security forces in Bahrain have used widespread systematic inhumane treatment, brutality and physical and psychological torture against most detainees during arrest, detention, and pre-trial investigations. The targets were prominent opposition figures and civil society activists. Asma noted that, “It has been difficult to work on this report. It is personal sometimes, as torture has affected members of my own family.”
Human rights defenders from Syria, Iraq and Saudi Arabia also offered chilling reports from their countries, emphasizing the impacts of torture on victims and their families. As the UN Special Rapporteur commented when he thanked the speakers for their comments, it takes extreme courage to make public reports on torture by state officials. People who speak out against torture may be targeted for torture themselves.
You can see the video of the event on the GCHR YouTube channel.