Dear Friends,<\/p>\n
Last week, on 16 August 2012, FIDH Deputy Secretary General, Nabeel Rajab, President of Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR), was sentenced to three years\u2019 imprisonment by the Lower Criminal Court in Manama, Bahrain, in relation to three cases brought against him over the past months. These are as follows:<\/p>\n
Nabeel was charged with \u201cparticipating in an illegal assembly\u201d and \u201ccalling others to join\u201d, following a protest organised on 31 March 2012 in Manama to denounce the detention of the founder of GCHR, former President of the BCHR, and former MENA Director at Front Line, Mr. Abdulhadi Al Khawaja.<\/p>\n
Nabeel\u2019s second charge was for \u201cinvolvement in illegal practices and incitement to gatherings and calling for unauthorised marches through social networking sites\u201d following preparations for a protest in Manama on 12 January 2012.<\/p>\n
The third charge against Nabeel concerned \u201cparticipating in an illegal assembly\u201d in relation to several protests that took place in Manama in February 2012.<\/p>\n
This week, on August 23, 2012, Nabeel Rajab was acquitted in another case by the Higher Appeals Court after a tweet he posted on his Twitter account on 2 June 2012, criticising the Bahraini government. However, he remains arbitrarily detained on the basis of the three other cases.<\/p>\n
We are all the more concerned that on August 23, Mr. Rajab stated in court that he had been subjected to physchological and physical torture.<\/p>\n
These acts of judicial harassment and Nabeel\u2019s on-going arbitrary detention aim to stifle his legitimate use of the right to freedom of expression and assembly, and to hinder his human rights activities.<\/p>\n
Since 16 August 2012, FIDH has taken a number of steps to call for Nabeel\u2019s immediate and unconditional release, including through:<\/p>\n
– An urgent appeal of the Observatory (16 August):\u00a0http:\/\/www.fidh.org\/Bahrain-