18th February 2014

BAHRAIN MEDIA ROUNDUP

Bahrain: Outspoken activist fears rearrest days after her release
A Bahraini activist recently released from prison has told Amnesty International she fears she may be rearrested when she attends court this week to face further spurious charges.! !Zainab Al Khawaja was released on 16 February but is due to appear in court again on 19 February in two separate cases.! The Bahraini authorities must not place Zainab Al Khawaja behind bars yet again. Her release this week was long overdue, said Said Boumedouha, Deputy Director of the Middle East and North Africa Programme at Amnesty International.! Read More February 14, 2011. In this context, we asked Bahrainis and Bahrain observers on Twitter how they think the status of press freedom has changed in the country. We know what we think: The Bahraini government has fallen terribly short of its own rhetoric of reform. But we wanted to hear directly from those who work and live in Bahrain every day. Read More

The Crackdown Canada Condones

When an anti-government protest emerged in Libya in February 2011, Canadas response was swift. Within weeks of the rst demonstration, warships were dispatched to the Libyan coast. Soon after, Canadian warplanes were bombing targets and Stephen Harper was calling for regime change.

Almost simultaneously, mass demonstrations arose in Bahrain. These were immediately met with violence from the Bahraini regime. Protesters were attacked, detained, and brutally tortured. While Canada was helping to remove Libyas government for its alleged crimes against democracy, Bahrains uprising fell from favour in the Canadian media, and Canadian diplomats stayed quiet about Bahrains repressive measures. Read More

Press freedom in Bahrain three years after #Feb14

Three years ago, hundreds of thousands of Bahrainis descended to the streets to demand change. A harsh government crackdown and the turn to violence by some protesters have since dampened the hope lit on