Bahrain: US State Department's report on human rights is not objective

The Bahraini Foreign Ministry expressed its disapproval of the report issued by the US State Department on Friday April 19 2013 regarding human rights in Bahrain. It believes the report lacks objectivity and neutrality, and neglects the progress Bahrain has made in protecting and promoting human rights, particularly in light of the historical relations between the two friendly countries.

In a press statement released today, the Bahraini Foreign Ministry said “the report did not shed light on the most prominent measures taken by Bahrain towards consolidating human rights constants and gains, which the country has worked hard on protecting. It also undermined the independence of the judicial system and overlooked several facts and figures mentioned by the unit tasked with the implementation of recommendations set by the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI) in its most recent report in November 2012.”

“Furthermore, the report contradicted the facts mentioned in the BICI report and did not state the achievements and reforms made since then, especially those related to the security sector including arrest measures and detention conditions, human rights and freedom of expression and assembly guarantees provided for in the Constitution and the law of Bahraini human rights.”

The ministry also added that the report failed to take into account official information provided by the government, which was based on a request from the US embassy, before preparing the aforementioned report. This detracts from its credibility and renders it insignificant.