Report of the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry

Report of the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry
of SMC are based on witness statements and footage from the premises.
Photographs received by the Commission show protesters, including some
medical staff, participating in protests inside and outside SMC. Several
aspects of the marches and protests near SMC are controversial. The accused
medical staff allege that protests took place after work hours and that the
organised tents and podiums where approved by the MoH. The Bahrain Code
of Medical Ethics does not permit protests or marches to take place during
work hours. 450 The Commission could not confirm whether accused medical
staff took part in protests during work hours. The organisers of any public
meeting are required under Bahraini law to notify the head of Public Security
at least three days in advance and there is no indication that such requests
were submitted or granted. 451 In addition, according to Bahrain law, protests
are for security and public order reasons not allowed to be organised close to a
hospital. 452 Yet as mentioned above, photographs and video clips show
protests taking place both inside and outside the hospital.
838. The evidence presented to the Commission reveals that a number of
injured expatriates who were brought to SMC were first attacked by protesters
in different locations in the city and that they were also assaulted by the
protesters in front of the Emergency Section. Video tapes and witness
statements show cases of mistreatment against patients because they were
Sunni expatriate workers and thought to be part of the security forces. Such
conduct, which is on tape and supported by the statements is in contravention
of the Bahrain Code of Medical Ethics. Further, statements by witnesses
suggest that the manner in which some of the doctors treated some injured
expatriate persons rises to a level of human insensitivity and professional
disregard for medical ethics.
839. As a result of the general situation in Bahrain as well as the specific
events at the GCC Roundabout, and also as a result of the seizure of the
external part of SMC by the protesters who controlled access to the hospital,
particularly on 14 and 15 of March 2011, the number of external patients
accessing the hospital was significantly reduced. Statistics on admissions
show a reduction in the number of admitted patients of approximately 50%
and also a 30% reduction in the number of non-emergency surgeries. 453
Thereafter, the clearance of the hospital by military and security personnel on
16 March may have also contributed to the reduction in the number of patients
admitted to SMC for a certain period of time.
840. The Commission did not deem it part of its mandate to make an
inventory of medical supplies at SMC or to determine whether these supplies
were used in the hospital or at the tent at the GCC Roundabout. However,
there is no evidence to support the allegation that medical personnel
misappropriated medical supplies. In relation to the claim by the GoB that
protesters used ambulances to transport protesters between the roundabout and
450 Bahrain Medical Society Charter of Medical Ethics,
451 Decree Law No. 18 of 1973 as amended by Law No. 32 of 2006, art 3.
452 Decree Law No. 18 of 1973 as amended by Law No. 32 of 2006, art 11(b).
453 File presented to the Commission by SMC entitled “Salmaniya Medical Complex Statistics
between 14 February and 22 March 2011”.
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