Report of the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry

Chapter VI — Allegations of Human Rights Violations Against the Person
assembly, which is protected by the Constitution of Bahrain, 630 the ICCPR 631
and the Arab Charter. 632 Law enforcement officials have, under these two
articles, have the authority to take forceful measures to disperse individuals
who have not committed specific acts of violence or taken substantial steps in
that direction.
1288. Finally, the Commission considers that the GoB’s record in the cases
outlined above demonstrates substantial inconsistency. Upon inquiry by
Commission investigators, the Attorney General has not provided a reasonable
explanation for this disparity in treatment and unequal application of the law.
This raises the issue of whether the law has been applied fairly to all persons
charged with crimes that fall within the protected area of freedom of opinion,
speech and expression.
1289. The estimated 300 persons who were convicted under article 165,
168, 169 and 179 of the Bahrain Penal Code and charged with misdemeanours
received sentences of one year imprisonment per charge. Because of the
multiplicity of the charges, most received a cumulative consecutive sentence
of three years imprisonment. The Commission is also concerned that the
imposition of penalties in misdemeanour cases, in the application of articles
165, 168 and 169 of the Penal Code, has been cumulative for multiple charges
arising out of the same conduct, thus resulting in punishment equivalent to
that of felonies. This, in the view of the Commission, is disproportionate to
the objectives and interests that these articles seek to protect.
1290. The Attorney General has not dropped these charges nor has he
requested the Court of Appeals to reduce the sentences. The Commission has
been informed that at the next hearing the Attorney General will request the
Court of Appeals to reduce the sentences to time served. This means that the
longest penalty will be a few months imprisonment, but the validity of the
convictions will not be affected. Consequently, such persons will be deemed
to have a past criminal conviction with all attending personal and professional
consequences.
4. Recommendations
1291. The Commission recommends that all persons charged with offences
involving political expression, not consisting of advocacy of violence, have
their convictions reviewed and sentences commuted or, as the case may be,
outstanding charges against them dropped.
630 Constitution of Bahrain, art 28(b).
631 ICCPR, art 21.
632 Arab Charter, art 24.
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