LONDON: Al-Singace was arrested at Manama Airport on the morning of 13 August, as he and his family returned to the country from London. He only had access to his lawyer after almost two weeks in incommunicado detention. Al-Singace, spokesperson for Haq (Haq movement of Civil Liberties and Democracy), accused Bahraini authorities of torturing him whilst in detention. Other human rights defenders who were also arrested were taken to hospital to receive treatment for injuries as a result of suspected torture. The Bahrain Centre for Human Rights (BCHR) has reported that the total number of activists arrested during the recent crackdown is 200. The BHCR have also recorded many witness statements describing brutal torture techniques. Al-Singace has described to his lawyer the brutal torture he endured which included being kept in solitary confinement for a fortnight, his crutches and wheel chair were taken away from him and he was forced to stand for hours on one leg because of the paralysis in his other leg, he was stripped naked and beaten repeatedly, the masked torturers used electric shock devices which they attached to his ears and nipples, he was repeatedly slapped across the face and ears till he partially lost his hearing, he was forced to listen to the screaming of other prisoners who were being tortured and he was forced to sign statements written by the authorities. According to the BCHR other key members of the human rights movement in Bahrain have been taken to hospital after the suspected torture they received during their detainment, vocal critics such as Shaikh Mohammed Habib Almuqdad, Abdulghani Khanjar and Abdulhadi Alsaffer. Such brutal measures used by the Bahraini authorities clearly violate numerous articles within the International Covenant on Civil and Political (ICCPR). Violent measures to suppress the plight of human rights defenders will be counterproductive and lead to increased violence and unrest. Until the key issues of civil and economic inequalities experienced by the Shia majority are addressed there will be no progression towards a harmonious society. Bahraini authorities have an obligation to investigate the accusations of torture and prosecute the guilty parties responsible for the authorization and act of torturing. IHRC
