British MP demands to stop Bahrain’s violations is increasing, with the number of British parliament members condemning the behaviour of the ruling regime in Manama.
The number of British MPs who signed a petition calling on Bahrain to stop violations against the opposition rose to 63 MPs from various parties and political trends.
The petition was first submitted on January 11 and was initially supported by six deputies before the number of signatories increased steadily.
According to its text published on the British Parliament’s website, the petition expresses “the council’s concern about the continuing grave violations of human rights in Bahrain, including the continued arbitrary detention and inhumane treatment of prisoners of conscience.”
The petition mentions several Bahraini opposition prisoners, including Abdul-Jalil Al-Singace, Hassan Mushaima, Abdul-Wahhab Hussain, Abdul-Hadi Al-Khawaja, and Sheikh Ali Salman.
The petition recalled that Freedom House classified Bahrain in its 2021 report as a not free country and ranked 150 out of 167 countries in the Global Democracy Index for 2020 and 168 out of 180 in the 2021 World Press Freedom Index.
The petition urged the Bahraini government “to release all prisoners of conscience, enable civil society representatives and human rights defenders to work freely, allow genuine political opposition, an independent media, and end the use of the death penalty.”
It also called for “launching an objective and comprehensive dialogue inside the country on political and constitutional reform, cooperating with human rights organizations and experts, including from the United Nations,” and conducting an “independent assessment of prison conditions and the reform agenda.”
The signatories called on the British government to review its funding provided to Bahrain, the joint agreements with it, and meet human rights defenders, organizations, representatives of civil society, and the peaceful Bahraini opposition.
He also urged members of the British parliament to “take concrete measures to hold Bahraini officials accountable and hold them responsible for the grave human rights violations” in the country.
Two weeks ago, diplomatic sources told “Bahraini Leaks” that the British government is seriously considering ending its relations with Bahraini institutions implicated in grave human rights violations.
This comes against the backdrop of widespread pressure on the British government due to details of a “scandal” that began to leak into the public eye about its financing from taxpayers’ money. These activities support the Bahraini Ministry of Interior and other bodies responsible for grave violations of human rights, detainees and activists.
The discussion parallels political moves in Britain, accusing Bahrain of trying to show its “green” image and the Gulf state promoting its credentials as a “green country” while continuing to participate in the war in Yemen.
British MPs are discussing the issue of supporting the UK government through taxpayers’ “activities” and funds belonging to the Bahrain regime accused of human rights violations.
