The Bahraini Foreign Ministry expressed its regret on Thursday over a report issued by the US Department of State on Human Rights in 2017, describing it as unfair, and stressing Bahrain’s commitment to rights and freedoms.
“The report does not reflect the reality of human rights in the Kingdom of Bahrain, neither the efforts nor successive achievements made by the Kingdom thanks to the reform approach adopted by the King,” Ambassador Abdullah Al Dosari, Assistant Foreign Minister of Bahrain told Asharq Al-Awsat.
In a statement, the Bahraini ministry expressed its disappointment over the report’s false information on human rights in Bahrain as well as its disregard of the progress made by the Kingdom in promoting and protecting human rights.
“The report harms the impartiality and independence of Bahrain’s longstanding judiciary and includes the names of persons convicted in criminal cases, calling them political or human rights activists, despite the fact that they were convicted of crimes punishable by law and sat for a series of trials that offered all litigation guarantees, including the right to defense and independent judiciary,” Dosari stated.
“The ministry hopes that in the future such reports will be more fair and informed, and will obtain information from credible sources, institutions and stakeholders to be neutral and non-selective,” the ministry’s statement read.
