Bahrain Archives | Elizabeth May

Subcommittee on International Human Rights of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development (SDIR)

Craig Cantin — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 23:49:50 +0000

The subcommittee met twice this week, on Tuesday, December 6 and on Thursday, December 8.

On Tuesday, the committee heard from Alex Neve, Secretary General, Amnesty International Canada, on the persecution of the Coptic Christian community in Egypt. Neve provided three reports to the committee.

Links:

Neve also noted concern for Naser Al-Raas, a Canadian tortured in Bahrain, in imminent danger of being returned to prison.

On Thursday, the committee heard from Colonel Wesley Martin, U.S. Army (retired), who appeared as an individual. He presented information on Camp Ashraf, Iraq, and detailed recommendations for the protection of the 34,00 men and women there. Two committee members, Wayne Marston (Hamilton East—Stoney Creek, NDP) and Hon. Irwin Cotler (Mount Royal, Lib.), stated they would like to see the subcommittee reach a decision on recommendations at its meeting on Tuesday, December 13.

As well, Irwin Cotler moved the motion by Russ Hiebert (South Surrey—White Rock—Cloverdale, CPC) from the previous parliament, which included reference to Ms. Shin Sook-ja and her two daughters, who may still be imprisoned in North Korea. The motion was adopted by consensus. Mr. Cotler noted that the adoption of the motion would be announced at the Council for Human Rights in North Korea meeting in Toronto on December 9.

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Canadian could face 5 years in prison for peaceful protest

Craig Cantin — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 07:59:08 +0000

After visiting Bahrain, Naser al Raas, a Canadian citizen, was arrested, tortured, and held in solitary confinement for one month. He was then released but has now been sentenced to charges that could lead to five years in prison. Mr. al Raas, who is presently working in Kuwait, was visiting his sister in Bahrain when he made the mistake of watching a protest. He was at the airport to return to work when arrested.

Joe Foster, Green Party Human Rights Critic, urges the Canadian Government to take immediate action to put pressure on the government of Bahrain regarding Naser. Foster stated, “The charges should be dropped and the sentence should be quashed. He definitely should not go to prison.”

What Bahrain is calling a “crime“ is the internationally recognized right of freedom of expression, association and assembly. It is a universal right (Article 20) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Bahrain is one of the Gulf States facing the Arab Awakening: people protesting for their rights and democracy. The Pakistan Green Party has also urged action, noting that Bahrain has also sentenced medics who treated protesters injured in the crackdown.

Elizabeth May, Member of Parliament for Saanich-Gulf Islands and Leader of the Green Party stated, “It is essential that Canada takes its traditional role of championing human rights and democracy during the process of finding peaceful solutions in response to the Arab Awakening.”

Amnesty International has started a campaign to drop the case against Naser:

http://www.amnesty.ca/iwriteforjustice/take_action.php?actionid=786&utm_source=Informz&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=Informz

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