Brussels, 21/11/2012 (Agence Europe) - On Wednesday 21 November, the non-governmental organisation Amnesty International urged the EU to take greater action to remedy the continued violations of human rights in Bahrain.
“We urge the EU and the wider international community to address the gap between rhetoric and reality and press for full implementation of the findings of the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry”, stated the director of Amnesty International's European Institutions Office, Nicolas Beger. In Beger's view, the scale and nature of the violations in Bahrain since the commission of inquiry made its recommendations make “a mockery” of the country's reform process. Despite its support for the commission of inquiry, “the EU has since failed to uphold the importance of human rights in Bahrain even though repression by the authorities has expanded”, Beger said, regretting the EU's silence on the “widespread and well documented” abuses of the government.
In Beger's opinion, the EU has confined itself to asking that “all sections of Bahraini society contribute to dialogue and national reconciliation in a peaceful and constructive manner”.
EU calls for reforms and cooperation. Michael Mann, the spokesperson for High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton, told EUROPE that despite the progress of the Bahraini government in implementing the recommendations of the commission of inquiry “there is still much to do”. In Mann's opinion, “we are calling on the government of Bahrain to stay committed to this task and to deal in particular with the socio-economic grievances of the people. The success of this process depends on the constructive cooperation between the government, the opposition and all the citizens”, he said. “We urge all parties to engage in a peaceful dialogue as quickly as possible and without prerequisites, rejecting violence in all its forms”, he concluded. (CG/transl.fl)