Brussels, 11/03/2013 (Agence Europe) - When visiting Brussels, Bahraini members of parliament called on the EU to leave Bahrain time to build its democracy - which dates back to 2002. “The EU sometimes seems to have more interest for our country than ourselves, and this is bad”, said Isa Abdul Jabbar Al Kooheji, recalling that “the democracy must be made by ourselves” and not imported. Yet he said that the EU can help, for example, by explaining how to implement the laws - including those on the violation of human rights. The members of parliament underlined Bahrain's progress in terms of human rights - particularly with the creation of a minister for human rights. “We are in the process of learning. We can say that positive progress has been made”, Al Kooheji added. In the view of Somay Abdul Rahman Al Jowder, numerous laws have been taken in conformity with international standards - such as the amendment of the penal code, the setting up of investigations in cases of torture in prison, and a new law on the media. The ambassador of Bahrain, Ahmed Mohamed Aldoseri, added that this country is working with the EU on training in the judicial system in human rights.
In the face of EU concerns about the implementation of the recommendations of the Bahraini Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI), Aldoseri seemed optimistic: “Some recommendations have been applied directly. For others this takes a bit of time because the legislator has to adopt them”, he said, adding that apart from the recommendation of the death penalty, they have all been tackled at different levels. A BICI report from November 2012 highlights the ongoing progress in implementing its recommendations.
In the opinion of Abdul Hakeem Ebrahim Muhammed Alshamary, the opposition is using external media to give a false image of Bahrain. He who participates in the national dialogue recalled, for example, that it is open to all the stakeholders, including the opposition. He seemed confident about this dialogue. “I believe it is moving in the right direction with regard to compromises and discussions and hopes, and in order to strengthen our progress towards a better democracy”, he said.
Everyone refuted the existence of political prisoners, which is denounced by the opposition. Aldoseri said that these people are calling for the government to fall by force and have connections with Hezbollah or Iran. In the view of Al Jowder, “these people are in prison because they have broken numerous rules (…) and not in direct relation with political reasons”. “There is a division between freedom and a bad use of this freedom”, she said (our translation throughout). (CG/transl.fl)