On Monday 28 January, the spokesperson for the European External Action Service condemned the decision made earlier in the day by the Supreme Court of Cassation of Bahrain to sentence Sheikh Ali Salman, the Secretary-General of the banned Shiite opposition party, Al-Wefaq, and two of the party’s members, Sheikh Hassan Sultan and Ali al-Aswad, to life imprisonment.
This judgement, which upholds the life sentences handed down by Bahrain’s Court of Appeals in November 2018 (see EUROPE 12130), “marks a further step against dissenting voices and undermines the residual chances for an inclusive political dialogue in the Kingdom of Bahrain”, said the spokesperson in a statement.
The three men were convicted of “spying on behalf of a foreign state [Qatar, editor's note] in order to overthrow the government".
According to the European Union spokesperson, “the European Union expects Bahrain to fulfil its international and national human rights obligations, including guaranteeing the right to a fair trial, in the interest of the long-term stability of the country and its citizens”.
The European Union has closely followed the case involving the members of Al-Wefaq (see EUROPE 11123) and on several occasions since 2014 has expressed its concerns about the increasingly limited political space in Bahrain, including for non-violent opposition. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)