Bahrain: Struggle for democracy continues

A little more than two years later, the situation has not improved.

Notable human rights issues include "systematic torture, arbitrary arrests, kangaroo trials and harsh sentences, excessive use of force against protesters, [and] extra-judicial killings" Maryam Al-Khawaja, acting president of Bahrain Centre for Human Rights (BCHR), recounts.

Al-Khawaja documents arbitrary house raids, which are widespread.

"House raids generally occur between one and four AM ... [when] masked security officials in civilian clothing, sometimes accompanied by riot police in uniform, break into the home," Al-Khawaja tells Ahram Online

Those who write anti-regime statements on Twitter are also subject to arrest.

In May, the BBC reported that six were jailed for insulting the king on Twitter.  Each was given one-year sentences for "freedom of expression misuse."

An amendment to the penal code – now awaiting the king’s ratification – would sentence king-offenders to five years in prison, in addition to a 10,000 BHD fine (US $26,400).

Torture is another major issue in the energy-rich country.

The February 14 Network – a youth group dedicated to "exposing oppression against the people of Bahrain"– released a 15-minute video portraying various incidents of torture in detention, including beatings, electrocution, and lockups in freezing chambers.

The Bahraini Independent Commission of Inquiry, tasked by the king to investigate the events of February and March 2011, called for investigations of 300 torture allegations.