Amnesty International: Bahrain: Bail set for prominent activist but no
 

26-05-12 09:40 PM

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URGENT ACTION
23 May 2012
On 20 May a Bahraini court granted bail to the prominent human rights activist Nabeel Rajab. However the charges of ‘insulting a national institution’ have not been dropped and, despite paying the bail amount, he remains in detention awaiting another court hearing on a separate charge. This hearing is scheduled for 28 May.

On 20 May a lower criminal court in Bahrain granted the prominent human rights activist Nabeel Rajab bail of BD300 (800 USD) in connection with his charge of “insulting a national institution” on Twitter. However the charge has not been dropped and on 23 May the case was adjourned until 24 June. Despite the fact that Nabeel Rajab has paid the bail, he remains in detention because he still faces a separate trial for allegedly calling on people to join him in illegal marches. A hearing for this charge has been postponed until 28 May. A travel ban has also been imposed on Nabeel Rajab.
Nabeel Rajab was arrested on 5 May on the charge of “insulting a national institution” via Twitter after he had posted comments on the social networking site. On 16 May, he appeared before a lower criminal court in Manama, the capital of Bahrain, He reportedly told the court that the charge was vindictive, and explained that the decision to arrest and try him was political. He reportedly said: “I only practised my right to free expression. I did not commit a crime. The decision to arrest me and put me on trial was a political decision”.
Nabeel Rajab is the President of the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights and the Director of the Gulf Centre for Human Rights. He has been targeted previously for his pro-democracy and human rights work, alongside other activists who have called for peaceful anti-government protests in recent months. Nabeel Rajab organised a protest calling for the release of political prisoners on 6 February 2012. During the protest, he was attacked by riot police who punched him several times in the face, head and back. He said: “I fell on the ground but they continued to beat me – they even stamped on me and kicked me”.
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