Human rights Report abuses in the countries south of persian gulf

By: Morteza Aminmansour

Human Rights Report abuses in the countries
South of the Persian gulf
Powerful governments and armed groups are deliberately fomenting fear to erode human rights and to create an increasingly polarized and dangerous world. Through short sighted, fear-mongering and divisive policies, governments are undermining the rule of law and human rights, feeding racism and xenophobia, dividing communities, intensifying inequalities and sowing the seeds for more violence and conflict.

During 2005 some of the world’s most powerful governments were successfully challenged, their hypocrisy exposed by the media, arguments rejected by courts of law, and repressive tactics resisted by human rights activists. After five years of backlash against human rights in the “war on terror”, the tide appeared to be turning. Nevertheless, the lives of millions of people worldwide were devastated by the denial of fundamental rights. Human security was threatened by war and attacks by armed groups as well as by hunger, disease and natural disasters. Freedoms were curtailed by repression, discrimination and social exclusion.This Amnesty International Report documents human rights abuses in 150 countries around the world. It highlights the need for governments, the international community, armed groups and others in positions of power or influence to take responsibility. It also reflects the vitality of human rights activists globally, whether in local initiatives, international summits or mass demonstrations.Outraged by continuing human rights abuses and inspired by hope, Amnesty International members and supporters around the world campaign for justice and freedom for all.

Middle east is known for human rights abuses in the last 50 years. The lives of millions of people are devastated by the denial of fundamental rights in the countries with oil that could practice the basic elements of democracy which included also free speech and political reform.
Here are some reports of these abuses in the countries sought of Persian gulf:

The Country Bahrain:

People were arrested in connection for expressing their opinion. Recently security police arrested human rights activists appeared before a court on charges that seemed to be politically motivated. The Ruler of this in elected and undemocratic country does not allow own people free speech in any form. Security forces used excessive force in many cases to disperse demonstrators in the capital al-Manama.
Police and security elements practice detention and torture without permit. A government which hesitates to observe the basic tenets of human rights and justice.
The political leaders and upper class Society that regularly and ridiculously disobeys the judicial verdict. The suffering of the inmates of the prisons under inhuman condition. The hypocrisy, arrogance and brutality of the Police and law enforcement agencies. The harsh experiences of the expatriates under this autocratic framework In May the UN Committee against Torture considered Bahrain’s report on its implementation of the UN Convention against Torture. The Committee regretted the government’s five-year delay in submitting the report. However this report is provided by the Rulers of the country and does not reflect the truth, the Committee expressed concern about the continuing “lack of a comprehensive definition of torture” in Bahraini law; the “provision of blanket amnesty to all alleged perpetrators of torture and other crimes by Decree 56 of 2002”; and the “lack of redress available to victims of torture”. It urged the government to adopt legislation to prevent and punish violence against sexual abuse and of women (which is very commend in this tiny country), including domestic violence, and to amend Decree 56 to “ensure there is no impunity for officials who have perpetrated or acquiesced in torture and other cruel and inhuman or degrading treatment”. There is no real general election in this country.The Country UAE:

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is a federation of seven Emirates established in 1971. None has any democratically elected institutions. Before British intervention, the area was notorious for its pirates and slave trade and was called the Pirate Coast.
The Emirates is one place where the court is a farce, where the judiciary is just eyewash, and the prisons diabolical. Shame on a country that has no respect for the law they themselves made. No general elections; however, citizens may express their concerns directly to their leaders through traditional consultative mechanisms, such as the open majlis, or council. A consultative body, the Federal National Council (FNC), consists of 40 advisors appointed by the Dictator emirate rulers for two-year terms. The civilian authorities generally maintained effective control of the security forces.

Prison conditions generally does not meet international standards; prison conditions varied widely from emirate to emirate, and some rural prisons were overcrowded and are kept in very bad living conditions.

Although the small Shi'a minority enjoyed commercial success, there are no Shi'a in top positions in the federal government.


Several political suspects were detained and held incommunicado at undisclosed locations, in some cases for months without letting these family members to visit them. Recently many political prisoners were alleged to have been tortured and at least one person, a foreign domestic worker, was sentenced to flogging. An application submitted in 2004 to establish an independent human rights organization was still not granted.
Although the law prohibits arrest or search without reasonable belief and evidence, but the government did not always observe these provisions in practice and try to ignore. There were many credible reports that security forces failed to obtain warrants in many cases. Indefinite detention and torture of prisoner in some cases without charge are permitted upon judicial review.

Political suspects were detained incommunicado and without charge for several months. Political detainees were mostly held by State Security (Amn al-Dawla) officials, apparently on suspicion of holding Islamist views or calling for political reforms, although no reasons were given for their arrest. They were held in solitary confinement and denied visitors.

The UAE's foreign policy, much like its domestic politics, has been defined largely by border disputes and the politics of the individual emirates. Currently the UAE has territorial disputes with three of its immediate neighbors: Iran, Oman and Qatar; in the past, it has clashed with Saudi Arabia as well. The most serious such conflict, however, is the long-standing dispute with Iran over three Iranian islands: Abu Musa and the Greater and Lesser Tunbs. Since 1992, this dispute has come to define the UAE's entire relationship with Iran. Iran claims that Britain took the islands from Iran and gave them to the Arabs in the nineteenth century. Iran has now built an airstrip, substantially increased its military presence (from 700 to 4,000 troops), and has opened a university.
The Iranian islands dispute has also caused serious friction within the UAE. Abu Dhabi has been careful to maintain some contact with Iran because of the large number of Iranian expatriates in the UAE and because of Iran's proximity.

Discrimination against women:Women continued to be subject to discrimination under UAE laws, including the nationality law. This specifies that women, unlike men, cannot pass on their UAE nationality to their children if their spouses are foreign nationals. These children, in consequence, suffer serious restrictions on their residency, employment, and education rights. They are considered migrant workers for employment purposes and required to pay higher fees for higher education.There is broad legal and societal discrimination against women. Shari'a, or Islamic law, governs the personal status of women, but civil law governs their activities in the civic and commercial sphere. The government was generally not effective in enforcing women's rights and protecting women from abuse.
Domestic abuse against women was a pervasive problem, with one study in February indicating that as many as 66 percent of all women permanently residing in the UAE had been subjected to domestic abuse. Almost 34 percent of respondents age 18 to 30 claimed to have been abused by a family member, and over 50 percent of respondents said that they witnessed their mothers being abused in the home.
The Country Oman:

Scores of people were arrested in connection with calls for political reform. Most were released without charge; many of them were tried and sentenced to prison terms but released under an amnesty. The head of state commuted a death sentence imposed in 2004 for murder. Other government critics who also called for political reform were arrested during the year, including two prisoners of conscience.
According to Amnesty international report: torture and ill-treatment/Possible prisoner of conscience were reported in the last few years.
Omani laws and practices continued to discriminate against women in a number of important respects, including personal status, employment and participation in public life. Domestic violence and raping women remained a concern and the government is not able to protect women against their partners violence. Women are especially vulnerable to sexual abuse also inside the family.

The Country Qatar:

Up to 6,000 members of a Qatari tribe were arbitrarily deprived of Qatari nationality. Women faced discrimination under a range of laws and practices. At least 19 people remained under sentence of death.As many as 6,000 members of the Al-Ghufran branch of the Al-Murra tribe were deprived of Qatari nationality between October 2004 and June 2005 on grounds, believed to be spurious, that they were nationals of other countries. Some were reportedly forced to leave Qatar to seek resettlement in neighboring countries, or detained and tortured, despite guarantees in the new Constitution against the deportation of Qatari nationals.
There are no democratically elected institutions or political parties. There are no general elections;
The Country Kuwait:
Although women gained the right to vote and stand for political office under a new electoral law, which took effect on 16, May. Under the law, women are required to abide by Shari’a (Islamic law) when voting or standing for election.Migrant workers, who constitute a large part of Kuwait’s workforce, protested against working conditions, non-payment of wages, arbitrary pay cuts, ill-treatment, unsatisfactory living conditions, and non-renewal of residence permits. The authorities said they were considering changes to the country’s labor laws to improve conditions for migrant workers, but did not take any action to correct and protect Migrant workers from further discrimination. Women migrant workers in domestic service were especially vulnerable to sexual abuse because of discriminatory legislation and practices, and the exclusion of domestic workers from the protection of labor laws. They suffered gender-based violence, including rape by employers or their associates, and had little recourse given the prevailing climate of impunity for perpetrators of crimes against migrant domestic workers.The country Saudi Arabia:

Killings by security forces and armed groups escalated, exacerbating the already grim human rights situation. Scores of people were arrested for suspected links with armed opposition groups but little information was available about their legal status or conditions in detention. Women remained subject to extensive discrimination in law and practice, and inadequately protected against violence in the home, there were no signs of reform. Migrant workers also faced discrimination and abuse at work and in the society. Many men and women were executed, almost all of them did not get fair trail. Suffering gender-based violence is very commend in this country.

The exclusion of women from participation in the municipal elections was widely criticized by women’s rights activists. The government said that there were not enough qualified women to administer women-only registration centers and that not all women had identification cards needed for voting. In response to the criticisms, the Head of the Elections Committee said that he expected that women would participate in future elections.


Death penalty:
Political Prisoner were executed even though they had served their prison sentences and been subjected to corporal punishment. Neither they nor their families were aware that they were at risk of execution, and they had not had access to consular or legal assistance.
Suliamon Olyfemi, a Nigerian, remained under sentence of death. He had been convicted of murder after a trial in November 2004 during which he had no legal representation or translation services from Arabic, which he did not understand.
. Defendants (also political prisoner) in capital cases often do not have legal representation and are not informed of the progress of the proceedings. There was concern that some defendants (political prisoner) were convicted and sentenced to death solely or largely on the basis of confessions obtained under duress, torture or deception.Several diplomatic missions again expressed concern that authorities in UAE failed to provide consular notification when their citizens were detained or arrested.
"Of one Essence is the human race,
Thusly has Creation put the Base;
'
One Limb impacted is sufficient,
For all others to feel the Mace."

Source:
The United Arab Emirates Report(Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor -March 8, 2006)Reports on Human Rights Practices in the UAE' (2005)
Amnesty international report 2005-2006
UAEprisoner.com
Wisdom of Saadi, Saadi (1184 – 1283) is one of the major Persian poets of the medieval period