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GENEVA / HRC BAHRAIN
STORY: GENEVA / HRC BAHRAIN
TRT: 2.41
SOURCE: CH UNTV
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 19 SEPTEMBER 2012, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
FILE – 2011, PALAIS DES NATIONS, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
1. Wide shot, exterior United Nations Palais, Geneva
19 SEPTEMBER 2012, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
2. Pan right, HRC
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Shaikh Khalid Bin Ahmed Bin Mohammed al Khalifa, Foreign Minister of Bahrain:
“We believe we have put to good use the 176 recommendations received at Bahrain's second Universal Periodic Review. After careful deliberation and consultation, the government of Bahrain is please to fully accept 145 of them and partially accept 13 more.”
4. Cutaway, podium
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Shaikh Khalid Bin Ahmed Bin Mohammed al Khalifa, Foreign Minister of Bahrain:
“Every person has the right to disagree with, or dissent from, their Government, and to state that disagreement or dissent publicly - and of course within the limits of orderly discourse in a democratic society. But no-one has the right to force factionalism upon a society against its will. We welcome peaceful expressions of disagreement but no incitements to hatred and violence which damage the social fabric of a nation.”
6. Cutaway, delegation of Bahrain
7. SOUNDBITE (English) Shaikh Khalid Bin Ahmed Bin Mohammed al Khalifa, Foreign Minister of Bahrain:
“I emphasize that there is no limit to our efforts to bring about positive and lasting change in the human rights situation in Bahrain.”
8. Cutaway, US delegation
9. SOUNDBITE (English) Shaikh Khalid Bin Ahmed Bin Mohammed al Khalifa, Foreign Minister of Bahrain:
“All parts of society should join in. All groups with political aspirations should move away from the politics of the street to the politics of the table. In the real world, what works is cooperation.”
10. Cutaway, Russian Delegation
11. SOUNDBITE (English) Michael Posner, Assistant Secretary, United States:
“While official media have reported some initial progress on accountability including charges brought against police officers announced earlier this week, much more needs to be done. The Government needs to ensure accountability and successfully prosecute officers in these cases and also to make progress in other areas.”
12. Cutaway, Tunisian Delegation
13. SOUNDBITE (English) Julie de Hivero, Human Rights Watch:
“Bahrain did not respond to concerns that its penal code and law regulating associations fall short of respecting international standards and allow for the prosecution of individuals in violation of their rights to free expression, association and peaceful assembly. The government of Bahrain should stop denying that human rights are being violated and take concrete steps to address the concerns reflected in the UPR debate.”
14. Tilt up, from camera screen to room
Bahrain today (19 September) accepted 145 of 176 recommendations made in the Human Rights Council's review last May of the Bahraini human rights situation where they faced sharp criticism of its handling of civil unrest and the alleged suppression of free expression.
Shaikh Khalid Bin Ahmed Bin Mohammed Al Khalifa, the Foreign Minister, told delegates in the Human Rights Council at the United Nations in Geneva that Bahrain had partially accepted 13 more, relating to issues of criminal justice and the prevention of torture, among others.
"There is no limit to our efforts to bring about positive and lasting change in the human rights situation in Bahrain."
Al Khalifa called on all segments of Bahraini society to work together to bring positive change in their country and called for "dialogue not propaganda". He said that everyone had the right to peacefully express disagreement with their Government but not to "force factionalism upon a society against its will" nor to incite hatred and violence which damage the social fabric of a nation. He called for a move away from "politics of the street to politics of the table."
The Foreign Minister said security officials have been prosecuted resulting in three convictions of police officers; compensation has been paid to families of those killed during the unrest; the definition of torture in the penal code has been amended; and the protection for freedom of expression has been expanded to bring them into line with international law.
While several delegates from regional countries expressed their support for Bahrain's reforms, other delegations felt that the reforms had not gone far enough and that more still needs to be done. The delegate for the United States called for more accountability for police and security officers charged with violations, saying that the Bahraini government appears to be losing momentum in the implementation of these reforms.
Amnesty International criticized the restriction of political association and freedom of expression, as well as the upholding of harsh sentences imposed on prisoners of conscience. Human Rights Watch called on the Government of Bahrain to "stop denying that human rights are being violated" and to take concrete steps to address the concerns expressed in the Council's Review of their human rights record.
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