Political prisoners walk free as Bahrain pardons 457 prisoners
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Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa issues a royal decree pardoning 457 inmates to foster "social cohesion" and celebrate his 25 years on the throne.
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Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa attends a meeting with the Russian Foreign Minister in the capital Manama, on May 31, 2022. (Russian Foreign Ministry/AFP)
Dozens of prisoners were freed from a Bahraini prison on Thursday following a royal pardon of over 450 inmates, including political prisoners arrested during the 2011 protest crackdown.
Videos shared on social media captured emotional reunions outside Jau prison, where women awaited the release of their sons and husbands.
Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa issued a decree pardoning 457 prisoners to promote "social cohesion" and mark his 25th anniversary on the throne, according to the official Bahrain News Agency (BNA).
This pardon follows another five months ago when over 1,500 inmates were released in the largest amnesty in years, as Bahrain seeks to ease tensions stemming from its suppression of 2011 protests. While the government denies holding political prisoners, many have been detained since the protests.
Although BNA did not provide details on who was pardoned, the UK-based Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (BIRD) confirmed that political prisoners were released, with around 100 inmates freed so far.
BIRD's advocacy director, Sayed Alwadaei, called the pardon "a significant step forward" and noted that one of those released was Ali Sanqoor, a renowned political activist who was imprisoned over a decade ago after being photographed shirtless, arms outstretched, in front of oncoming tanks.
Last year, in a Bahraini prison predominantly detaining political prisoners, at least 500 prisoners went on hunger strike as they refused food in protest at their detention conditions. The hunger strike began on August 7, but multiple prisoners have since joined.
According to Sayed Alwadaei, who was a former inmate at Jau prison and currently works at the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (BIRD), the ongoing hunger strike “is probably one of the most powerful strikes that has ever happened inside the Bahraini prison system; the scale of it is overwhelming.”
In turn, Al-Wefaq, one of Bahrain's biggest opposition parties, released a statement by the striking inmates in which they demand extended time outside their cells, allow prayers in congregation at the prison mosque, changes to reduce constraints on family visits, and also improvements to education facilities and access to proper medical care.
In early March 2023, Bahrain's Al-Wefaq Society highlighted in a report that more than 14,000 cases of arbitrary arrest have taken place in Bahrain since 2011, noting that security campaigns and violations affected 15 former MPs, who were targeted by the authorities in Bahrain over their stances on freedom of expression.
Al-Wefaq confirmed that many political detainees had died during the last period inside Bahrain's prisons as a result of the deadly conditions inside, such as the unhealthy environment, the denial of the necessary treatment, and the abuse. It also revealed that many detainees had died due to torture.
