Rights organizations call on Biden administration to shift US policy toward Bahrain
A woman holds a placard featuring portraits of jailed political activists during an anti-government protest, in the village of Jannusan, Bahrain, 5 September 2014, MOHAMMED AL-SHAIKH/AFP via Getty Images
In a joint letter to President Elect Joseph Biden, organizations raise their concerns about the deteriorating political situation in Bahrain and urge him to ensure that democracy and human rights are returned to the center of American foreign policy.
This statement was originally published on adhrb.org on 16 December 2020.
Dear President Elect Joseph Biden-
We the undersigned organizations are writing to offer our sincere congratulations for your election to the presidency of the United States. We are writing to raise our concerns about the deteriorating political situation in Bahrain and urge you to ensure that democracy and human rights are returned to the center of American foreign policy. As you are no doubt aware, Bahrain’s 2011 Arab Spring uprising, which saw thousands peacefully protest to demand democratic change, was violently and brutally suppressed by the Alkhalifa regime of Bahrain, in a barrage of human rights violations followed by the imposition of draconian measures.