Rioters on the rampage, people affected

Manama: A human rights organisation has recorded as many as 200 cases of abuse by anti-government rioters, who were marking the fifth anniversary of the 2011 anti-government riots.

 In the past four days, various human rights violations were recorded against them. With its new initiative named “The EYE centre”, Bahrain Human Rights Watch Society (BHRWS) has been recording the human rights violations committed by the rioters. 

The violations comprised mainly of child abuse and abuse against expatriate shopkeepers.  BHRWS General Coordinator Faisal Fulad said: “A vast majority of the violations were against children. They were forced to engage in illegal activities for the benefit of the anti-government protesters. They were asked to block roads or throw rocks or even Molotovs at police officers. The children even do not know how to handle the Molotov, it’s completely unsafe.”   “The rioters also prevented children from going to schools by blocking roads. In many cases, nails were planted on the roads or tyres or other items were placed to block the road. We also learned that people of the affected locality felt threatened, their daily lives were hindered,” he explained.

“Many people from the villages had to leave the area and go to unaffected areas such as Muharraq. Many chose to go to shopping malls in Seef such as City Centre or Seef mall. They stayed there for the entire day until the violence was over,” he added. 

Fulad criticised Al Wefaq leaders for not speaking out against violence. “They do not make it clear that they want peaceful protest. If they are for peaceful protest, they should denounce the violence,” he opined.