Contents
1. Summary
2. Background
3. Action required
4. Sample letter
5. Addresses for sample letters
1. Summary
As the Islamic Awakening in Bahrain has ended its first year, Hassan Mushaima still languishes in prison.
Write letters and emails to your country’s foreign minister, and your local MP. Demand that your foreign minister explain their indifference to the plight of Hassan Mushaima, and ask your MP to raise his plight in Parliament.
2. Background
Hassan Mushaima, the sixty-five year old leader of the Haq Movement, has been imprisoned in Bahrain since 22 June 2011. He was sentenced by a military court to life imprisonment for having led popular protests against the Bahraini regime.
In January, IHRC continued its campaign against the Bahraini regime and its treatment of Hassan whilst in prison. The medical treatment that he requires in order to prevent the reoccurrence of his cancer is still not being given to him.
Almost ten months since sentencing, and his circumstances are unchanged. He is still being detained unjustly, denied urgent medical treatment, and denied fair treatment by the prison authorities.
The unwillingness of Western powers to act on the unjust incarceration of Hassan Mushaima is demonstrative of the massive gulf that still exists between actions and words. The continued oppression of Hassan Mushaima is a testament to ‘business as usual’ on the island.
3. Action Required
IHRC requests its campaigners and supporters to write letters and emails to the foreign minister of their country, and the MP representing their constituency. Demand that your foreign minister explain their indifference to the plight of Hassan Mushaima, and ask your MP to raise his case in Parliament.
4. Sample letter
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Sample letters are given below for your convenience. Please note that model letters can be sent directly or adjusted as necessary to include further details. If you receive a reply to the letter you send, we request you to send a copy of the letter you sent and the reply you received to IHRC. This is very important as it helps IHRC to monitor the situation with regards to our campaigns and to improve upon the current model letters.
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a) Minister of foreign affairs in your country. UK campaigners can write using the address supplied below.
Rt Hon. William Hague MP
Foreign & Commonwealth Office,
King Charles Street,
London,
SW1A 2AH,
United Kingdom.
Email: private.office@fco.gov.uk
[Your name]
[Your address]
[Date]
Dear Mr Hague,
Re: Explanation of indifference to the case of Hassan Mushaima.
Hassan Mushaima is the leader of the Haq Movement in Bahrain. He was sentenced by a military court in June 2011 to life imprisonment, along with thirteen other activists that were also sentenced.
He was imprisoned for leading and taking part in the country’s mass demonstrations against the Bahraini regime in the spring. The trial has been condemned for having not met the standards of freedom and fairness that would be accorded by an independent court.
Since being imprisoned, Hassan has been denied the basic treatment that he requires to prevent the recurrence of cancer. He was put on this course of treatment in 2010 by medical experts at the Royal Marsden hospital in London, having been successfully treated for the illness.
According to his family, the sixty-five year old opposition leader is in particularly frail health due to being neglected and maltreated while imprisoned.
Why have you not requested that the British ambassador to Bahrain monitors the health status of Mushaima? Why have you not demanded that he is immediately released?
I look forward to you reply.
Yours sincerely,
b) The MP representing your constituency. You can find the names and contact details of your MP at the following link. A sample letter has been provided below.
[Your name]
[Your address]
[Date]
Dear [Name of MP] MP,
Re: Question in Parliament about imprisonment of Hassan Mushaima in Bahrain.
Hassan Mushaima is the leader of the Haq Movement in Bahrain. He was sentenced by a military court in June 2011 to life imprisonment, along with thirteen other activists that were also sentenced. He was imprisoned for leading and taking part in the country’s mass demonstrations against the Bahraini regime in the spring. The trial has been condemned for having not met the standards of freedom and fairness that would be accorded by an independent court.
Since being imprisoned, Hassan has been denied the basic treatment that he requires to prevent the recurrence of cancer. He was put on this course of treatment in 2010 by medical experts at the Royal Marsden hospital in London, having been successfully treated for the illness.
According to his family, the sixty-five year old opposition leader is in particularly frail health due to being neglected and maltreated while imprisoned.
As my representative in Parliament, I kindly request that you raise a question in the House of Commons regarding the lack of attention and support given to Hassan Mushaima by the government. Why have they not acted to protect the rights of Hassan Mushaima, and ensured that he is immediately released?
I look forward to you reply.
Yours sincerely,
[Your signature]
[Your name]
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5. Addresses for sample letters
a) Minister of foreign affairs in Canada.
Canadian campaigners can write to:
Minister of Foreign Affairs – John Baird
Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada
125 Sussex Drive
Ottawa, ON, Canada
K1A 0G2
Telephone: 613-995-1851
b) Minister for Foreign Affairs in Australia
Australian campaigners can write to:
The Hon Kevin Rudd MP
House of Representatives
Parliament House
Canberra ACT 2600
Telephone: 02 6277 7500
c) Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia
Indonesian campaigners can write to:
Dr. R.M. Marty M. Natalegawa
Jl. Pejambon No.6.
Jakarta Pusat, 10110
Indonesia
Telephone: (+62 21) 344 15 08
d) Minister of Foreign Affairs of Malaysia
Malaysian campaigners can write to:
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“And what reason have you that you should not fight in the way of Allah and of the weak among the men and the women and the children, (of) those who say: Our Lord! Cause us to go forth from this town, whose people are oppressors, and give us from Thee a guardian and give us from Thee a helper.”
Holy Qur’an: Chapter 4, Verse 75
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