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Bahrain Center for Human Rights - May 10, 2009
The Bahrain Centre for human rights (BCHR) and the Bahrain Youth Society for Human Rights (BYSHR) are gravely concerned upon hearing that human rights defender Mr. Jaafar Kadhim was severely beaten after being abducted by 5-6 men in plain clothes.
Jaafar Kadhim is currently at Salmania Public Hospital where he is being treated for severe injuries in the head; face and back (see photos). He told representatives of BCHR and BYSHR that on May 7, 2009at 20:45, while he was driving close to Jidhafs Medical Centre west of the capital Manama, his car was stopped by two cars, a red Tida and a gray Lancer and before he knew what was happening he was pulled from his car, his eyes were blind folded and he was taken for a 10-15 minutes drive to an unknown area where he was severely beaten until he lost conciseness.
He regained consciousness only to find himself back in his car covered in blood. He managed to find his way to the nearby house of Hassan Mushaima where he was transferred to the hospital by ambulance. He was visited the next day by the police and Public Prosecutors Office. The next day the government controlled newspapers reported the event as a robbery!
Jaafar Kadhim has worked for the Committee of Activists and Prisoners of Conscience since December 2007 and has helped to organizing peaceful marches and protests for the rights of detainees. During 2007-2008 he hosted, at his house meetings for relatives of detainees with many visiting foreign journalist and international Human rights organization including an Amnesty international delegation. As a result he was detained from February 4, 2009 (Refer to Front Line releases on March 2, 2009 at http://www.frontlinedefenders.org/en/en/node/1817) and was released on April 12.
Since his release, Jaafar Kadhim has been helping the BCHR and BYSHR in documenting recent cases of torture and assisting families of 19 detainees who remain in prison despite the royal pardon on April 12th, 2009 which witnessed the release of 178 activists and human rights defenders.
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