A police cruiser is seen on the outskirts Manama, Bahrain, on March 13, 2020. CPJ joined a letter calling on Bahrain to release all its imprisoned journalists. (AFP/Mazen Mahdi)
A police cruiser is seen on the outskirts Manama, Bahrain, on March 13, 2020. CPJ joined a letter calling on Bahrain to release all its imprisoned journalists. (AFP/Mazen Mahdi)

CPJ joins letter calling on Bahrain to release all journalists, citing COVID-19

The Committee to Protect Journalists today joined other human rights and free expression organizations in a letter calling on the Bahraini government to release all imprisoned journalists and other political prisoners.

The letter notes the notoriously poor conditions in Bahraini prisons, including overcrowding and lack of medical care, and cites the Bahraini government’s recent decision to pardon 1,486 prisoners to stem the spread of COVID-19 in the country’s penal system.

At least six journalists were imprisoned for their work in Bahrain at the time of CPJ’s most recent prison census. CPJ has documented the cases of Abduljalil al-Singace, who has repeatedly been denied access to adequate medical care despite his deteriorating health, and Ahmed Humaidan, who has suffered persistent eye infections due to inadequate hygiene in Jaw Central Prison.

The letter can be viewed here.