Strikers 'locked in'

MANAMA: A striking worker pleads his case for a better deal through the fence after bosses reportedly locked over 1,000 protesting workers inside their labour camp yesterday.The men, who are working on the $6 billion (BD2.26bn) Durrat Al Bahrain project, have been on strike for the past two days demanding better pay, hot water, better medical facilities and other basics such as lights in the toilets. Meanwhile, in a separate strike around 250 employees at Mohsin Haji Ali Group also downed tools yesterday demanding better pay and living conditions.

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Workers protest

MORE than 250 workers at the Mohsin Haji Ali Group yesterday went on a strike, demanding better wages.They refused to leave for work as company transport arrived to fetch them from their accommodation in A'Ali, said sources.

http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/Story.asp?Article=208404&Sn=BNEW&IssueID=30328

BD100 basic wages from Mar. 1

India enforces cap for maids, unskilled workers Alexander M. Arrackal Staff Reporter India has set BD100 minimum wages for its maids and other unskilled workers in Bahrain, effective from March 1. Ambassador Balkrishna Shetty told the Press yesterday that the Ministry of Overseas Indians Affairs wanted the existing contracts to be viewed more humanely. Indian rupee has appreciated by 20 per cent against the US dollar and the cost of living has gone up in Bahrain. Based on these and other factors, employers must pay emoluments to workers, he said, adding that better pay was in employers’ interest. India is developing and a reverse drain from the Gulf is possible, with Indian companies visiting Bahrain to look for employees. “Better quality workers benefit the organisation and the companies ought to know it by now,” Shetty said, adding that this in no way meant that the embassy would meddle in individual labour cases. “It is for the employers and the employees to negotiate settlement,” the ambassador said. Shetty said the minimum BD100 wages for maids and unskilled workers would go a long way to improve their condition. Referring to trends in recruitment of maids from India, Labour Attache R. Raghunath said about 44 applications were submitted for Indian maids before the stipulations were brought in. But between October 1 and December 31, the number increased to 396. By November the stipulations were in place and being implemented. By January, the embassy made it clear that no more applications could be made without clearing the backlog of documentation – including providing bank account numbers, mobile contact and sponsor documents. Because of these norms, only 44 visas were issued in the month, he said. To a query on the number of Indians who availed amnesty, Shetty said about 7,435 returned home between August and January. In many cases, workers opted for local transfers. He said about 9,000 Indians could not avail government clemency because they did not commit themselves when there was time. Basic wages for the other GCC countries are likely to be announced soon. According to the Minister for Overseas Indian Affairs, Vayalar Ravi, Indian diplomatic missions in the other GCC states (the UAE, Oman, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia) have been asked to forward recommendations and proposals in this connection.

2,400 workers on strike at 3 camps

Around 1,600 men, hailing from Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Pakistan, had gone on a flash strike on Saturday to highlight their demands for better living conditions and a wage hike. The men, who are working on-site at Durrat Al Bahrain, have reportedly slowed down work on the project. They had yesterday barricaded themselves with the Chinese men inside their camp from 5 am. “We will open the gates only when the management and concerned authorities come to negotiate,” they had said.  Police were called to the site by the company management who feared for the safety of the Chinese. But the men were freed unharmed after company officials arrived at the site. The Chinese were then taken away in a bus by a company official.  Officials from the Ministry of Labour arrived at the site around noon and listened to the workers’ grievances. But after hours of negotiations no compromise was reached. The employees demanded an increase in their salary to BD100 for labourers and BD120 for skilled workers. “We only want a salary increment and better medical facilities. If the company cannot provide it then send us back,” they told the ministry officials. The men alleged that the company had told them that they were not entitled to sick leave. “Our salary is cut even if we submit a medical certificate for sick leave.” They added that if the salary is increased they will not complain about the cold water baths they have to have in this winter because of the lack of water heaters. Nor would they complain about the camps’ unhygienic conditions.  Indian embassy officials visited the site and requested the workers to call off the strike and negotiate with the company. But their appeal is being ignored. “The same thing happened some months ago. We called off a strike because we were promised a wage hike. But it has not materialised,” the workers told the Tribune. “This time we will not budge until we get it in writing.”  Company officials told the Tribune that they would work with the Ministry of Labour to reach a settlement with their staff. Meanwhile, the West Aker workers were aware of the strike by their colleagues at Durrat Al Bahrain and said: “Our demands are the same. We want a wage hike that will let us keep pace with the inflation in Bahrain.”  Though the workers in Durrat Al Bahrain and West Aker were employed by the same company, they worked on different projects. “We work at sites in and around the Diplomatic Area,” a worker from the West Aker labour camp said. In a separate development, 200 employees of Mohsin Haji Ali Group in A’ Ali, have decided to stage a stay-in until the Indian Embassy informs them of their company’s decision to honour their demands, the employees of the company said. Indian Embassy, though, told the Tribune that the striking employees were asked to return to work, since striking was against the law and they were not to go against prevailing laws. “Labourers are paid about BD50, while drivers are paid only BD55 to BD80. Trailer drivers are paid about BD100. We want an upward revision of our salaries by minimum 30 per cent, factoring in the increase in cost of living in Bahrain.” One of the employees told the Tribune that the company had violated the leave travel allowance benefits. “When we ask for our leave travel allowance as guaranteed in the contract, they often tell us that the company is at a loss and hence has no money to pay. We want this situation changed. The company must permit us leave and benefits as guaranteed in the contract.” “Those who took the initiative in going home after their contracts expired, found that their visas were renewed against their consent and they were blacklisted, preventing re-entry into the Kingdom. Even when we have better offers we cannot come back. They ensure that we are blacklisted at the immigration,” the employees said. “This practice has to stop. Once our contracts expire we must be given our release,” said a worker representing the 300-odd employees of the firm.

 

Labour pains increase Strike bug bites 3 camps, Chinese may be taken ‘hostage’ Bonny Mascarenhas Staff Reporter Labour unrest seems to be taking root in the Kingdom with at least 2,400 workers in three labour camps going on flash strikes yesterday, reminiscent of the recent labour problem in Dubai. Close on the heels of the flash strike launched by 1600-odd workers of G.P Zachariades at their camp near Durrat Al Bahrain on Saturday, two more groups of labourers - 500 workers from the same company but from a West Aker labour camp and another 300-odd from Mohsin Haji Ali Group at A’ali went on strike yesterday, primarily demanding better wages and living conditions. Meanwhile, the workers on strike at Durrat Al Bahrain, have threatened to hold back about 80 Chinese workers as ‘hostages’ today in an effort to put pressure on the management. The Chinese workers are allegedly employed by the company on visit visas, and were let out yesterday by the striking workers after a lot of persuasion. “We are not going to harm them. We are only doing this because we realised that the management values the Chinese workers who stay in this labour camp more than us,” a worker told the Tribune, “Officials who did not even bother to come yesterday showed up today only after we had stopped the Chinese from leaving,” he said. All three groups said they are determined to continue with their strike till their demands are met. A labourer from the West Aker camp told the Tribune: “We had been promised a wage hike after we went on strike last year. But it has not yet been fulfilled.” http://www.bahraintribune.com/ArticleDetail.asp

We will continue our strike’ The workers claimed that no official had come and asked why they had gone on strike. One of them said, “Only a notice has been put which reads ‘All personnel who have not reported for duty today will lose the pay for the day. No overtime will be worked before Saturday, February 16. i.e. 10 hours only on weekdays and no work on Friday, February 15. The management reserves the right to take further action if there is not a full return to work on Sunday, February 10.’” The men said they would continue the strike despite the warning. “Earlier, we were afraid of losing jobs and had suffered the abuse in silence. Now it is not worth it. We have decided to be united in our demands and to continue to raise our voices till we are heard.” Referring to water heaters, one worker, however, said the management had promised to provide room heaters. But we have not received them yet. The men alleged that the company had told them that they were not entitled to sick leave. “Our salary is cut even if we submit a medical certificate for sick leave.” A camp manager said he had informed the management about the workers’ living conditions and the company was looking into the issue. “Improvements have been made since then,” he said. When approached, a company spokesperson said an official would contact the Tribune. But no one called the newspaper last night. G. P. Zachariades is a leading civil engineering and building contractor, classified as Grade ‘A’ by the Ministry of Works. Their projects include the Ritz Carlton, the GCC Summit 15 project, Movenpick Hotel, Gudaibiya Palace, Bahrain Defence Force Hospital and corporate headquarters buildings for Bahrain National Holdings Group, Bahrain Islamic Bank, Batelco and Bahrain Kuwait Insurance Company, among others. http://www.bahraintribune.com/ArticleDetail.asp

Long march

2000 workers on flash strike, plan 50km walk to Indian embassy today Around 2,000 workers who went on a flash strike yesterday have threatened to march over 50km from their camp near the Durrat Al Bahrain project to the Indian embassy today to highlight their demands for better living conditions and wage hike. The workers employed by G P Zachariades said they were asking for a monthly wage of BD100 for labourers and BD120 for skilled workers.  "Skilled workers currently get a monthly wage of BD69 and labourers get BD57. This amount is just not enough given the inflation and the weak dollar," a worker told the Tribune.  "We also want proper facilities in the camp. Presently, around 30 men use one bathroom. Water heaters have not been provided to us during the winter. We have to have bath in cold water," he said.  The workers, hailing from Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Pakistan, have refused to work until their demands are met and top company officials take notice of their plight. "We don’t know if the management on top is aware that we are being treated like animals. We are living in conditions that are not fit even for animals. We work 10 hours a day, and if we refuse to work overtime we are suspended for three days without pay," another worker alleged.  Meanwhile, the management, through a notice, has threatened to take action against the workers if they did not return to work today.  A spokesperson of the company when contacted confirmed that they were canceling the overtime for Friday since the workers had gone on strike without informing the management. http://www.bahraintribune.com/ArticleDetail.asp

DURRAT HIT

By BEGENA P PRADEEP MANAMA: Work on a $6 billion (BD2.26bn) project was hit yesterday as more than 1,300 labourers in Bahrain downed tools in a dispute over pay. Workers from the GP Zacharides company, who are based at a labour camp in the landmark Durrat Al Bahrain development, went on strike demanding better salaries and complaining of poor living conditions. The strike comes days after Indian Ambassador Balkrishna Shetty said his government was planning to introduce a BD100 minimum wage for all workers in the Gulf. Employees claim their basic monthly pay is only BD57 and they are not provided with adequate medical facilities. It is the second major strike in Bahrain in less than a week after nearly 750 Asian workers downed tools at Almoayyed Contracting demanding better pay. The men were protesting being paid between BD60 and BD85, although the company said the salaries ranged from BD75 to BD150.   1,300 workers protest   By Begena P Pradeep AROUND 1,300 labourers at one of Bahrain's biggest contracting companies went on strike yesterday demanding better pay. Employees of the GP Zacharides company, based at a labour camp in Durrat Al Bahrain, downed tools claiming that their basic monthly salary was only BD57 and complaining of poor living conditions. The majority of those on strike were Indians and they were accompanied by colleagues from Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka, who said they would not return to work until their demands were met. The strike comes days after Indian Ambassador Balkrishna Shetty revealed plans to institute a BD100 minimum wage for Indian workers in the Gulf. "We have decided to stop going for work until we get a salary rise," said one of the strikers, who spoke on condition of anonymity. "All we get paid is a basic of BD57 for struggling day and night for our bosses, while they make huge profits using us," he told the GDN. "We heard about the BD100 minimum wage for workers and this is what we need. "If we are entitled to that amount of money then we think we should start getting it." He claimed workers at the Durrat Al Bahrain site were the worst paid compared with the company's other labour camps and alleged camp supervisors regularly address them as "slaves". "Whenever we ask for a payrise the camp supervisors tell us that we are only slaves and deserve nothing better," he said. "They also tell us that it is exactly why we have been dumped here, the most remote place in Bahrain." Workers also say the company does not provide them with any heating facilities and denies them the use of the few heaters installed in the camp. "The climate in Durrat Al Bahrain is the worst because in the summer it is intolerably hot and in the winter it is extremely cold," he said. "The company does not provide the unskilled workers with any facility to keep warm during the cold climate. "There are a few heaters here but we are not allowed to use them and are forced to wash ourselves in freezing water at 4am." Doctor Workers also say that the firm does not provide enough medical facilities as there is only one doctor who visits the camp once a week for all the 1,300 workers. "We also don't have an ambulance, which is a necessity in our case, because we are so far away from all the hospitals and medical centres," said another worker. "If one of us becomes sick then we are asked to wait until the doctor comes on Friday and keep on working till then." GP Zacharides mechanical and electrical department manager Dr Theodore Methsis confirmed workers had gone on strike. "The workers are demanding a pay rise that equals their productivity," he said. "They have been provoked by the Indian ambassador's comments about the BD100 minimum wage call for Indian workers and their basic is less than this amount. "This new call for a minimum wage is upsetting to the people and they now think they deserve more than what they are getting." Mr Methsis would not reveal the salaries of the striking workers and said they were basing their demand on the rising cost of living in Bahrain and the falling value of the US dollar. http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/story.asp?Article=208292&Sn=BNEW&IssueID=30327

BD150 wages call by group

By BEGENA P PRADEEP http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/arc_Articles.asp?Article=207959&Sn=BNEW&IssueID=30324 A CALL for a minimum monthly wage of BD150 to BD200 for all unskilled workers went out from a Bahrain rights group yesterday. The Bahrain Human Rights Watch Society (BHRWS) tabled the figure as Indian authorities approved a BD100 minimum salary for all of its citizens in the Gulf. The move came following a two-day strike by around 700 workers at Almoayyed Contracting, one of Bahrain's biggest contracting companies. "Many of the men have been working for the company for years and yet get paid so low," BHRWS regional and international director and Shura Councillor Faisal Fulad told the GDN yesterday. "With the cost of living in Bahrain rising, it is impossible to even think of paying these poor men anything less than BD200. "We ask the government to raise the minimum monthly salaries of these nation-builders from BD40 or BD60 to anything between BD150 to BD200. "They have come from overseas, leaving their near and dear ones in the hope of feeding those who depend on them. "They work extremely hard in the harsh climate, helping make profits for their employers and we believe that this is the least they can be given. "A wage of BD60 is pathetic. We urge the Labour Ministry to consider our request and make the minimum wage of these workers BD150 to BD200, which we think is reasonable." Mr Fulad said the Almoayyed Contracting strike would be included in a shadow report to be submitted by the BHRWS to the United Nations Human Rights Council, which is due to review human rights in Bahrain this April. "This particular case will be taken as an example of harassment of workers in Bahrain and we will also mention other cases where domestic workers' rights have been violated," he said. "There has been no support from the Labour Ministry to our various concerns about the welfare of workers and we will fight for justice for these poor people." Workers at Almoayyed Contracting's East Eker labour camp returned to work yesterday after finally agreeing to a BD15 pay rise, which they had initially rejected. They downed tools on Monday and Tuesday demanding a BD45 increase across the board, claiming they were being paid BD60 to BD85 every month. However, the company had denied this and claimed their salaries ranged from BD75 to BD150. Some of the workers told the GDN yesterday that they agreed to the BD15 raise tabled by the company over fears that they could be sent home. "We had no choice but accept the offer, although we rejected it initially," said one worker, who asked to remain anonymous. "This is not what we protested for, but some among us thought that was better than nothing. "When they accepted it, the rest of us couldn't hold out much longer. "We believed that we could even be sent home, which we don't want because we spent money to get here and many haven't paid off their debts. "We guess we're destined to struggle, so who can fight our fate?" The company has offered to raise the basic salaries of all its 2,000 workers by BD10 each and give them an extra BD5 for food. Its human resources and administration department head, Bassam Ahmed Ali, had earlier described the strike as unfair and said the workers did not deserve any pay rise as they were getting the most competitive deals in the market. However, he was unavailable for comment yesterday despite repeated attempts to contact him. The majority of the striking workers were Indians, but they were joined by others from Pakistan and Bangladesh

'Blunder' over rights report By Rebecca Torr

http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/arc_Articles.asp?Article=207280&Sn=BNEW&IssueID=30316 ACTIVISTS claim they have missed a chance to submit a report to the United Nations on the human rights situation in Bahrain, because government officials failed to inform them. Bahrain Human Rights Watch Society (BHRWS) said yesterday was the first time they had been informed of a deadline of November last year to submit a 10-page shadow report to the UN on human rights in the country. "They (Foreign Affairs Ministry) should have sent letters to all non-governmental organisations (NGOs) announcing they can submit a shadow report to the UN, but we didn't receive anything," said BHRWS regional and international relations director Faisal Fulad. "We are preparing a shadow report that we will submit to the UN in Geneva next week. "It will be late but we will say we were not informed by Foreign Affairs. "We will meet (UN resident co-ordinator) Sayed Aqa tomorrow to discuss our shadow report. "Bahrain's standard of human rights has deteriorated in the last two years and we will mention this in our report." He said the report focuses on Press freedom, human trafficking, political and social freedom, discrimination, torture of prisoners, exploitation of expat workers and lack of rights for women. It also calls for the creation of a Human Rights Commission independent of the government, a family law and a domestic workers' law. Mr Fulad was speaking on the sidelines of a workshop announcing the UN Universal Periodic Review (UPR), which was held at the Diplomat Radisson SAS Hotel, Residence and Spa yesterday. The UPR is a human rights report that Bahrain will submit to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on February 25. The 20-page report will be reviewed by the council on April 7. The report is being prepared in consultation with NGOs dealing with human rights issues, labour unions, human rights committees and women's societies. Bahrain is the first country in the world to compile the report, which is expected to set a precedent for others. Mr Fulad criticised ministry officials for failing to advertise in English the participation of stakeholders in the UPR. He said announcements until now had only been in Arabic and many of the NGOs and people that were affected by human rights issues only spoke English. The activist said information about the participation of NGOs in the UPR would be available in English and Arabic on the BHRWS website: www.bhrws.org. More information about the UPR and how to participate can be found at: www.mofa.gov.bh "As we are preparing the report we are welcoming the participation of all stakeholders," said Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Dr Nazar Al Baharna. "Our objectives are that the report will reflect the true human rights situation and the outcome will improve human rights. "We want the report to be an action plan for the development of human rights. "Bahrain made several commitments and we want to see if we fulfilled this and then set more." Mr Aqa and UPR expert Clarence Diaz were among those attending the workshop. Bahrain is among the first 16 UN members to have their human rights records reviewed. Out of 192 UN members, 48 countries are selected for scrutiny each year. These 48 are divided into three of 16 each and Bahrain is the first among the 16. The selection for the UPR was made by a random draw in September last year. It lays out a timetable for the systematic review of all UN members by the end of 2011. The council agreed in June last year to adopt the UPR, under which all countries have their human rights record reviewed once in four years.

 

Session on Kingdom’s human rights report to be shown livehttp://www.bahraintribune.com/ArticleDetail.asp?ArticleId=189066

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs plans to broadcast live the three-hour session when Bahrain National Report on Human Rights will be reviewed at the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva in April. “We have launched a hotline and e-mail to receive feedback from the stakeholders and the public. There is a six-member team at the ministry which is presently collecting feedback of the human rights situation on the ground,” Dr Nizar bin Sadiq Al Baharna, the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs told the Bahrain Tribune yesterday. The hotline set up by the Ministry to receive feedback is 17225666 and the e-mail is UPR@mofa.gov.bh. Al Baharna was speaking on the sidelines of a workshop organised by the Ministry where UN expert Clarence Dias discussed the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of the report held at the Diplomat Radisson yesterday. The UN council will review 48 countries in three batches of 16 each this year. Bahrain is among the first group of 16 states to submit its report on February 25. Al Baharna said the report will be made available to the stakeholders consisting of non-governmental organisations (NGO), national human rights institutions and the Press. “It’s been three weeks since we started preparing the report. We want to ensure transparency and are preparing an action plan for the next four years when Bahrain will be monitored by the United Nations,” said Al Baharna. The minister said that they have received feedback from ‘few’ NGO’s. “The 20-page report will be consultative with information collected from the stakeholders. Bahrain will be the first country to be reviewed and will be the first to undergo the Universal Periodic Review setting examples for others to follow,” said Al Baharna who heads the working group to prepare the report. The workshop was attended by legal experts, ambassadors and NGOs. Dias spoke about the reviewing process Bahrain has to undergo in Geneva. “Bahrain was randomly selected by one-third majority among those countries which have one year term with the council,” said Dias. He said that Bahrain is adopting the ‘best practice’ to support and protect human rights. “This is not a usual report that Bahrain is preparing. They have scrutinised all documents related to human rights and are having interactive surveys from the government and NGOs. It is a compilation of collected facts and not a judgmental report,” he said. Dias explained that when the Council receives the National Report on Human Rights, the documentation step starts. “The report submitted by Bahrain will have its challenges and recommendations. The 20-page report will be summarised by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights where the findings of the report will be under scrutiny,” he said. He said that the Commission will also review all the shadow reports they receive from Bahrain and will summarise it in five pages, which will be attached to the National Report. Three UN rapporteurs will then be randomly selected to review this report. “The three members will study this report and prepare a series of questions which the council will ask the Bahraini delegation when they come face-to-face on April 7 in Geneva,” said Dias. Bahrain will receive the final “outcome document” after the review before April 18. Dias indicated that when the Bahraini delegation receives the document, the Kingdom will be under watch for the next four years. “Bahrain will have to work on the recommendations of the report. They can report to the council three times a year on the developments of the report,” said Dias. UNDP Bahrain resident representative, Sayed Aqa also delivered a speech where he stressed that from 2008-2011, they have agreed with the government on the application of a human rights-based approach (HRBA). Meanwhile, members of the Bahrain Human Rights Watch Society lashed out at the authorities during the discussion hour. They blamed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of not providing adequate information to NGOs to submit their shadow reports. “NGOs have no information on when they have to submit their report. There should be some guidance about the deadlines from the authorities,” said Faisal Fulad from the society. Dias replied by saying that according to the rules, NGOs could submit their shadow report before their country submits it at the Council. The society is preparing its report which will highlight the conventions or treaties Bahrain has signed but has not implemented. “In the past two years, the situation of human rights has declined. We will mention in our report on the CEDAW and CAT conventions which have not been looked into,” said Fulad.

http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/arc_Articles.asp?Article=207273&Sn=BNEW&IssueID=30316

'Asian tsunami' comment rapped

By MANDEEP SINGH   HUMAN rights activists have condemned Labour Minister Dr Majeed Al Alawi's "Asian tsunami" alert over rising numbers of expatriate workers in the Gulf. They have dismissed as inhumane and irresponsible the widely reported remarks, made in an interview with the Ashraq Al-Awsat newspaper. It quoted Dr Al Alawi as warning that because of the reliance by "lazy" Gulf Arabs on foreign labour to carry out even the simplest tasks, an "Asian tsunami" was in the offing which represented a danger "worse than the atomic bomb or an Israeli attack." Dr Al Alawi said the 17 million foreign workers in the Gulf, mostly from the sub-continent, would reach 30m in 10 years from now. "If the Gulf governments do not watch out for this tsunami of foreign labourers, the fate of this region is worrying," he said. His remarks "violated all tenets of human rights and deserved to be condemned in the strongest possible terms", activists in Bahrain said yesterday. The condemnation came from the Bahrain Human Rights Watch Society (BHRWS), the Bahrain Human Rights Society (BHRS) and the outlawed Bahrain Centre for Human Rights (BCHR). BHRWS regional and international relations director Faisal Fulad said Dr Al Alawi appeared to have forgotten his time in the UK, where he spent many years working before he returned to Bahrain. "No one ever told him that when he was working there. How can he say that now ?" said Mr Fulad. He said Dr Al Alawi had "violated all norms of civil society" by making such remarks. "He has to realise that these are the people who are toiling so that Bahrain can have a bright future," said Mr Fulad. "Asians are building the country's roads and buildings, they are the ones who are dying at construction sites and they are the ones who have left their families behind and are working in Bahrain." "They deserve to be better treated." Arabs are not lazy, but the region does need expatriate labour and should respect it, said BHRS vice-president Abdulla Al Durazi. "The right to work is anyone's basic right and if one is accepted in Bahrain to work legally, whoever he may be, we should understand that the government wants him. He is not there just for fun," he said. "It is our own inadequacies that are being exposed. We need the foreign workers because we cannot manage on our own. This is an irresponsible statement and exposes the minister's lack of understanding." BCHR vice-president Nabeel Rajab accused Dr Al Alawi of using migrant workers as scapegoats for the government's economic failures. "We condemn his comments as irresponsible since they suggest that migrant workers, who leave their families and homes behind to work and provide us essential services and build our countries, are a danger to the citizens here," said Mr Rajab. "This kind of statement promotes racial hatred and puts the blame for the government's own failure to deal with unemployment on the shoulders of the most vulnerable community in our country." "We call on him to retract this statement and hope that as a member of a government which sits on the United Nations Human Rights Council, he would demonstrate greater respect towards the dignity and rights of migrant workers to live and work among us in peace.

Session on Kingdom’s human rights report to be shown live

Bahrain: Investigate Alleged Torture of Activists

Detainees, Families Report Sexual Assault, Electrocution, Beatings

http://hrw.org/english/docs/2008/01/21/bahrai17838.htm