Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they plan to take in respect of encouraging the release from prison of Nabeel Rajab, President of the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights; and what discussions they have had with the government of Bahrain concerning torture of detainees and execution without trial of political prisoners.

We are following Mr Rajab’s case closely. Our Ambassador in Bahrain has raised the case with the Government of Bahrain and encouraged the Bahraini authorities to ensure due process is followed and international norms of justice are upheld. The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Bournemouth East (Mr Tobias Ellwood), also raised the case with the Bahrain Ambassador on 9 March. Our officials attended Mr Rajab’s court appearance on 4 March to underline the UK’s interest in the case. The final hearing will be on 15 March.

The UK regularly discusses issues of reform with the Government of Bahrain. I met Under Secretary Abdullah Abdullatif Abdullah on 2 March in Geneva where I stressed the importance of Bahrain accepting a technical assistance package with the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. We also discussed Sheikh Ali Salman's case and the need for him to receive a fair trial. Our Ambassador in Bahrain has raised our concerns over allegations of torture and mistreatment with Bahraini ministers. In addition to voicing these concerns, the UK is providing practical assistance to the Government of Bahrain to prevent the use of torture and mistreatment, and to improve the accountability of the security forces.