Bahrain Mirror: The national democratic opposition forces in Bahrain said that there are no serious indications of reform in the human rights situation in Bahrain.

In their statement, the national democratic opposition forces stressed that political opposition and activism are being widely targeted, restricted and subjected to unprecedented security pursuits. It is the first time that five current and former secretary-generals of political societies are behind bars. This gives a clear example of the targeting of political activism and arrests of political leaders due to their political views and democratic and human rights demands.

The opposition forces also highlighted "the arrest of Sheikh Ali Salman, who has been charged with baseless accusations, prosecuted in a court described by international organizations as one that lacks the simplest standards of justice and imprisoned, the re-arrest of former Secretary-General of the National Democratic Action Society (Wa'ad), Ibrahim Sharif, a few days after releasing him over charges related to exercising his freedom of expression by demanding democracy, the arrest of opposition leader, Majeed Milad, the arrest of former Member of Parliament Sheikh Hassan Isa, and the ongoing campaign of arrests as the number of Bahraini citizens who were detained since the onset of 2015 reached up 1370."

"Protests are forbidden in Bahrain, as citizens are not allowed to express their opinions anywhere,even in the narrow alleys of

their villages" they added stressing that "the authorities don't even accept to receive requests to stage protests, as the opposition forces have filed more than 130 requests without any response."

"More than 426 citizens were subjected to mistreatment since the onset of 2015. More than 624 citizens were injured as a result of excessive force, and more than 1272 houses were raided in villages and towns across Bahrain in 2015," they further stated.

They also said that Bahraini authorities refuse to hold a dialogue and ignore all calls for dialogue whether from opposition forces, national figures, the international community and international institutions. However, the regime continues to escalate its security options and close all the doors of dialogue and reconciliation."

The national opposition forces highlighted that "improving the human rights situation requires implementing all the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI) and Human Rights Council recommendations and answering the High Commissioner for Human Rights calls issued in May 2015." They further reiterated their adherence to peaceful activism in demanding democratic transition in Bahrain for it is the best and most successful solution to put an end to the crisis in the island kingdom.

Arabic Issue