Bahrain Mirror: "Rare street protests have broken out in Bahrain as a mass hunger strike enters its fifth week in Jaw Central Prison," The New York Times reported. It revealed that "the number of men on hunger strike in just one of the prison buildings was greater than the government's count for the entire prison."
The newspaper stated that there are more than 800 participants in the hunger strike and that their collective action has spilled into the streets, with relatives of prisoners holding scattered demonstrations, marching with their portraits and calling for them to be freed.
"This strike came from inside prisons to deliver a clear message to all Bahrain and the world that we exist and we have rights," said Fatima Haroun, who joined a protest on Friday to support her 23-year-old son, Ahmed Al-Arab. She said he was only 15 when he was jailed after the Arab Spring and accused of belonging to a terrorist cell.
Ms. Haroun said that her son had been denied medical treatment in the past "under the pretext that he is a dangerous prisoner" and that a military hospital had refused to receive him when he needed treatment for several fractures.
"The unrest reflects frustrations with and mistrust of the government, as many Bahrainis still complain of corruption, sectarian discrimination and the rising cost of living, according to activists," the newspaper added.
Though their protests have not been large, it is "incredibly significant" for Bahrainis to be demonstrating and chanting political slogans for the first time in years, said Maryam Al-Khawaja, daughter of human rights defender Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja.
"They know what the consequences are. They know what the risks are. And they're doing that anyway," she said.
Al-Khawaja said a hunger strike was an act of desperation, adding: "You know the effect it's going to have on your body. You really have to be on the edge and feel like you have no other tool of protest."
"They are more interested in pleasing the United States and Israel than addressing the rights of their own people," Fatima Ali, a Bahraini activist, said of the government. "They see us as animals who should be caged."
She deemed the visit added of the Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen to Manama an "insult".
One prisoner said he joined the hunger strike because he felt it was his only option after watching friends "leave prison as corpses," something he attributed to medical neglect and other "systematic restrictions." "We have no intention of backing down," he said. "Our demands are simple and just, and we haven't asked for the impossible."
The government's National Communication Center claimed that 116 people were currently on hunger strike and that earlier, a maximum of 124 people had joined. However, the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy stressed that there are more than 800 inmates on hunger strike.
Images of what appeared to be internal prison records, obtained by The Times, showed that the number of men on hunger strike in just one of the prison buildings was greater than the government's count for the entire prison. The prison has 10 or more buildings.
The Bahraini government said none of the participants had needed critical care or hospitalization, however, Al-Khawaja said that her father, who began a hunger strike on Aug. 9 after being denied access to a cardiologist. A few days later, he was rushed to intensive care, she said.
Youssef Ahmed Marzouk said that his son Muhammad Youssef, 37, was on hunger strike "demanding his most basic rights," including better health care and being allowed to pray in the prison mosque.
Arabic Version
