Investigation of Torture About to Complete

The Minister of Interior Sheikh Rashid bin Abdullah Al Khalifa said during his meeting with Parliament, that his Ministry has conducted an investigation regarding the breaches mentioned in the report by Human Rights Watch (HRW) on torture in Bahrain last February. He added that his Ministry dealt with 201 out of 206 complaints, and undertook a series of changes of staff of the Human Rights Section in the Ministry. The Minister criticized the report’s sole dependence on the testimonies of detainees and asked: ‘if this report is fair for human rights, then where are the rights of the killed policeman and the two others who were tortured and assaulted?’ The Minister also said that his Ministry and the international organization (i.e. HRW) are in agreement about anything that is in the interest of Bahrain. He also refused the principle of torture saying the Government always strives to correct any mistakes. Furthermore, he stressed that his Ministry is continuing its investigations based on the report.