Delivering an oral intervention on behalf of the American for Democracy and Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB), Parweez said that the regime “actively targets Shiite clerics and Shiite civil and political societies.”
“Bahrain also targets Shiite clerics with arbitrary arrest, prosecution, and denaturalization,” he added. “After revoking the citizenship of Sheikh Isa Qassim, Bahrain’s most senior Shiite cleric, authorities brought charges against him relating to traditional Shiite practices. Bahrain has also forcibly deported Shiite clerics and their families. This persecution shows no sign of abating.”
The activist also shed light on discriminatory practices within Bahrain’s civil services, the security forces and defense sectors.
Parweez called on “all states, including Bahrain, to uphold their responsibilities under the Durban Declaration to ensure the protection and non-discrimination of religious, racial and ethnic communities, and to hold ensure all violators are held accountable for their misconducts.”
The Durban Declaration and Program of Action (DDPA) is a nonbinding document that proposes concrete measures to combat racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance.
