A top official in the Haq (Right) movement called for the "unconditional and immediate" release of all activists, including the group’s head, Hassan Mesheima, and cleric Mohammed al-Moqdad, both Shiites.
"The request … is to open the political file through a dialogue with the leadership to resolve pending problems, starting with political and economic reforms," Abduljalil al-Singace said at a news conference.
The government has accused Singace, Mesheima and Moqdad of setting up and funding a "terrorist" group to overthrow the government and incite hatred, and the latter two have been detained.
Clashes erupted in a Bahraini village on January 28 between security forces and demonstrators protesting over the Shiite activists’ detention.
Last December, the government accused Haq of having links to a London-based Bahraini group suspected of planning attacks in the kingdom, a charge Singace denied.
Bahrain was plagued in the 1990s by a wave of Shiite-led unrest, which has abated since the authorities launched steps to convert the Gulf emirate into a constitutional monarchy.
