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| Bahrain overturns acquittal of opposition figure |
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On Friday, Zainab al-Khawaja was convicted of insulting a public employee.
The decision is the latest in a series of charges against her related to protests calling for the release of her father, Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, who is among eight opposition figures sentenced to life imprisonment.
The official Bahrain News Agency on Friday quoted Executive Prosecution Chief Amina Isa as saying the appeals court sided with prosecutors to reinstate charges against al-Khawaja and seek jail time.
On January 8, the UN, the EU, Britain, France, and human rights groups criticized a Bahraini court decision upholding prison terms for 13 pro-democracy activists, including Abdulhadi al-Khawaja.
A day earlier, Bahrain’s highest court rejected the jailed activists' appeal and upheld their sentences for their roles in anti-regime protests in 2011.
The United Nations, the European Union, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, Britain, and France censured the Bahraini court ruling.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon “deeply regrets the decision of Bahrain's Court of Cassation on January 7 to uphold the harsh sentences, including life imprisonment" for against the activists, the UN chief’s spokesman said.
"He reiterates his firm belief that the only way to promote peace, stability, justice and prosperity in Bahrain is through a national dialogue which addresses the legitimate aspirations of all Bahrainis," Martin Nesirky stated.
"The secretary general also calls on the government of Bahrain to follow through on its recently reiterated commitment to judicial reform," he added.
The European Union also criticized the court ruling, saying the pro-democracy activists should be given amnesty.
"The EU has repeatedly asked the Bahraini authorities to consider an amnesty for all those arrested last year and tried on charges relating to the expression of their political opinion," the spokesman of EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, Michael Mann, said.
Since mid-February 2011, thousands of pro-democracy protesters have staged numerous demonstrations in the streets of Bahrain, calling for the Al Khalifa royal family to relinquish power.
On March 14, 2011, troops from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates invaded the country to assist the Bahraini government in its crackdown on the peaceful protesters.
According to local sources, scores of people have been killed and hundreds arrested.
Physicians for Human Rights says doctors and nurses have been detained, tortured, or disappeared because they have "evidence of atrocities committed by the authorities, security forces, and riot police" in the crackdown on anti-government protesters.
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.jpg "Bahraini anti-government protesters sitting together along a sidewalk gesture to a journalist between clashes with riot police in Malkiya, Bahrain, on Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2013.")