Maureen O'Sullivan (Dublin Central, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am glad to have the opportunity to raise this issue. It has come about from engagement some of us have had with people from Bahrain and human rights organisations. It is also topical today because 14 February is the eighth anniversary of the pro-democracy movement that took place in Bahrain along with many other countries in the Middle East. In the eight years since then, we have seen the repression of the movement. What is the fear around democracy and democratic movements? When we look at the world, we can see that it is those countries with free democratic elections and the peaceful transfer of power after elections that have stability, growth, health and education.

Bahrain has seen the horrific repression of a democratic movement. It involves the repression of the protesters, be they lawyers, doctors, students, teachers, human rights defenders and members of civil society. The repression continues today with torture, police and military brutality and forced disappearance. I want to look in particular at the treatment of prisoners. The are inhumane conditions in Juw Prison and Isa Town Female Detention Center. Both prisons violate the UN standard minimum rules for the treatment of prisoners. As well as the inhumane physical conditions, there are concerns over access to medication for prisoners, family visits, degrading searches and above all, the lack of accountability. I want to mention three women prisoners in particular: Hajer Mansoor, Medina Ali and Najah Ahmed Yusuf, all of whom are in need of medical care. Their cases have been raised by the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade and the UN.

There are questions around the relationship our Royal College of Surgeons of Ireland, RCSI, has with King Hamad University Hospital. I must ask whether the RCSI is living up to its ethical and moral standards. I have had correspondence from the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade on this. I think there is a need to go further.

The institutions in Bahrain supposed to be looking after human rights, such as its Ministry of Interior, Public Prosecutions Service and so on, are not independent and impartial. That is why they need voices like Ireland's.

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