Bahrain Mirror: Human Rights Watch said that the Bahraini authorities have charged a prominent human rights lawyer, Mohamed Al-Tajer, with offenses that violate his right to free expression.

Mohamed Al-Tajer, who has defended opposition figures and rights activists, told Human Rights Watch that a public prosecutor brought three charges against him on November 10, 2016: insulting government institutions, inciting hatred of a religious sect, and misusing a telecommunications appliance, expressing that the public prosecution relied in its indictment on a short voice message sent by Al-Tajer on "WhatsApp" application.

"Bahraini authorities have targeted journalists, activists, clerics, and politicians for peaceful dissent in the last few months, so it was only a matter of time before they came for the lawyers," said Joe Stork, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. "Al-Tajer is facing charges because he stated the obvious: Bahraini authorities are snooping on their citizens and anyone who steps out of line online faces jail time."

"Criminalizing peaceful opposition to state authorities is a serious violation of freedom of expression, Human Rights Watch said, explaining that Al-Tajer faces prison sentences totaling more than five years if convicted of all three charges.

"These charges against Mohamed Al-Tajer appear to confirm his suspicions about the authorities' surveillance activities and betray their woeful disregard for free speech," Stork said.

Tags: Human Rights Watch, Bahraini Authorities, Clerics, Mohamed Al-Tajer

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