Sentenced Bahraini doctor speaks out
October 4, 2011 by UPI - United Press International, Inc.
A group of Bahraini doctors and nurses were given prison sentences ranging from 5-15 years for spreading "stories and lies" and for trying to topple the regime.
All of those sentenced to prison worked at the Salmaniya Medical Complex in Manama, which was raided by Bahraini security forces in March as part of a crackdown on a Shiite uprising in the country.
Fatima Haji, one of the medical workers sentenced to five years in jail, told al-Jazeera she was coerced into making a false confession while in state custody in April, after authorities in Bahrain declared martial law.
"One after the other they threatened they would rape me if I didn't confess, they said they would leave my body in the Dumpster like the other martyrs," she said. It was unclear when the interview was conducted.
Abdul Aziz bin Mubarak, an official with Information Affairs Authority, told the Arab broadcaster that the medics from the medical complex were working with opposition groups to overthrow the government.
"This is an attempted coup d'etat," the official said.
Rupert Colville, a spokesman for the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, in a statement, said the penalties handed down to civilians in a military court were troubling.
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