Letters on Bahrain

11 December 2012

His Excellency Lieutenant General Shaikh Rashid Al Khalifa
Minister of the Interior
Ministry of the Interior
P.O. Box 13
Kingdom of Bahrain

Your Excellency Shaikh Rashid,

I write to you on behalf the Middle East Studies Association and its Committee on Academic Freedom to express our deep concern over the revocation of citizenship on November 7 of thirty-one Bahraini nationals. We are especially concerned that this punishment was extended to academics, particularly to Professor Abdulhadi Khalaf. Dr. Khalaf is a MESA member.

The Middle East Studies Association of North America (MESA) was founded in 1966 to promote scholarship and teaching of the Middle East and North Africa. The preeminent organization in the field, MESA publishes the International Journal of Middle East Studies and has nearly 3000 members
worldwide. MESA is committed to ensuring academic freedom and freedom of expression, both within the region and in connection with the study of the region in North America and elsewhere.

Professor Abdulhadi Khalaf, a native Bahraini, is a Senior Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Lund. His academic publications are numerous. Outlets include the Arab Research Institute, Gulf Research Center, Civil Society and Democratization in Bahrain, British Society for Middle Eastern Studies, ORIENT, Civility Review, Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies European University Institute, Middle East International, Research Reports in Sociology, and Arab Reform Bulletin. He has also published a book with the Bahrain Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs on Working Women in Bahrain.

Professor Khalaf's ability to conduct scholarly research is seriously impeded by the revocation of his citizenship, as he is unable to travel to Bahrain, the other five member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and perhaps other states in the Middle East. His professional work is thereby interrupted by the resultant lack of direct contact with his colleagues, his inability to participate in regional conferences, and the obstruction of his access to conduct fieldwork. Article 23 of the Bahraini constitution guarantees freedom of opinion and scientific research.

We understand that Article 10(c) of the Bahraini Citizenship Act of 1963 -- namely that "citizenship may be deprived by His Majesty the Governor from whomever enjoys such nationality...if he causes harm to the security of the State" -- was cited in justification of this action. We caution strongly that the free discussion of one's political viewpoints in scholarly publications cannot be equated with harming the security of the State. Treason is a serious charge that requires the marshaling of evidence in support of the accusation. To date, no such evidence has been offered in Dr. Khalaf's case.

We are also deeply concerned regarding the absence of due process in the revocation of citizenship. None of the Bahrainis who lost their citizenship were formally notified of the decision nor were they officially charged with criminal activity or prosecuted for damaging the security of the state. Dr. Khalaf learned that he was no longer a citizen of Bahrain through an article published by the Bahrain News Agency. Not even minimal procedural standards were met.

Dr. Khalaf does have Swedish citizenship. The Bahraini Constitution, however, clearly states that before stripping the nationality of someone holding dual citizenship, the government must afford him/her the right to choose which citizenship to retain. Then, only His Majesty the King of Bahrain has the authority to grant or revoke citizenship. The recent decision was issued by the Ministry of the Interior, and therefore contravenes Bahraini law.

Moreover, this action is a clear violation of Article 15 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which provides that "everyone has a right to nationality. No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his nationality." Nationality is a fundamental right of all human beings. It enables them to enjoy a connection and identity with their society and the protection of their state.

We are heartened that the article in the 1963 Bahraini Citizenship Act on the basis of which Professor Khalaf lost his citizenship rights is immediately followed by Article 11, which states: "Citizenship of Bahrain may be restored to any person who has lost citizenship by virtue of the above three articles." We, therefore, strongly urge you to restore his citizenship as well as the citizenship of the other 30 individuals.

We look forward to your timely response. Mostly, we urge you to restore the sanctity of the higher educational system in Bahrain, a sphere of activity that ought to be protected and cherished by the state.

Yours Sincerely,

Peter Sluglett
MESA President
Professor, Middle East Institute, National University of Singapore

cc: Information Affairs Authority President HE Shaikh Fawaz bin Mohammed Al Khalifa
Ambassador of the Kingdom of Bahrain to the U.S. HE Houda Ezra Ebrahim Nonoo
U.S. Ambassador to the Kingdom of Bahrain Thomas C. Krajeski
Bahrain Minister of Education Dr. Majid bin Ali Al-Naimi
M. Cherif Bassiouni, De Paul University School of Law

31 August 2012

Dr. Abdullah Mohammed Al-Rubaish
President, King Faisal University
via email aalrubaish@kfu.edu.sa; president@ud.edu.sa

Dr. Waleed Albu-Ali
Dean, College of Medicine, King Faisal University
via email wbuali@kfu.ed.sa

Dr. Majid bin Ali Al-Naimi
Minister of Higher Education, Bahrain
via facsimile +973 1768 0161

Prince Faisal Bin Abdullah Bin Muhammad Al-Saud
Minister of Higher Education, Saudi Arabia
via facsimile media@mohe.gov.sa; dmea@mohe.gov.sa

Dear Sirs,

I write to you on behalf of the Middle East Studies Association and its Committee on Academic Freedom to express our deep concern over the sustained interruption of study for four medical students at King Faisal University in Dammam, Saudi Arabia.

A travel ban was imposed on Zainab Maklooq, Aalaa Sayed and Zahra Zabar effectively preventing them from going to school. All were on full scholarships based on exemplary performance in high school. We understand that they were arrested by Saudi Arabian authorities and extradited to Bahrain where they were accused of inciting hatred towards the Bahraini regime and criticizing government symbols, and detained for about three weeks.

Although they were acquitted in June due to lack of evidence, they have not been allowed to resume their studies. Two of the students were in their final semester of a six year program of study. The other was in her fifth year of study. King Faisal University will neither confirm nor deny their expulsion, but they are no longer allowed into Saudi Arabia. They have contacted authorities in both Bahrain and Saudi Arabia to no avail. Further, they are unable to obtain university transcripts. With no access to these documents, they are effectively barred from resuming their education anywhere else. Other universities have informed the students that they would be required to repeat at least three years of study if they were to enroll.

Zahra was recognized as the best student in the northern governorate of Bahrain, won a physics competition, won best project for an Autism in Health Education competition, and represented Bahrain in the Arabic World Speech competition. Zainab has volunteered her skills and energy in a health care center. Aalaa’s grade point average is 4.09 out of 5. She was previously nominated for participation in the Crown Prince Outstanding Leadership and Development Foundation. All three have worked very hard to pursue their goal of becoming physicians.

We are also concerned about a fourth medical student at King Faisal University, Mahmood Habib. Also in his final year of study, he was prohibited from taking his final exam by the university administration without explanation. He learned later during a university investigation that he had been accused of “inciting hatred towards the Bahraini regime.” He was not given the opportunity to prove otherwise. He has been informed that he is permanently expelled from the university though he was never charged with any offense.

We ask that you allow these four students to complete their university medical education and receive their medical degrees, that you protect their scholarships, lift the travel ban and ensure that they are not hindered in any way as a result of these events in their quest for professional employment.

Education is integral to national development. Both Bahrain and Saudi Arabia have expressed their commitment to nurture young citizens who are capable of nation building and contributing to the community. King Abdullah has repeatedly said that giving young people a better education is at the heart of his plan to build a modern state. He stated, “Undoubtedly, scientific centers that embrace all peoples are the first line of defense against extremists.” The Saudi Arabian Ministry of Higher Education “seeks to fulfill the potential of the greatest resource – people.”

Bahrain’s commitment to education is explicit in its Constitution, which affirms that “The State guarantees the inviolability of places of learning.” King Hamad recently confirmed this stance when he called education “the cornerstone of national development.”

These four students have all proven their professional credentials and are future leaders in a critical field of national development. We urge you to ensure their access to academic programs and to support them so that they may fulfill their academic and societal potentials.

We look forward to your response.

Sincerely,

Fred M. Donner
MESA President
Professor of Near Eastern History, University of Chicago

cc:
H.E. Sheikh Humoud Bin Abdullah Bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Bahraini Ambassador to Saudi Arabia
H.E. Ambassador Houda Ezra Nonoo, Bahraini Ambassador to US
Dr. Abdulmohsen Fahad Almarek, Ambassador Saudi Arabian Ambassador to Bahrain
H.E. Adel A. Al-Jubeir, Saudi Arabian Ambassador to the US
Prince Mohammed bin Fahd, Governor of the Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia

11 April 2012

David L. Phillips, Chairman of the Board
Aida Araissi, Founder, President & Managing Director
Bilateral US-Arab Chamber of Commerce
P.O. Box 571870
Houston, Texas 77257-1870

Dear Mr. Phillips and Ms. Araissi,

On behalf of the Committee on Academic Freedom (CAF) of the Middle East Studies Association of North America (MESA) I am writing regarding the 2012 version of Teachers Educating Across Cultures in Harmony (TEACH), a program described by your promotional materials as aimed at cross cultural exchanges and increased knowledge between educators in the United States and the Arab World. As we understand, from June 8th to June 15th, 2012, the Bilateral US-Arab Chamber of Commerce is hosting the 5th annual educator trip to the Kingdom of Bahrain and State of Qatar “to raise awareness, understanding, and cooperation between educators in the United States and the Middle East.” As educators ourselves, devoted to the teaching of Middle East studies, we certainly applaud these goals, and we write with the hope that your program will indeed introduce its participants to the situation of the educational sector in Bahrain. For the last 14 months, it has been a very ugly picture.

MESA was founded in 1966 to promote scholarship and teaching on the Middle East and North Africa. It is the preeminent organization in the field. The Association publishes the International Journal of Middle East Studies and has nearly 3,000 members worldwide. MESA is committed to ensuring academic freedom and freedom of expression, both within the region and in connection with the study of the region in North America and elsewhere.

Since the spring of last year, our committee has written four letters to Bahraini ministers, university presidents and other high officials expressing first our grave concern, but more recently our outrage at the wide range of abuses committed against faculty, administrators, staff and students at all levels of Bahraini educational institutions. Accompanying this letter are copies of our previous letters, which outline in detail the dreadful record of arrests, dismissals, physical abuse, harassment and intimidation that have characterized official policy since last February. In June 2011, the Ministry of Education issued five amendments to university bylaws that contravene the 1997 UNESCO principles regarding treatment of higher education personnel, in addition to flouting the basic protections laid out in the UN International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which Bahrain ratified in 2006.

All of these matters were addressed in the November 2011 report of the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI), whose recommendations His Majesty King Hamad promised to follow. On March 20, 2012 the National Commission tasked with carrying out these recommendations said that subsequent reforms had “touched all aspects of Bahraini life.” Yet it is clear to us that people working in the domain of higher education remain subject to abuse by the state. Just to cite a handful of examples, faculty who were dismissed have been reinstated but at inferior rank, students have been handed sentences and fines disproportionate to the crimes of which they were found guilty (and that on the flimsiest of evidence), and new broad and vague restrictions on professors’ expression make a mockery of the notion of academic freedom.

At its 2011 annual meeting, MESA was proud to give its Academic Freedom Award to all faculty, students, and staff of Bahraini institutions of higher education who had documented and spoken out against state abuses in the course of the preceding year and resisted various attacks upon the autonomy and integrity of those institutions.

While we are not privy to the program planned for this year’s participants in TEACH, your promotional page simply states that “The Kingdom of Bahrain consists of 33 islands and has been one of the Gulf's most cosmopolitan crossroads for over 4,000 years. Bahrain was the first country in the Gulf to start education for both males and females. Today a striking skyline and a rich way of life are seen in Bahrain.”

As educators committed to respect for human rights and for academic freedom, we appeal to your sense of ethics and morality by asking that your program provide access to a representative set of Bahraini educators and students, so that their American counterparts may come away with an honest picture of the state of the educational sector in Bahrain today. If members of our committee specializing in Bahrain can be of help by providing additional contacts in Bahraini educational institutions, or by offering a phone briefing to your group on the current situation in the kingdom before they head to the Gulf, please let us know.

We look forward to your response.

Fred M. Donner
MESA President
Professor of Near Eastern History, University of Chicago

06 April 2012

His Excellency Shaikh Khalid bin Ali Al Khalifa
Minister of Justice
Kingdom of Bahrain

Your Excellency,

On behalf of the Committee on Academic Freedom (CAF) of the Middle East Studies Association of North America (MESA), I write to register grave concern about the ongoing state prosecution and harassment of university faculty, staff, and students in the Kingdom of Bahrain. I urge you to intervene personally to put an immediate halt to these abuses of power.

CAF began following events in Bahrain closely in the spring of 2011. The committee has written to Bahraini officials three times since then to protest the rash of arrests, suspensions, dismissals, and other arbitrary punishments of faculty, staff, and students at Bahraini institutions of higher education. My colleagues and I were heartened to hear that on March 19, 2012 Dr. Masaud Jahromi was reinstated to his position at Ahlia University. Many other injustices, however, remain to be redressed.

We have learned, for instance, that six university students have been sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment and hefty fines despite the BICI’s finding that their “confessions” were obtained under torture. Even if the guilty verdicts were warranted, which we highly doubt, these sentences are grossly disproportionate to the alleged offenses and rob these students of their peak productive years in adulthood.

It has been reported as well that 141 other university students were tried on ambiguous security-related charges and received fines of different amounts and jail sentences of varying duration. We particularly deplore the fact that none of these students knew the identity of the witnesses against them or the nature of the state’s purported evidence of wrongdoing. At the least, there were serious infringements upon due process in these proceedings. And indeed, we find there is ample reason for skepticism of the state’s case in toto: The BICI said in its report that it “did not see any photographs in the university‘s investigative files that established that a particular student had participated in a violent, criminal, or disruptive act on the university campus.” In addition, the court has told the students that it would suspend their convictions for a “bail” payment of 500 Bahraini dinars, a measure that sounds oddly like this particular court’s judgments are for sale.

The appalling maltreatment of these university personnel is part of what we are forced to conclude has been an orchestrated campaign of assaults upon academic freedom in the course of the past year in Bahrain. In 2011, numerous academics from the University of Bahrain and other institutions were arrested for exercising their right of free expression, including at least nine who were rousted from their homes by masked police. Several staffers at the University of Bahrain were also arrested and remain suspended from their jobs. Twelve professors at the University of Bahrain, who had been arbitrarily suspended from their jobs, were told to go back to work in February, only to find that administrators had placed draconian “final warnings” in their personnel files, the last disciplinary measure before termination. Contrary to the BICI’s recommendation that all faculty members be reinstated in full, some professors have been assigned to lower-ranking jobs. None of the reinstated professors have received the back pay they missed while under suspension.

It appears, meanwhile, that the government intends to subject university faculty to ongoing intimidation. In June 2011, the Ministry of Education issued five amendments to university bylaws that contravene the 1997 UNESCO principles regarding treatment of higher education personnel, in addition to flouting the basic protections laid out in the UN International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which Bahrain ratified in 2006. Among the deeply disturbing aspects of these amendments are the ban on “political” activity by professors; the restriction of professors’ freedom of association on campus; and the prohibition of “any act that is prejudicial to national principles, standing of the State or University, the Bahraini community or the faculty member himself, whether inside or outside the University.” The wording of this last measure is so vague as to license completely arbitrary, if not capricious, discipline and harassment of faculty by the authorities. We hear reports that university campuses are under intense surveillance by security agents.

We note as well that article 52 of the university bylaws continues to block the possibility of promotion, research grants or professional accolades to faculty members “against whom a disciplinary decision has been made.” In view of the amendments above, it seems that Bahraini faculty may be denied future opportunities for professional advancement simply for running afoul of the government. Finally, the government of Bahrain itself violated article 49 of the bylaws, which provides for due notice by registered mail to faculty referred to the Disciplinary Council. The faculty members who were suspended in 2011 were not so informed.

We stand with our brave colleagues in Bahraini institutions of higher education in demanding an end to these state intrusions into their lives and livelihoods.

At its 2011 annual meeting, MESA was deeply proud to give its Academic Freedom Award to all faculty, students, and staff of Bahraini institutions of higher education who had documented and spoken out against state abuses in the course of the preceding year and resisted various attacks upon the autonomy and integrity of those institutions. We were honored to welcome Nabeel Rajab, the distinguished director of the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights, who accepted this award on behalf of his fellow citizens. Lately, we have learned that he, too, faces trial on transparently political charges.

We now call on the government of Bahrain to undertake a prompt review of all the sentences imposed on the students, to revise the university bylaws in accordance with international norms, to remove the “final warnings” from faculty members’ files, and to reinstate all these people at their respective institutions without penalty or further harassment. We further encourage the government of Bahrain to dismiss the charges against Rajab and to order thorough investigations of the very serious allegations of torture and other violations of human rights that have come to light as a result of the BICI inquiry and the work of Bahraini civil society organizations. All of these measures, in fact, are required so that the government of Bahrain may uphold its own laws and respect its obligations under international law.

Sincerely,

Fred M. Donner
MESA President
Professor of Near Eastern History, University of Chicago

cc:
Dr. Majid bin Ali Al-Naimi, Minister of Education, President, Board of Trustees of the University of Bahrain
Dr. Ebrahim Mohammed Janahi, President of the University of Bahrain
Dr. Abdullah Yousif Al-Hawaj, President of Ahlia University
Her Excellency Houda Ezra Ebrahim Nonoo, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Bahrain to the United States
His Excellency Sheikh Khalifa Bin Ali Al-Khalifa, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Bahrain to the United Kingdom
Dr. Yousif Al-Bastaki, Vice President for Administrative Affairs, Finance and Information Technology of the University of Bahrain

20 September 2011

Your Excellency Dr. Majid bin Ali Al-Naimi
Minister of Education
President, Board of Trustees of the University of Bahrain

Dear Dr. Naimi,

On behalf of the Committee on Academic Freedom (CAF) of the Middle East Studies Association of North America (MESA), we are disheartened that we must write yet again to protest the ongoing abuses against faculty, staff, and students at Bahraini educational institutions, as well as Bahraini students studying abroad.

MESA was founded in 1966 to promote scholarship and teaching on the Middle East and North Africa - the preeminent organization in the field. The Association publishes the International Journal of Middle East Studies and has nearly 3000 members worldwide. MESA is committed to ensuring academic freedom and freedom of expression, both within the region and in connection with the study of the region in North America and elsewhere.

As a committee of MESA charged with monitoring infringements on academic freedom, on two earlier occasions we have expressed serious concern over the ongoing assaults, arrests, and dismissals of individuals connected to academic institutions in Bahrain. In particular, we have highlighted the arrest and mistreatment of Professor Masoud Jahromi, the suspension of over 600 students, the dismissal of dozens of faculty members, and the revocation of scholarships of a number of Bahraini students living abroad. Most recently, we have learned that 78 individuals from the Ministry of Education and 19 faculty members at the University of Bahrain have been dismissed for reasons unrelated to their professional responsibilities. We have also learned that although King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa has authorized the return of 389 suspended students to the University of Bahrain, these students have not been allowed to resume their studies, and are uncertain about the exact date of their official reinstatement. Additionally, over 38 students are still awaiting trial.

Such actions constitute colossal infringements against academic freedom in deed and spirit. Not only do they contravene international human rights laws and standards, including Article 26 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, they also betray Article 7 of the Bahraini Constitution which states, “The State guarantees the inviolability of the places of learning.” In your 10th of September, 2011 speech on occasion of the beginning of the new school year, Your Excellency, you reaffirmed, “…education is the master key to fight the battle of life, and has been a trend since the beginning of the modern renaissance in Bahrain in the thought of our wise leadership and citizens, positioning our country among the vanguards of countries who give education much attention.” These continued offenses are an affront to the very principles you profess, and severely undermine Bahrain’s international standing.

We call on the government of Bahrain to reconsider these policies. We ask that you immediately reinstate all faculty, students, and staff who have been dismissed from academic institutions in Bahrain, and that the students be allowed to resume their studies without delay. We also ask that Professor Jahromi’s pending trial be addressed in accordance with international legal standards, and that these continued abuses be halted immediately.

Yours Sincerely,

Suad Joseph
MESA President
Professor of Anthropology and Women’s Studies
University of California Davis

cc:
Dr. Ebrahim Mohammed Janahi, President of the University of Bahrain
Dr. Abdullah Yousif Al-Hawaj, President of Ahlia University
Her Excellency Houda Ezra Ebrahim Nonoo, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Bahrain to the United States
His Excellency Sheikh Khalifa Bin Ali Al-Khalifah, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Bahrain to the United Kingdom
Dr. Yousif Al-Bastaki, Vice President for Administrative Affairs, Finance and Information Technology of the University of Bahrain
Prof. M. Cherif Bassiouni, Distinguished Research Professor of Law, De Paul University School of Law

07 July 2011

Your Excellency Dr. Majid bin Ali Al-Naimi
Minister of Education of the Kingdom of Bahrain and
Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the University of Bahrain

Dear Dr. Al-Naimi,

I write to you on behalf of the Middle East Studies Association and its Committee on Academic Freedom to express our continuing concern over an unprecedented number of assaults, arrests, dismissals, and punishments affecting faculty, students, and staff from several educational institutions in Bahrain as well as numerous Bahraini students studying abroad.

In our letter of April 21 we expressed serious concerns regarding the arrest of Professor Masoud Jahromi; the many student, faculty and staff dismissals from the University of Bahrain; the firing of 111 civil servants in the education sector; and the revocation of scholarships from students studying in the UK. Since then, the violations of academic freedom in Bahrain have continued. Indeed, evidence suggests that they have increased. As educators concerned not only with academic freedom but also with basic human rights, we are compelled to write again.

To rehearse the list, even of only the most fully substantiated violations, would consume pages. Hence, we draw attention here, in a brief summary, to the multiple abuses at the university level:

The whereabouts and condition of Professor Jahromi remain unknown.
Over 600 students have been expelled from Bahraini universities, including many academically outstanding students.
More than 78 students have been arrested. Many remain in jail.
The homes of other students have been violated and ransacked, and their families have been threatened.
Ten students studying in Auckland University, New Zealand have recently reported having their scholarships revoked.

As egregious as these actions are, we are particularly disturbed by the recently announced requirement that students sign loyalty oaths. The implicit suggestion made by Ministry of Education spokesperson Lubna Selaibeekh (www.moe.gov.bh) that students owe their loyalty to a particular government in exchange for their education is contrary to the universal mission shared by educators worldwide: the pursuit of knowledge to nurture young citizens capable of critical thinking and nation building. Indeed, the Universal Declaration for Human Rights states, “Education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. It shall promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations, racial or religious groups, and shall further the activities of the United Nations for the maintenance of peace” - Article 26 (B).

In a further indication of the deterioration of the academic environment, specifically at the University of Bahrain, Vice President Yousif Al-Bastaki affirmed in Al Wasat that the university has taken a series of measures to strengthen security. Hundreds of surveillance cameras have been installed across campus, buildings have been surrounded with barbed wire, and checkpoints have apparently been set up targeting and humiliating certain students. Any one of these measures would have a deleterious effect on the day-to-day rhythm of student and faculty interactions and discourse. Taken together, however, they constitute a stifling environment, hostile to any serious academic inquiry or learning.

Moreover, for university officials to suggest that students who choose not to continue to matriculate in such an environment can simply transfer elsewhere is particularly problematic given the substantial evidence indicating that over 600 university students have not only been expelled, but have also been denied their transcripts. With no access to these documents, they are effectively barred from resuming their education anywhere else.

Regarding faculty and staff, both the multiple investigations into their activities, undertaken apparently by three-member Commissions of Inquiry formed for this purpose, and the disciplinary boards that have sanctioned faculty are also extremely troubling. New regulations reported on June 7 stipulate that academics are not allowed to participate in any political activity inside or outside of the university environs. Anything deemed damaging to the reputation and prestige of the Bahraini state, the academic community, or Bahraini society in general is considered liable to prosecution. Such limitations on the activity of faculty are sweeping and ambiguous and hence open the way to arbitrary implementation by state authorities.

Nor is the growing litany of violations of academic freedom limited to the campus of the University of Bahrain. It has been reported that more than 60 students have been expelled from Bahrain Polytechnic. We have also received credible reports of professors from another institution having been blindfolded, handcuffed, interrogated, lined up against the wall and subjected to barrages of verbal insults as well as physical assaults at a police station. The Bahrain Teacher’s Society was summarily dissolved by the government. Bahraini students studying in the UK were forced to sign a pledge of loyalty to the ruling family or face losing their scholarships. Further, on July 1, MSNBC reported that the government has asked Bahraini students abroad to spy on their fellow citizens and report back to the government. Multiple sources report that Bahraini students pursuing education in the United Sates have been pressured to attend pro-government rallies.

Finally, and just as disturbing, these egregious violations of academic freedom have extended below the post-secondary level: similar reports of intimidation and dismissals have been reported at the elementary and secondary levels as well. Taken together, these violations and abuses paint a dreadful picture of a severely compromised educational sector, one which intimidates and demeans students and faculty alike and which can in no way fulfill its pedagogical mission.

Article 7 of the Bahraini Constitution states, “The State guarantees the inviolability of the places of learning.” We therefore respectfully request that you reexamine the cases of all those who have been arrested, fired, or expelled. If legitimate cause exists for such action, it should be conveyed to each individual through formal channels. If not, we urge you to respect the fundamentals of academic freedom and to reinstate all the students, faculty, civil servants and administrators who have been unjustly dismissed. We also ask again that you address the arrest of Professor Jahromi according to recognized international legal standards.

We further urge that you revoke the requirement that students, whether within the kingdom or abroad, sign loyalty oaths and that you lift the wide-ranging limitations on activities of faculty and staff related to freedom of speech and conscience both on and off campus.

In sum, we ask, in keeping with the commitment in Article 7 of the Bahraini Constitution, that you allow Bahrain’s universities, its elementary and secondary schools, and other educational training institutes once again to serve the kingdom and its future as “inviolable places of learning.”

We look forward to your response.

Yours Sincerely,

Suad Joseph
MESA President
Professor of Anthropology and Women’s Studies
University of California Davis

cc:

Dr. Ebrahim Mohammed Janahi, President of the University of Bahrain
Dr. Abdullah Yousif Al-Hawaj, President of Ahlia University
Her Excellency Houda Ezra Ebrahim Nonoo, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Bahrain to the United States
His Excellency Sheikh Khalifa Bin Ali Al-Khalifah, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Bahrain to the United Kingdom
Dr. Yousif Al-Bastaki, Vice President for Administrative Affairs, Finance and Information Technology of the University of Bahrain
Prof. M. Cherif Bassiouni, Distinguished Research Professor of Law, De Paul University School of Law

21 April 2011

Your Excellency Dr. Majid bin Ali Al-Naimi
Minister of Education
President, Board of Trustees of the University of Bahrain
Fax: +973 1768 0161, 1768 4493
info@batelco.com.bh, akhbar-alterbia@maktoob.com

Dear Dr. Al-Naimi,

I write to you on behalf of the Middle East Studies Association and its Committee on Academic Freedom to express our deep concern over the widespread, on-going intimidation of the educational sector in Bahrain. The current atmosphere of dismissals, firings and threats to professors’ and staff members’ employment as well as students’ continuing matriculation undermines the intellectual vibrancy of the academy not to mention the educational future of the next generation of citizens.

As examples of the ongoing intimidation of the professorate we note first the case of Professor Masoud Jahromi, Chair of the Department of Engineering at Ahlia University, who was arrested at his home on the night of April 14, 2011. His whereabouts are unknown. His students describe him as a “role model who taught us to respect and be kind to all people and to share knowledge.” We ask that you ensure Professor Jahromi be granted full access to his lawyer and that due process of law be upheld in this case. If he is charged with an offense, we ask that he be tried before a court that meets fair international standards. If he is not charged, we urge that he be released promptly, accorded his full right to self-expression, and allowed to resume his professional responsibilities without conditions or limitations on his academic freedom, and without professional sanction or penalty.

In another case, on April 6, 2011, some 19 faculty members from Bahrain University were summarily fired from their teaching and research positions in various departments; 25 administrators were dismissed; 62 students expelled and 8 others suspended for a year.

Third, 111 civil servants were summarily fired from the Ministry of Education on April 17 and are threatened with legal action. Again, such a massive dismissal raises serious questions about cause. Each of these government employees deserves to have notification of the reasons behind their firing.

Such a broad wave of firings and dismissals is unprecedented and appears to be motivated by political, not academic, concerns. We ask that you adhere to generally acknowledged standards of employment in academic institutions and, where warranted, issue official letters that state explicit reasons for the dismissal or expulsion of each.

Finally, in the United Kingdom, Bahraini students who are pursuing university education were photographed while participating in peaceful demonstrations to support democracy. It has been reported in The Guardian that the Bahraini government subsequently harassed their families in Bahrain, and that the stipends of nine of students were withdrawn.

Taken together, these activities appear to constitute a serious assault on the system of higher education in Bahrain—its faculty, staff and students. It is through education that a productive, vibrant national future is ensured; indeed, a quality system of education is a precious national asset. As noted explicitly in Article 7 of the Bahraini Constitution, “The State guarantees the inviolability of the places of learning.” We therefore respectfully request that you reexamine the cases of all those who have been arrested, fired, or expelled. If legitimate cause exists for such action, it should be conveyed to each individual through formal channels. If not, we urge you to respect the bases of academic freedom and to reinstate all the students, faculty, civil servants and administrators who have been unfairly dismissed as well as to address the arrest of Professor Jahromi according to recognized international legal standards.

We look forward to your response.

Yours Sincerely,

Suad Joseph
MESA President
Professor of Anthropology and Women’s Studies
University of California Davis

cc:

Dr. Ebrahim Mohammed Janahi
President, University of Bahrain
Fax: +973 1744 9900

Dr. Abdullah Yousif Al-Hawaj
President, Ahlia University
aalhawaj@ahliauniversity.edu.bh
Fax: +973 1729 0083

Her Excellency Houda Ezra Ebrahim Nonoo
Embassy of the Kingdom of Bahrain
Washington, DC 20008
Fax: 202 362 2192

His Excellency Ambassador Sheikh Khalifa Bin Ali Al-Khalifah
Embassy of the Kingdom of Bahrain
London, UK
Fax: (+44) 0207 201 9183

21 September 2009

Dr. Ebrahim Ahmed Aljanahi
President, University of Bahrain
Fax: +973 1744 9900

Dear Dr. Aljanahi:

On behalf of the Committee on Academic Freedom (CAF) of the Middle East Studies Association of North America (MESA), I am writing to you to express our concern at the disciplinary action taken against Ms. Noor Abbas, a student at the University of Bahrain. Earlier this year, Ms. Abbas circulated a statement on behalf of the Student Union List criticizing some policies and facilities at the University.

MESA was founded in 1966 to promote scholarship and teaching on the Middle East and North Africa. The preeminent organization in the field, the Association publishes the International Journal of Middle East Studies and has more than 3000 members worldwide. MESA is committed to ensuring academic freedom and freedom of expression, both within the region and in connection with the study of the region in North America and elsewhere.

Universities, their administrators, and their faculty, have a special obligation to encourage free inquiry and discussion on their campuses. We should lead by example. CAF, a committee composed primarily of university faculty members (many with administrative experience), therefore strongly urges your university to reconsider the disciplinary action you have taken in this case. The statement circulated by Ms. Abbas, while critical of some University policies, was well within the bounds of reasoned discourse. It would seem to be more worthy of a reasoned than a punitive response. We look forward to your response.

Sincerely,

Virginia H. Aksan
MESA President
Professor of History, McMaster University

cc:
Dr. Majed Ali Al-Nuaimi
Minister of Education and President, Board of Trustees of the University of Bahrain
Fax: +973 1768 0161, 1768 4493
Email: info@batelco.com.bh, akhbar-alterbia@maktoob.com

Her Excellency Houda Ezra Ebrahim Nonoo
Embassy of the Kingdom of Bahrain, Washington, DC 20008
Fax: 202 362 2192

Mr. Nabeel Rajab
President, Bahrain Center for Human Rights, Manama, Bahrain
Fax: +97 31 7795170

MESA - Middle East Studies Association

Letters on Bahrain

11 December 2012

31 August 2012

11 April 2012

06 April 2012

20 September 2011

07 July 2011

21 April 2011

21 September 2009