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Butcher in Town!

Submitted by moodz on Tuesday, 24 July 20075 Comments

When I first heard it I thought it’s another one of those rumors that float around every once in a while, something within the same lines as the “Naturalization of 50,000 Bathist Iraqis of the Fedayeen Saddam or that of a nationwide full payment of all outstanding debt of locals, but the pictures proved me wrong.
I later found the following news piece by Radio Sawa confirming the incident, the ever so famous “Butcher of Bahrain” is in fact visiting the country; I quote:

Bahraini authorities reinforced their security measures around the Bahrain International Airport to prevent a demonstration called for by the Committee of Martyrs and Victims of Torture, in protest at the arrival of the Ex-President of the State Security Service, British Ian Henderson to Manama.

عززت السطات البحرينية إجراءاتها الأمنية حول مطار البحرين الدولي بهدف منع تظاهرة دعت إليها لجنة الشهداء وضحايا التعذيب، إحتجاجا على وصول رئيس جهاز أمن الدولة الاسبق البريطاني إيان هندرسون إلى المنامة.
ويتهم الناشطون السياسيون والحقوقيون هندرسون الذي كان يتولى منصب المدير العام للأمن العام في البحرين منذ الستينات وحتى عام 2000 بالمسؤولية عن انتهاكات لحقوق الانسان. (Source)

How inconsiderate could this really be? Allowing this monster, a symbol of the 90’s era, an icon to the horrors that took place not so long ago on this island, a reminder of the screams and pains of the tortured the blood of the martyrs, the lives of the families that were destroyed because of imprisonment and forcible exile, we have became the first country in the world to deport its own citizens and then demand that other countries refuse to give them asylum.

It is honestly sad to see that international authorities investigating the torture allegations against him instead of our own government, which not only turn a blind eye to the issue at hand but absurdly grants him free access to the country. The US State Department, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and other international Human Rights organizations have all produced veritable mountains of documented evidence of such abuse and torture and linking Mr. Henderson to them.

Then again we can’t talk, or can we?

5 Comments »

Bahrainiac said:

Maybe it was a ploy by the MOI to “lure” Mr. Henderson back to Bahrain and then arrest him! We can only wish……

- 24 July 2007 at 3:25 pm

moodz said:

Do you think he could ever be tried in Bahrain? I mean, away from the issue of the governmental suppression on anything that has to do with the 90s Era, the guy is a British Citizen, a Scotsman..

Human right watchdogs and local activists should have taken this to a higher level, probably call for his prosecution in Britain with the aid of the United Nation Convention Against torture, a couple of clicks around google revealed another interesting story .. The European Parliament has called Britain to prosecute Henderson back in 2007 for crimes relating to torture (More here).

- 24 July 2007 at 5:20 pm

Dubh said:

I’ve never heard of this guy. My only source of info is Wikipedia which says he currently resides in Bahrain. Is that not true? Does he own a home there? It also says he is immune from prosecution due to a blanket amnesty by the government.

- 24 July 2007 at 11:57 pm

moodz said:

@Dubh:
According to a recent “quick chat” he had with one of the opposition members that chose to stay in exile (which happened to be the UK) Dr. Saeed AlShehabi, Henderson stated that he resides in the UK with wife and that’s where his son lives, yet regularly travels to Bahrain and to South Africa where his daughter lives.

The issue of whether or not he’s immune is rather debatable and is only due to the warm and deep ties between Bahrain and Britain. He could at least be prosecuted for his crimes in Kenya though.. Check a 2002 documentary by ITV about Henderson here

- 25 July 2007 at 12:11 am

Eyad the Great said:

The only reason Ian Henderson comes fearless to Bahrain is the same reason Adel Flaifil is in Bahrain and running a real-estate business worth billions of Dinars and also involved in most of the gray new lan sales for those who must not be named, THE GOVERNMENT DOESN’T CARE WHAT WE THINK OR FEEL.

Any person who repeatedly tortured and killed people is considered a serial killer, and in any country will jailed for a very longtime and in many cases killed, apparently we are the only country that invites them back to run our business!!

- 26 July 2007 at 7:45 am