Pope Francis on Thursday called on Bahraini authorities to renounce the death penalty and guarantee basic rights as he arrived in the Sunni-controlled kingdom accused of discrimination against the Shiite majority.
With King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa at his side, Francis also urged the Gulf Arab nation to guarantee “safe and decent” working conditions for migrant workers, who have long suffered abuses in construction, oil extraction, oil and domestic services.
While striking a diplomatic stance, Francis did not shy away from addressing some of the most controversial social issues in Bahrain at the start of his four-day visit to attend a government-sponsored interfaith conference on East-West dialogue.
Human rights groups and relatives of Shiite activists on death row have called on the Pope to demand an end to capital punishment and defend the rights of political dissidents, hundreds of whom have been detained since Bahrain crushed Arab Spring protests. in 2011. with the help of neighboring Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
Francis indirectly referred to the inter-sect fighting when he arrived in the city of Awali and met Al Khalifa at the royal palace in Sakhir, marking the first papal visit to Bahrain.
Speaking to government officials and diplomats, Francis praised Bahrain’s tradition of tolerance and cited the country’s constitution, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of religion, as a declared commitment that must be put into practice.
Referring to the death penalty, Francis said that the government must guarantee, above all, the right to life. According to the Institute for Rights and Democracy, in 2017 Bahrain abandoned a moratorium on the death penalty and has since executed six prisoners.
That institute and Human Rights Watch have documented a “dramatic increase” in the number of death sentences handed down since 2011, with 26 people currently on death row, half for political activities.
In recent days, these organizations have published a letter from relatives of some of those sentenced to death, begging Francisco to take the matter to the authorities and visit the Jau prison, where many political prisoners are held.
During the visit, Francis also recalled that Bahrain has one of the highest levels of immigration in the world, with about half of the population of foreign workers, denouncing the existence of “dehumanizing” work.
“We must ensure that working conditions everywhere are safe and dignified,” Francis said, calling on Bahrain to be “a beacon in the region for the promotion of equal rights and better conditions for workers, women and the young”.
Bahrain, like other Gulf Arab states, relies on workers from Asian countries like India and Pakistan, who often face difficult conditions with low wages.
Francis should address some of these workers when he meets with the Catholic community, which numbers more than 80,000 people, in a country of about 1.5 million people.
Francis will visit both churches during his visit and is likely to thank the King for the tolerance the government has long shown towards Christians living in the country.
Source: TSF
