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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 MANAMA 001507 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
FOR NEA/ARP, S/CT 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/14/2016 
TAGS: PTER PGOV PHUM BA CTR POL HUMRIT
SUBJECT: BAHRAIN'S FIRST COUNTER-TERRORISM LAW ENTERS INTO 
FORCE 
 
REF: A. MANAMA 1469 
     ¶B. MANAMA 1156 
 
Classified By: CDA Susan L. Ziadeh for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). 
 
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Summary 
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¶1.  (C) King Hamad August 12 signed into law Bahrain's first 
law specifically criminalizing terrorism.  Both chambers of 
parliament passed the law in the final days of the 
legislative session, which expired at the end of July.  The 
law enumerates the types of crimes considered to be terrorism 
and establishes punishments, ranging up to and including the 
death penalty.  The law also criminalizes conspiracy to carry 
out an act of terror, establishing an unspecified penalty of 
imprisonment or fine.  Human rights and political activists 
worry that the law gives the government expanded powers to 
crack down on its opponents on the pretext of fighting 
terror.  In the context of a recent successful constitutional 
challenge to a conspiracy clause in the 1976 penal code, a 
senior Justice Ministry official said he sees no obvious 
vulnerability in the CT law's conspiracy article.  Bahrain 
and the United States share a strong interest in seeing that 
the conspiracy article is upheld and can be used against 
terror suspects.  End Summary. 
 
------------------------------- 
Bahrain Implements First CT Law 
------------------------------- 
 
¶2.  (U) After more than two years of processing and several 
iterations of the text, Bahrain's first law specifically 
criminalizing terrorism and establishing harsh penalties for 
terrorist crimes entered into force August 12 following the 
King's ratification.  Officially titled "Protecting Society 
from Terrorist Acts," the law was passed by both chambers of 
parliament in the final days of the legislative session that 
expired at the end of July. 
 
¶3.  (C) The draft bill experienced intense criticism in the 
elected lower house Council of Representatives from Sunni and 
Shia parliamentary blocs, both believing the law targeted 
their constituencies.  The Sunni Islamist deputies argued 
that the government was pursuing the law in order to please 
outside countries (read the U.S.) by cracking down on Sunni 
Islamists as part of the global war on terror.  Shia deputies 
maintained that the government would use the law to pressure 
and control Shia political activists and their followers.  In 
their view, the law signals the return of some of the heavy 
handed tactics the government employed during the years of 
civil strife in the 1990s. 
 
----------------- 
Terrorism Defined 
----------------- 
 
¶4.  (U) Article 1 (of a total of 32 articles) of the law 
defines terrorism as (informal Embassy translations 
throughout): 
 
"Any use or threat of the use of force, or any other illegal 
means that constitute a crime punishable by law, to carry out 
a criminal plan, individually or in a group, aimed at 
disrupting the state system, exposing the safety and security 
of the Kingdom to danger, or harming national unity or the 
security of the international community, which results in 
harming people, or threatening them, or exposing their lives, 
freedom and security to danger, or harming public health or 
the environment or national economy or public and private 
properties or confiscating them, or obstructing people from 
doing their work or preventing or obstructing state 
authorities, places of worship, or scientific institutes from 
doing their work." 
 
¶5.  (U) Subsequent articles explain the various types of 
crimes that constitute terrorism and establish punishments 
for them, up to and including the death penalty.  Some of the 
crimes mentioned specifically in the text are attacking 
people, bombing, theft, money laundering, establishing terror 
groups, providing weapons, weapons training, encouraging the 
commission of terrorist acts, contacting foreign terror 
organizations, and cooperating with foreign terror 
organizations. 
 
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Plugging a Hole by Criminalizing Conspiracy 
 
MANAMA 00001507  002 OF 003 
 
 
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¶6.  (SBU) Article 18 of the law criminalizes conspiracy to 
commit terrorist acts, an unprecedented measure in Bahraini 
law.  Article 157 of Bahrain's penal code (of 1976) 
criminalizes conspiracy to commit a crime, but that article 
was found to be unconstitutional in a recent case against 
members of a Sunni extremist cell originally arrested in June 
2004 on charges of plotting bomb attacks on government, 
economic, and tourist establishments (Ref B).  Article 18 of 
the CT law reads: 
 
"Punishment of imprisonment or fine shall be imposed upon a 
person with knowledge of a terrorist crime, conspiracy, 
plans, or acts with a goal of committing a terrorist crime, 
and who does not inform the authorities about this knowledge." 
 
The law sets no specified penalties other than the 
"imprisonment or fine" language. 
 
------------------------------------------- 
Activists Fear Government's Expanded Powers 
------------------------------------------- 
 
¶7.  (U) Human rights and political activists have joined 
Sunni and Shia bloc MPs in criticizing the law.  The 
dissolved but still active Bahrain Center for Human Rights 
issued a release August 2 expressing concern that the law 
could place restrictions on the activities of human rights 
activists, specifically their defense of the rights of 
freedom of expression and association.  The Center views 
language in the definition of terrorism referring to 
"preventing or obstructing the work of state authorities" and 
"harming national unity" as problematic and possible avenues 
for government abuse. 
 
¶8.  (C) The Human Rights Center release quotes Mary Lawlor, 
director of the Dublin-based human rights foundation Front 
Line, saying, "It is worrying that Bahrain is disregarding 
international concerns about this law, especially since 
Bahrain is a member of the new UN Human Rights Council."  It 
also says that Martin Scheinin, UN Special Rapporteur for 
Human Rights and Counter-Terrorism, called for the Bahraini 
parliament to review the law.  Local human rights activists 
have complained to EmbOffs that the law is an example of the 
government attempting to reassert control over political 
activity in the country. 
 
------------------------------------- 
Justice Ministry Official Praises Law 
------------------------------------- 
 
¶9.  (C) In an August 12 conversation with EconOff, Ministry 
of Justice Under Secretary Shaikh Khalid bin Ali Al Khalifa 
said "the new counter-terrorism law is a good one."  On 
concerns raised by human rights groups that the law could be 
used to repress legitimate freedom of expression, he said, 
"We have taken a close look at these things - the law gives 
the government discretion in the application of its 
provisions."  He said this flexibility given to the 
government would ensure that while Bahrain has a strong 
counter-terrorism law, the government would be able to 
satisfy the international community that human rights were 
being protected.  He commented that much of the local 
opposition to the law had been expressed by parliamentarians 
eager to win support from their constituencies ahead of 
upcoming elections. 
 
¶10.  (C) Turning to the now-dropped court case involving the 
Sunni "Bahrain Six" extremist cell (Ref B), Shaikh Khalid 
said he was not surprised that the Constitutional Court had 
found Article 157 of the Penal Code to be unconstitutional. 
He viewed the wording of the article as prone to challenge. 
Language in the Court's ruling on Article 157, however, does 
not necessarily imply that Article 18 of the CT law could 
also be found unconstitutional in a possible future 
challenge.  Shaikh Khalid said that he saw no obvious 
vulnerability in the new law. 
 
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Comment 
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¶11.  (C) As Shaikh Khalid said, the newly implemented 
counter-terrorism law is a good one.  The first few drafts 
delivered by the government to parliament were dead on 
arrival, and were returned without any serious parliamentary 
review.  This last, and ultimately successful, draft, is the 
 
MANAMA 00001507  003 OF 003 
 
 
result of consultations between parliamentary leaders and 
government officials, and intense review in the lower house 
Defense, Foreign Affairs, and National Security Committee and 
the full Chamber.  In contrast with the also recently 
implemented Anti-Money Launder/Combating Terror Financing 
Law, the CT law does not exempt what the OIC calls "freedom 
fighters" resisting occupation from the provisions of the law 
(Ref A). 
 
¶12.  (C) Comment continued:  The greatest possible 
vulnerability of the CT law is Article 18, which deals with 
conspiracy.  Opponents of this article say it criminalizes 
thoughts and sets no clear limits on the government's use of 
this provision to harass its opponents.  Given the very 
recent ruling on the Penal Code's conspiracy clause, Article 
18 could well be the subject of a near-term constitutional 
challenge.  Both Bahrain and the United States have a strong 
interest in seeing that it is upheld, and we will urge the 
GOB to be as prepared as possible for any potential legal 
case. 
 
 
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ZIADEH