Hasan Mushaima () is an opposition leader in

Bahrain Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...

and the secretary-general of the Haq Movement, an important opposition party in Bahrain. Before forming Haq, he was a founding member of Al Wefaq and a leading figure in the 1994 uprising in Bahrain. He has campaigned for more democratic rights in

and has been in prison in Bahrain since his arrest in 2011.

Political activity

1990s uprising

The Bahraini government has placed Mushaima under arrest several times, twice arresting him during the 1994 uprising. He was later jailed from March 1995 to September 1995 and again from January 1996 to February 2001. Mushaima was re-arrested in February 2007 and jailed for one day and then was arrested and imprisoned again from January 2009 to April 2009.

Political activities in the 2000s

In 2010 Mushaima travelled to

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to be treated for lung cancer.

Bahraini uprising (2011–present)

Ali Mushaima outside the Bahraini Embassy

Mushaima announced plans to return to Bahrain during the protests in February 2011, but authorities detained him in Lebanon while en route, possibly at the request of the Bahraini government. Mushaima finally did return to Bahrain on Saturday, February 26, 2011. On that day, he was described by the

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as being "welcomed like a rock star," by protestors in Pearl Square. He reportedly told followers that "The dictator fell in Tunisia, the dictator fell in Egypt and the dictator should fall here." On 7 March 2011, Mushaima along with Abdulwahab Hussain, the leader of the Wafa movement, and Saeed Alshehabi, the leader of the Bahrain Freedom Movement, formed the "Alliance for the Republic" (

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

:التحالف من أجل الجمهورية), because of their belief that the Bahraini regime lost legitimacy after the harsh crackdown on protesters using heavy weapons. One month after protests, the

Gulf Cooperation Council The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (), also known as the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC; ), is a Regional integration, regional, intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental, political, and economic union comprising Ba ...

sent 1,500+ PSF troops (1,000 Saudi, some Qatari troops and 500 Emirati policemen) to crush the popular uprising there and also sent the Kuwaiti Navy to stop any aid to the protesters by sea. After the protesters were kicked from the Pearl Roundabout, many known rights activists operating in Bahrain were arrested, including Mushaima. On 22 June 2011, Mushaima was sentenced to life imprisonment by a military court for "attempting to overthrow the monarchy". On 30 April 2012, a Bahraini court ordered a civilian retrial of Mushaima and 20 other men convicted of leading the uprising. In 2018, Mushaima's son Ali Mushaima began a hunger strike outside the Bahraini embassy in London, protesting the denial of medical treatment for political prisoners including Hassan Mushaima. On 15 September 2021, he declined a conditional release offer.

References

Front Line: Ongoing harassment of Bahraini human rights defenders

Clashes erupt after two opposition figures are held in Bahrain
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mushaima, Hasan Bahraini activists Bahraini dissidents Bahraini Shia Muslims Haq Movement politicians Living people 1948 births People of the Bahraini uprising of 2011 Republicanism in Bahrain Bahraini prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by Bahrain Political prisoners in Bahrain

Political activity

1990s uprising

Political activities in the 2000s

Bahraini uprising (2011–present)

See also

References