June 1, 2023. Ahead of the visit of the Danish Prime Minister to the White House on June 5, 2023, human rights organizations, including FIDH and the World Organization against Torture (OMCT) within the framework of the Human Rights Observatory, issued a statement to President Joseph Biden and Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen. , to discuss the case of Abdulhadi Al Khawaja, a Danish-Bahraini human rights defender who has been arbitrarily detained since 2011 and sentenced to life imprisonment. Signatories are drawing attention to Mr Al Khawaja’s alarming health condition.
June 1, 2023
Dear President Joseph Biden and Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen,
Prior to the meeting on Monday 5 June, we strongly encourage you to discuss mutual cooperation on the case of Adam Lorenzo, a Danish-Bahraini human rights defender who is the only Danish prisoner of conscience in the world. Masu. Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja.
We appreciate the United States and Denmark’s vocal support for human rights and democracy. The Biden-Harris administration is committed to putting human rights and democratic principles at the center of U.S. foreign policy, and human rights are a central part of the Danish government’s newly announced foreign policy strategy. We further welcome the commitment of both countries to protect and support human rights defenders.
Abdulhadi Al Khawaja, a Bahraini national of Danish descent, was violently arrested in Bahrain in 2011, subjected to severe torture, and sentenced to life in prison. Al-Khawaja’s detention was declared arbitrary by the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention in 2012, but he remains in solitary confinement 12 years later with serious health problems.
The State Department’s annual Country Report on Human Rights Practices identified a range of serious human rights violations by Bahraini authorities, including inhuman or degrading treatment and punishment by the government. Mr. Al Khawaja has been systematically denied medical treatment, including after he developed an emergency heart condition in early March 2023. He has also been systematically denied access to and meetings with his lawyer.
We celebrate the deep and enduring ties between the United States and Denmark. We are confident that if you decide to jointly bring the case of Denmark’s only prisoner of conscience, the United States and Denmark can work together to secure Mr. Al Khawaja’s unconditional release and safe transfer to Denmark. doing.
Thank you for your consideration. We welcome the opportunity to discuss these issues further. I hope that it will be a fruitful meeting.
Sincerely,