Answer given by on behalf of the European Commission

2.4.2020

The EU is consistently raising the issue of death penalty and the overall human rights situation in Bahrain with authorities in Manama, both in general terms and in relation to individual cases. In this context, it has repeatedly reached out to the Bahraini authorities on the two Bahraini death row inmates Mohamed Ramadan and Husain Al Moosa before and after the verdict hearing of 8 January 2020.

These two individual cases were notably raised by the EU during the most recent informal Human Rights Dialogue between the EU and Bahrain in November 2019 in Brussels .

Furthermore, since December, the EU has repeatedly pursued its outreach on the two cases, both from headquarters or via the EU Delegation in Saudi Arabia (also accredited to Bahrain), encouraging the Bahraini authorities to re-introduce a moratorium on the death penalty.

These efforts notably included contacts and meetings with Bahraini Human Rights oversight bodies such as the Special Investigations Unit (SIU) and the Prisoners and Detainees and Prisoners' Rights Committee (PDRC) in order to enquire about the further steps in the procedure.

Together with the EU Member States present in Manama, the EU Delegation also attended the verdict hearing on 8 January 2020 and has since then been in contact with the defendants’ lawyer. Following the confirmation of the death sentences of the two defendants by Bahrain’s High Criminal Court, the Spokesperson of the High Representative/Vice-President issued a statement on 9 January 2020[1], calling for a halt to the executions and to ensure that their re-trial be held in accordance with international law and standards. The EU principled position against the death penalty was also underlined.

• [1] https://eeas.europa.eu/headquarters/headquarters-homepage/72804/bahrain-statement-spokesperson-confirmation-death-sentence-two-citizens_en