Bahraini hardliner is VIP at London Olympics
Sheikh Nasser said he hoped a 'wall would fall' on the regime's enemies (Hamad I Mohammed)
Sheikh Nasser bin Hamad al-Khalifa, 24, will attend the opening ceremony of the Games despite claims that he had presided over a crackdown on scores of athletes in Bahrain and had declared that anyone who defied the ruling regime had “nowhere to escape”.
He will be given free access to all the Olympic events, will be put up in a luxury hotel at a discounted rate and will be driven around London in a chauffeured BMW.
The prince, a Sandhurst-trained officer who is a commander in Bahrain’s Royal Guard, will enjoy the privileges because he is president of his country’s Olympic committee.
He is among a group of representatives from authoritarian regimes whose presence will anger human rights campaigners. An army general who is a friend of President Bashar al-Assad of Syria is also expected to attend.
Nasser’s London invitation comes amid controversy over the Bahrain Grand Prix. The governing body of Formula One has said the race will go ahead next weekend despite the threat of protests and continued violence in the country.
Teams are likely to be escorted in bulletproof vehicles after anti-government activists called for “three days of rage” to coincide with the race.
Last week it emerged that Nasser’s father, King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa, had been invited to lunch at Windsor Castle to celebrate the Queen’s diamond jubilee.
Nasser’s presence at the Olympics is potentially more controversial.
Last year the prince rang up a live programme on Bahrain TV, the state broadcaster, to lambast demonstrators.
“Anyone who called for the fall of the regime, may a wall fall on his head,” the prince said. “Whether he is an athlete, socialite or politician — whatever he is — he will be held accountable . . . Bahrain is an island and there is nowhere to escape.”
The Shi’ite majority have been at the forefront of protests against the Khalifah family who are minority Sunni Muslims. Some peaceful demonstrations last year were organised by athletes.
Nasser was subsequently put in charge of a government committee that targeted more than 150 Shi’ite sportsmen and officials, including international footballers and even disabled athletes, who were accused of opposing the regime.
Some were arrested and jailed, while many more were suspended from competition. Relatives of A’ala and Mohammed Hubail, who are members of the national football squad, told the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights (BCHR) that the brothers had been “subjected to torture in prison”.
Mohammed Hubail was sentenced to two years in jail by a military court last June, but was later released. At the time Nasser reportedly wrote on Twitter: “If it was up to me, I’d give them all life.”
“These serious claims need to be fully investigated according to international standards before this man is allowed to attend the London Olympics,” said Maryam al-Khawaja, of the BCHR, which works with Amnesty International. Her father, Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, a prominent activist serving a life sentence, has been on hunger strike for more than two months, fuelling recent protests in Bahrain.
“Welcoming prominent members of the Khalifah regime accused of repression is a real blot on the Olympics,” said Andy Slaughter, chairman of the parliamentary group for democracy in Bahrain.
The Bahrain authorities say the sportsmen were charged with criminal acts.
Sheikh Abdulaziz Mubarak al-Khalifah, a government spokesman, said: “Bahrain takes all allegations of torture seriously and condemns it in all its forms. To prove this, the king set up an independent commission to review the events of last year.
“One of the recommendations was to set up an independent prosecuting unit within the Ministry of Justice to look into every allegation of torture.
“Sheikh Nasser has been a great inspiration for the youths of Bahrain and has promised and delivered on many projects addressing the legitimate grievances of the ever-growing youth population.”
A spokeswoman for London 2012 said: “If people are eligible to enter the UK, it is pretty hard for us to refuse them entry to the Games.”
http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/public/article1016905.ece
