The UN Human Rights Council concluded its 19th Session, adopting several resolutions in relation to the ongoing struggle for democracy within the Arab region. Resolutions concerningLibya,Syria,Yemen, the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights in the Context of Peaceful Protests, as well as on Israeli settlements in theOccupiedPalestinianTerritory, were all adopted by the Council.
The Kuwaiti government should immediately release two Kuwaiti men detained over internet postings criticizing the rulers of Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait, Human Rights Watch said July 13, 2011. State security authorities detained and investigated Nasser Abul on June 7, 2011, for threatening state security based on Twitter messages, and Lawrence al-Rashidi later in June based on a YouTube video criticizing Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, the country's emir. Both are being held without bail. Kuwaiti authorities should immediately investigate allegations that Abul has been mistreated in detention, Human Rights Watch said.
BAHRAIN
Regime officials have reportedly taken over the Facebook and Twitter pages of Rasad News, a major source of news about human rights violations in Bahrain, and are posting anti-protest and pro-regime material after the arrest on 9 June of Hussein Ali Makki, administrator of the pages. Rasad News has since opened a new Facebook page to continue its work.
Civil society organisations from across the Arab region met in Kuwait, from 4 to 5 May, within the framework of the Forum for the Future 2011, and unanimously adopted a declaration calling for the governments of the region to take urgent measures to eliminate discrimination against women.
