Dissident Spotlight: Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja
Abdulhadi al-Khawaja is expected to spend the rest of his life in prison after spending much of his life as an exiled dissident.
Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja is a resident of Bahrain, where Shia Muslims have faced discrimination from the Sunni majority for decades.
In 1991, al-Khawaja gained asylum in Denmark, where he organized other exiled Bahrainians to agitate for human rights protections in their home country. A new prime minister and king made it possible for al-Khawaja to return home, though he remained critical of the widespread torture and arbitrary cruelty of state security forces.
According to Human Rights Watch, he was arrested in 2004 for spreading “‘false or malicious news’ that ‘damages the public interest’ or ‘incites contempt’ towards the government.” The new king had little tolerance for criticism. However, al-Khawaja received a pardon in October 2004, marking what seemed a hopeful equilibrium between the government and one of its most prominent critics.
It didn’t last.
After participating in the 2011 Arab Spring revolts, al-Khawaja was given a life sentence. He remains in prison to this day.
Crackdowns Escalate Dramatically
Al-Khawaja’s story mirrors Alexei Navalny in the escalation of a government crackdown on its dissidents.
Navalny writes in his memoir Patriot about the relationship he had with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Putin would disrupt or imprison Navalny, and Navalny would continue his anti-corruption activities. Navalny didn’t think Putin would kill him.
Instead, Putin not only attempted to assassinate Navalny with a neurotoxin, but he also imprisoned Navalny in a labor camp, which ultimately killed him.
Al-Khawaja’s story is a reminder that dictators may treat dissent lightly or with moderate prison sentences in the beginning. Over time, dictators may coarsen and impose far harsher penalties than they did in the past.
His children make videos announcing al-Khawaja’s protests in prison and keeping the public updated about his health. At 64 years old, these updates may be the final remnants we get about his struggle for a more equal society in Bahrain.