Written question asked by Ian Lucas (Labour) on Thursday, 19 April 2012, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 23 April 2012. It was answered by Alistair Burt (Conservative) on Thursday, 26 April 2012 on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Bahrain

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment his Department has made of the treatment of political prisoners by the Bahraini authorities.

Answer: The Government remains concerned about the Human Rights situation in Bahrain and has urged the Bahraini authorities to meet its commitments to uphold international standards in all cases. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), spoke with the Foreign Minister of Bahrain on 21 April to express the United Kingdom's concerns about the continuing unrest. We were disappointed that the Court review of a group of prisoners was postponed on 23 April, and urge the authorities to bring these cases to a conclusion quickly and transparently.

Secondary information