The monarchy considers most anti-government rallies as “illegal gatherings” punishable by law.
Rajab, who is already serving a three-month sentence for posting anti-government comments on Twitter, was in court for the verdict. He is the president of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights.
The State Department said it was “deeply troubled” by the verdict, while the European Union “noted with concern” the sentence. Rights groups, including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, also condemned the verdict.
“We’ve long made clear that it’s critical for all governments, including Bahrain, to respect freedom of expression, freedom of assembly,” State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said. “So we are deeply troubled by the sentencing today. We believe that all people have a fundamental freedom to participate in civil acts of peaceful disobedience, and we call on the government of Bahrain to take steps to build confidence across Bahraini society and to begin a really meaningful dialogue with the political opposition and civil society because actions like this sentencing today only serve to further divide Bahraini society.”
Rajab’s attorney Mohammed al-Jishi said his client was sentenced to a year in prison for each of three protests he took part in, bringing the total sentence to three years. Al-Jishi said he plans to appeal the ruling.
“What happened today in the court room shows clearly there is no justice or independent judiciary,” said Rajab’s wife Sumayia, who was also in court with her son and daughter. “My husband is not a criminal but a hostage of a government which can’t stand freedom of expression and freedom of assembly.”
Prosecutors defended the ruling, contending that Rajab urged his followers to confront security forces, which in turn led to riots across the Bahraini capital, Manama — contradicting Najab’s and his supporters claims that he was calling for peaceful protests.
“The Public Prosecution produced evidence that the accused had called in public speeches for a demonstration to confront public security personnel, inciting violence and escalation against law enforcement officers, resulting in deaths during those confrontations,” Prosecutor Mohamed Hazza said.
In a separate case involving comments made on social media site Twitter, a judge delayed issuing a verdict against Rajab’s appeal until Aug. 23.
Bahrain has experienced near-daily protests since February 2011, following an uprising by the kingdom’s Shiite majority seeking greater political rights from the Western-backed Sunni monarchy. At least 50 people have died in the unrest and hundreds have been detained, including prominent rights activists and Shiite opposition leaders.
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