An Excerpt of “Jaw” Novel: Jordanian Officer Involved in Detainees’ Torture Speaks Up

2016-12-12 - 3:22 am

Bahrain Mirror: Following is a section of the novel "Jaw", written by a political detainee who is still imprisoned in Bahraini prisons. The novel was released by "Bahrain Mirror" coinciding with the International Day for Human Rights.

In this chosen section, a Jordanian officer expresses his deep remorse for beating and torturing prisoners of the March 10, 2015 incidents. He explains how the Bahraini Interior Ministry misled the Jordanian police officers, whom Bahrain employed and gave wrong information about the truth of the detainees and dissidents. As manifested in the testimony of the Jordanian officer, he and other officers were given instructions from back-offices, a department managed by Bahraini officers, within the security doctrine adopted by the Ministry of Interior.

"Jaw" Novel, Section 45

A Testimony

The agent spoke in a way, as if he is trying to dislodge a rock from the chest and a rope from his shoulder, he spoke with words full of sorrow, with eyes full of tears. He said:

"We came to Bahrain after a contract signed between the Jordanian police and the Bahraini government. We believed this is a golden chance for us, as we would be making huge amounts of money from coming to this country, with double the salary, and with privileges throughout the time of the contract, which we would not dream of having.

The materialistic motivation was what pushed me to take this step with my other colleagues. As soon as we arrived in Bahrain, we were informed that our work would be in different places, among them: prisons, pretrial detention centers, Special Forces (anti-riot), in order to confront the most dangerous terrorists supported by foreign powers like Iran.

Therefore, we were nourished with big concerns and misinformation; we were even loaded with malice against hatred against you, especially after displaying to us videos and images of grave criminal bombings."

The Jordanian went on to clarified: "This was not limited to our group; it was all the groups and batches before and after us.

On this basis, I participated in the suppression of prisoners during the period after March 10, 2015. During that time, the prison administration asked the Jordanian police and agents to interfere before (the blatant forces) arrived; and this made us a scapegoat in the way to control the situation.

However, we explained to the Jordanian police commander Major Bassam Mahmoud al-Hunaiti, that the situation needs armed forces. After controlling the situation, we hit with an iron fist, and then curbed you down, and showed u all kinds of sufferings and horrors. I am guilty for taking part in it unjustly. I, like my peers, was harsh in dealing with you. Yet all those we tortured and hurt responded with silence and surrender, or by reminding us of the punishment of God.

Only after I caused a detainee to faint, and after their yells and screams of agony calmed down, I questioned myself and asked; where are those terrorists trained on all those various martial arts? I only see helpless people. At that point, I was certain, that the Ministry of Interior and its stupid Minister set us a trap, which we cannot escape, and a shame that days cannot erase."

The Jordanian Agent added: "I went through social media networks, and I new that we are facing a nation with true demands taken away from it for years; a nation of high ethics, high resilience, and high culture, which it did not give up on. However, the military institution in this Muslim country gravely misleads its cadres, or those who join them from Baluchistan, India and Yemen, and us Jordanians.

(...) I realized that there was something I needed to do, in order to get rid of the struggle inside me. Therefore, I built relations with many detainees while I was in several buildings in the prison. The relation was that of affection full of respect and goodwill.

However, I discovered that I was not the only one; many of my colleagues were also attracted by their ethics and forgiveness, so they did not have any other choice. All that was to make amends for what we did, and erase our memories of an unenviable era, and to which we do not wish to go back.

Moreover, I promised myself, as did some of my colleagues, not to renew our contract here, and not to come back to this country again, even if this meant we are relieved of our military services.

Days revealed to us that we live with those detainees every day, and we feel shame and pain because of what we have done against them. We also discovered that the detainees' cultural and educational level exceeds our capacities and minds; they are people of great insight, with advanced educational levels; yet we only knew that when it was too late.

In this prison, you find a doctor, engineer, journalist, writer and a scientist, and a level of sophistication and morality like one I have never seen before. In the most difficult circumstances, they kept their prayers.

I wish with all my heart for these people to achieve their demands, and for the prisoners to be released and victorious. I wish from the Jordanian Government not to throw away its sons in the conflicts that only brought scourges on us. How many Jordanian citizens lost their lives in this conflict? (...) The money spend by this regime and other dictatorship regimes to protect themselves, will not bring back Martyr Mohammad Kasasbeh, who was burnt in front of the whole worlds and family. Neither will it return Martyr Ali Mohammad Zraikat, who was killed in a bombing in the Bahraini village of Dumistan; it would rather increase the hatred in the hearts of the Jordanian nation."

jaww

Arabic Version    


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