FCO Human Rights Report 2019
Bahrain maintained a positive record on freedom of religion or belief. The creation of the King Hamad Centre for Peaceful Co-existence and the work, which the centre undertook continued to give prominence to Bahrain’s approach, both regionally and further afield. Bahrain welcomed visits by the Bishop of Truro’s office and by the Prime Minister’s Special Envoy for Freedom of Religion or Belief, Rehman Chishti MP. The engagement provided opportunities for constructive discussions with religious leaders from all faiths represented in Bahrain, with opportunities to visit different places of worship, including a Shia husseiniya.
Religious freedom conditions in Bahrain are mostly stable, trending positive in some areas but remaining the same in others. The government generally allows freedom of worship for religious minorities, but continues its ongoing and systematic discrimination against some Shi’a Muslims. While they are generally free to worship, Shi’a Bahrainis have long faced difficulties in such areas as employment, political representation, freedom of expression, promotion within the military and mosque construction.