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Judiciary |
Administrative divisions (governorates) |
Bahrainportal |
The judiciary of Bahrain is a system of three courts that interpret and apply the laws of the Kingdom of Bahrain. Namely, these three courts are the Civil Courts, Sharia Courts, and Criminal Courts. Civil Courts have jurisdiction to adjudicate all commercial, civil, and administrative disputes, as well disputes related to the personal status and domestic relations of non-Muslims. The Sharia Courts, which apply Sharia law, have jurisdiction over all aspects of the personal status of Muslims. Criminal Courts have the jurisdiction to deal with criminal matters. [1]
Each of these three courts have lower and high courts, whose judges are nominated by the Supreme Judicial Council and appointed by decree by the King of Bahrain. The Supreme Judicial Council, chaired by the King, appoints the members of the Constitutional Court. [2] To secure renewal of these positions, judges may be prone to consider it necessary to take decisions not unfavourable to the wishes or interests of the Government. [3]
The first regular court in Bahrain was established in 1922. The judiciary was divided into a civil judiciary and a Shariat judiciary. [4]
The highest courts are: Court of Cassation (consists of the chairman and 3 judges); Supreme Court of Appeal (consists of the chairman and 3 judges); Constitutional Court (consists of the president and 6 members); High Sharia Court of Appeal (court sittings include the president and at least one judge). [5]
The Court of Cassation was established in 1989 as a supreme court of appeal. It serves as the final court of appeal for all civil, commercial, and criminal matters. [2] The judges for the court are appointed and removed by royal decree. [6] The current Chief Justice of Bahrain and president of the Court of Cassation is Khalifa bin Rashid Al Khalifa, a cousin of King Hamad and the prime minister, and a member of the Al Khalifa ruling family of Bahrain. [7]
The National Safety Court (Arabic : محكمة السلامة الوطنية) is a special military court that was set up in March 2011 to try protesters, opposition leaders, rights activists, and people who supported or are perceived as supporting the Bahraini uprising. [8] A military judge presides over the court, along with two civilian judges, all of them appointed by the Bahrain Defence Force commander-in-chief, Marshal Khalifa bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, [8] a cousin of King Hamad and the prime minister, and a member of the Al Khalifa royal family. The cases are prosecuted by the military public prosecutor Colonel Yousef Rashid Flaifel. [9]
The National Safety Court has been heavily criticized by international human rights organizations for trying civilians in a military court and for the lack of transparency and due process. Human Rights Watch has described the court as a "travesty of justice", [10] while Amnesty International has described it as a "sham" [11] and "a parody of justice." [12]
In June 2011, King Hamad announced that all trials related to the protests would be transferred from the National Safety Court to the normal civilian courts. However he backtracked on August 18 issuing a decree which makes it clear that the new measures do not apply to all arrested protesters. [12]
Politics of Bahrain has since 2002 taken place in a framework of a constitutional monarchy where the government is appointed by the King of Bahrain, King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa. The head of the government since 2020 is Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, who became Prime Minister following the death of Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa, and who also serves as Deputy Commander of the Bahrain Defence Force. The parliament is a bicameral legislature, with the Council of Representatives elected by universal suffrage, and the Consultative Council appointed directly by the king.
Hamad bin Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa is King of Bahrain since 14 February 2002, after ruling as Emir of Bahrain from 6 March 1999. He is the son of Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa, the previous and first emir. The country has been ruled by the Al Khalifa dynasty since 1783.
Bahrain has had two constitutions in its modern history. The first one was promulgated in 1973, and the second one in 2002.
The judicial system of Turkey is defined by Articles 138 to 160 of the Constitution of Turkey.
Torture in Bahrain refers to the violation of Bahrain's obligations as a state party to the United Nations Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and other international treaties and disregard for the prohibition of torture enshrined in Bahraini law.
Following Bahrain's independence from the British in 1971, the government of Bahrain embarked on an extended period of political suppression under a 1974 State Security Law shortly after the adoption of the country's first formal Constitution in 1973. Overwhelming objections to state authority resulted in the forced dissolution of the National Assembly by Amir Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa and the suspension of the Constitution until 2001. The State Security Law of 1974 was a law used by the government of Bahrain to crush political unrest from 1974 until 2001. It was during this period that the worst human rights violations and torture were said to have taken place. The State Security Law contained measures permitting the government to arrest and imprison individuals without trial for a period of up to three years for crimes relating to state security. A subsequent Decree to the 1974 Act invoked the establishment of State Security Courts, adding to the conditions conducive to the practice of arbitrary arrest and torture. The deteriorating human rights situation in Bahrain is reported to have reached its height in the mid-1990s when thousands of men, women and children were illegally detained, reports of torture and ill-treatment of detainees were documented, and trials fell short of international standards.
The Supreme Court of Cassation is the highest court of appeal or court of last resort in Italy. It has its seat in the Palace of Justice, Rome.
In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, and highcourt of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of a supreme court are binding on all other courts in a nation and are not subject to further review by any other court. Supreme courts typically function primarily as appellate courts, hearing appeals from decisions of lower trial courts, or from intermediate-level appellate courts. A supreme court can also, in certain circumstances, act as a court of original jurisdiction.
The Court of Cassation, officially called the Supreme Court of Appeals of the Republic of Turkey, is the last instance for reviewing verdicts given by courts of criminal and civil justice in Turkey.
The Law of Egypt consists of courts, offences, and various types of laws. Egypt has its own constitution which took effect on 18 January 2014. The Constitution of Egypt is the fundamental law of the country. Egypts legal codes and court operations are based primarily on British, Italian, and Napoleonic models, and has been the inspiration for the civil code for numerous other Middle Eastern jurisdictions, including Jordan, Bahrain, Qatar, pre-dictatorship kingdoms of Libya and Iraq, and the commercial code of Kuwait.
The Supreme Court is the highest court in the Kingdom of Spain. The court has original jurisdiction over cases against high-ranking officials of the Kingdom and over cases regarding the legalization of political parties. It also has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all cases. The Court has the power of judicial review, except for the judicial revision on constitutional matters, reserved to the Constitutional Court.
The judiciary of the Republic of Chile includes one Supreme Court, one Constitutional Court, 17 Courts of Appeal, 84 Oral Criminal Tribunals and Guarantee Judges; 7 Military Tribunals; over 300 Local Police Courts; and many other specialized Tribunals and courts in matter of family, labor, customs, taxes, electoral affairs, etc.
The Judiciary of Spain consists of Courts and Tribunals, composed of judges and magistrates (Justices), who have the power to administer justice in the name of the King of Spain.
The Supreme Court is the court of last resort in Serbia which reviews and possibly overturns previous rulings made by lower courts.
The judicial system of Syria is a synthesis of Ottoman, French, and Islamic laws. The civil, commercial and criminal codes are primarily based on the French legal practices. Promulgated in 1949, those laws have special provisions sanctioned to limit application of customary law among beduin and religious minorities. The Islamic religious courts continue to function in some parts of the country, but their jurisdiction is limited to issues of personal status, such as marriage, divorce, paternity, custody of children, and inheritance. Nonetheless, in 1955 a personal code pertaining to many aspects of personal status was developed. This law modified and modernized sharia by improving the status of women and clarifying the laws of inheritance.
The Bahrain Thirteen are thirteen Bahraini opposition leaders, rights activists, bloggers and Shia clerics arrested between 17 March and 9 April 2011 in connection with their role in the national uprising. In June 2011, they were tried by a special military court, the National Safety Court, and convicted of "setting up terror groups to topple the royal regime and change the constitution"; they received sentences ranging from two years to life in prison. A military appeal court upheld the sentences in September. The trial was "one of the most prominent" before the National Safety Court. A retrial in a civilian court was held in April 2012 but the accused were not released from prison. The sentences were upheld again on 4 September 2012. On 7 January 2013, the defendants lost their last chance of appeal when the Court of Cassation, Bahrain's top court upheld the sentences.
The judiciary of Saudi Arabia is a branch of the government of Saudi Arabia that interprets and applies the laws of Saudi Arabia. The legal system is based on the Islamic code of Sharia, with its judges and lawyers forming part of the country's religious leadership or ulama. There are also non-Sharia government tribunals which handle disputes relating to specific royal decrees. Final appeal from both Sharia courts and government tribunals is to the King of Saudi Arabia and all courts and tribunals follow Sharia rules of evidence and procedure.
The Supreme Court of the Dominican Republic is the highest court existing in the Republic and is, therefore, the head of the judiciary in the country.
The judiciary of the Philippines consists of the Supreme Court, which is established in the Constitution, and three levels of lower courts, which are established through law by the Congress of the Philippines. The Supreme Court has expansive powers, able to overrule political and administrative decisions, and with the ability to craft rules and law without precedent. It further determines the rules of procedure for lower courts, and its members sit on electoral tribunals.
The legal system of Sudan has evolved over time. The legacy of British colonial rule has had a significant impact even after independence. Most of the lawyers and judges were British trained and initially tended to rely on judicial precedent. Soon after independence, however, pressure began to build to change the legal system. By the time Jaafar Nimeiry seized power in 1969, a commission had been working on recommendations for a new system, but he dissolved it and formed another commission dominated by 12 Egyptian jurists. Based on recommendations received from them, Sudan adopted a new civil code that looked much like the Egyptian civil code of 1949. The new system was controversial because it disregarded existing laws and customs and introduced many new legal terms and concepts from Egyptian law without source material to interpret the codes. In 1973 the government repealed these codes and returned the legal system to its pre-1970 common-law status. In 1977 Nimeiry agreed to consider a Muslim Brotherhood demand that the system be based on Islam. He appointed al-Turabi as chairman of a committee to draft new Islamic laws. Nimeiry accepted few of the proposals from this committee. He then established a small, new group in 1983 that developed a “cut-and-paste” version of sharia laws based on practice in other countries. In September 1983, Nimeiry issued several decrees, known as the September Laws, which made sharia the law of the land.