Hakeem al-Araibi

Hakeem Ali Mohammed Ali al-Araibi was born in Bahrain on 7 November 1993. He became a professional footballer there, playing as a defender for the Bahrain national football team Emad had come to the attention of authorities as an activist before the 2011 Bahraini uprising during the Arab Spring, and one night at the end of 2011 police turned up at the family home at 3am, looking for him. As Emad was not there, they took Hakeem, accused him of burning tyres, which he denied, and held him for three months, until February 2011 and the uprising was under way.), targeted Al-Shabab, being a Shia club, and for almost a year after the revolution there was no football there. Eventually they demoted the club to the second division. After his arrest and detention in November 2012, Hakeem returned to play for Al-Shabab and in late 2013 was called up for the senior national team by the newly appointed English coach, Anthony Hudson. In November 2013 al-Araibi travelled with the national team to Qatar for the 2014 West Asian Football Federation Championship, where the team drew 0–0 with Iraq on 28 December 2013. == Dissent and conviction ==

Al-Araibi spoke out against the persecution and torture of other footballers who had demonstrated against the ruling regime during the Bahraini uprising of 2011 (which was mostly led by Bahrain's majority Shia, as is al-Araibi, whilst the ruling family is Sunni The next day Al-Araibi told the public prosecutor he had been playing in a televised football match when the attack took place and denied the allegations. But his detention was extended for 45 days, during which he says security forces tried to torture a confession out of him. He was then released on bail. Details of alleged offence and the prosecution case After fleeing the country, al-Araibi was tried in absentia for vandalism of Al Khamees police station in Manama on 3 November 2012, when, according to police, a mob of 150 people had attacked the building, throwing Molotov cocktails and smashing windows, The time of the attack on the police station is key to Hakeem Al-Arabi's alibi. His brother said the attack took place at 6.30 pm, but Hakeem was playing in a nationally televised game for his club Al-Shabab at the Al-Muharraq Stadium from 5.30 pm to 7.20 pm, with the Bahrain Football Association, the Al-Shabab club and fellow players confirming this. Footage from the game broadcast by Bahrain Sports Channel 1 showing al-Araibi playing was also submitted. However prosecution said that the mob had gathered earlier and the attack had taken place at 8 pm and that Hakeem would have had enough time to leave the stadium after finishing the match and take part in it 40 minutes later. The entire case being brought by Bahrain is based on the alleged confession by his brother Emad to Bahraini police, which led to Emad's imprisonment. BIRD has said that Emad's testimony was obtained through physical and psychological duress. == Asylum and life in Australia==

Al-Araibi took his opportunity to flee the country when out on bail and playing football for the national team in 2013 in Qatar. He fled first to Iran, then Malaysia, then Thailand and eventually, nearly six months later, to Australia where he sought asylum in May 2014. He was granted refugee status in Australia in 2017, He has played as a defender in several semi-professional football teams in Victoria. Al-Araibi also accused Sheikh Salman of discriminating against Shia Muslims. Salman lost his bid for the FIFA presidency, but remains president of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and is still a FIFA vice-president. In November 2019 he was appointed to the role of Community and Human Rights Advocate with Football Victoria. A role created in collaboration with Professional Footballers Australia, its aim is to inspire and support players from culturally and linguistically diverse communities, by telling his own story. Initially announced as a part-time position, it was confirmed as a permanent full-time position in December 2019. he is still in the role. == Detention in Thailand ==

Al-Araibi and his wife flew to Thailand on 27 November 2018 for a belated honeymoon, but both were detained upon arrival at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport, at the request of Bahraini authorities, However, this was denied in a later press statement given by the Australian government, which said that by Bahrain had issued the Red Notice on 8 November 2018. The statement said that on 30 November Interpol rescinded the Red Notice, which had been issued erroneously and contrary to Interpol's rules regarding refugees and asylum-seekers, upon advice from Australia. and arrived in Australia the following day. He was granted Australian citizenship one month later, on 12 March 2019. Local and international campaigns and other responses In response to al-Araibi's detention, Amnesty International, who have criticised the low level of human rights in Bahrain, pointed out that under international law, it is prohibited to return an individual to a territory when there is a reasonable fear that the individual will be at real risk of suffering torture or other serious human rights violations. and was compared to that of Saudi Arabian woman Rahaf Mohammed, Amnesty International Australia created a "Write for Rights" campaign for individuals to email Thai officials via their website, attracting 53,218 signatories as at 4 February 2019. The Australian government, Football Federation Australia (FFA), Professional Footballers Australia (PFA), and FIFA FIFA called for al-Araibi's return to Australia in early December 2018 in communications with the FFA (although did not issue a media statement until January), and the FFA called for his return to Australia on 10 December. Foster's many tweets on the topic were widely shared and the hashtag #SaveHakeem has been trending on social media platforms. Foster was joined in Thailand by Francis Awaritefe, former Australian footballer, past Director of Football at Melbourne Victory and vice-president of FIFPro (International Federation of Professional Footballers), On 29 January 2019 the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) called for al-Araibi's release, after being criticised for its inaction, although Sheikh Salman made no public statement himself. The chair of Football Federation Australia has been seeking a place on the executive of the AFC. Also on 6 February 2019, TwitterSports tweeted a snapshot of Trendsmap showing that there had been nearly 1 Million #SaveHakeem tweets from all over the world, showing a high concentration in Thailand. On 7 February 2019, a coalition of 57 Thai human rights and civil liberties groups, academics and leading legal figures called on the Thai government to release al-Araibi, citing the political character of the charges and the "persecution, torture, cruel treatment or a life-threatening situation" to which al-Araibi may be subject if he is extradited. Australian government responses In early December 2018, Foreign Minister Marise Payne said that she had raised the matter with her Thai counterpart, Don Pramudwinai, requesting that Al-Araibi be allowed to return to Melbourne as soon as possible. His status as a permanent resident allows him to remain in Australia indefinitely and to travel abroad, so long as he does not travel to Bahrain. On 30 January 2019, it was reported that Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison had called upon his Thai counterpart Prayut Chan-o-cha a few days earlier in a letter, stressing that al-Araibi had been issued a permanent protection visa by Australia after a deliberate and considered process and that returning the footballer to Bahrain would infringe his rights under international human rights law. In late January, the office of Marise Payne said that her government was making "extensive efforts" on behalf of al-Araibi. Thai government responses On 5 February 2019, Thai prime minister Prayuth Chan-ocha broke his silence on the issue, telling reporters not to "jump to conclusions" regarding the verdict and not to politicise the issue, commenting that the Foreign Ministry was working with both Australia and Bahrain to find a solution. Australian PM Scott Morrison said that he had received a reply to his letter to Mr Chan-ocha, but had written to him again after being disturbed at the appearance of al-Araibi in shackles at the hearing the day before. The head of Thailand's prisons defended the decision to use leg restraints, after photos and video of al-Araibi in chains and prison garb dominated local media discussion panels. On 6 February, the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued an eight-point press release, stressing Thailand's role as a disinterested party which had unwittingly become tangled in a dispute between Australia and Bahrain, but which as a sovereign country has "legal obligations and commitments to the international community". It expressed the hope that "Australia and Bahrain will have the goodwill to earnestly work together towards finding a win-win solution to this issue". Academics and human rights groups raised the issue of the very close ties between the two countries, both financially and between the two royal families. Political leaders from each country, as part of a joint commission aimed at strengthening cooperation between their nations, last met in August 2018. According to Dr Aim Sinpeng, an expert in South-East Asian politics at the University of Sydney, the Thai and Bahraini royal families have always had a close relationship and the Bahraini royal family visits Thailand every year. He believes Thailand was stuck in a "no win" situation over Al-Arabi's detention, adding that Australia and Thailand also share close ties. Thai Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Surapong Tovichakchaikul had said in 2012 that the relationship between Thailand and Bahrain "was very close and strong" and also disclosed Bahrain Prime Minister was a "close personal friend" of former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra and had "donated roughly $2 million of his own money" to Thailand for flood relief. Freedom and aftermath On 11 February 2019, it was announced by the Thai Office of the Attorney-General (OAG) that the extradition case against Al-Araibi had been dropped by the criminal court at Bahrain's request. No reason was given by the foreign ministry, but the decision was made under Section 21 of the Prosecution Act, which allows for cases to be dropped if not in the public interest, and he would be released and allowed to return to Australia as soon as possible. He was subsequently placed on a flight to Melbourne, landing there on 12 February and being welcomed by a huge crowd. On 18 February, the AFP and Home Affairs Assistant Minister Linda Reynolds were questioned in a Senate estimates hearing about the circumstances leading to al-Arabi's detention. Reynolds said that the outdated system for Interpol notices caused the delay in Home Affairs notifying the AFP of Al-Araibi's refugee status. AFP Commissioner Andrew Colvin defended his staff, saying that the Australian Interpol NCB (National Central Bureau) adhered to the policies and procedures of Interpol, but that reviews were being undertaken to improve inter-agency co-ordination and reduce similar incidents in the future. He said that the NCB acted within 24 hours to rescind Interpol's red notice once it became aware of Mr Al-Araibi's status, and the Red Notice against Al-Araibi would never have been issued in the first place if they had known he was a refugee. ==In film==

The 2023 documentary film The Defenders, directed by Adelaide filmmaker Matthew Bate, tells the story of how Foster and others worked to free al-Araibi from prison. It won the audience award for best Australian Documentary at the Sydney Film Festival on 15 June 2023, and was released on Amazon Prime Video on 23 June 2023, after a special preview screening by Adelaide Film Festival in Adelaide on 21 June. The film's working title was Fighting for Hakeem, the title of Foster's 2019 book. The film score was composed by Adelaide composer Benjamin Speed. Al-Araibi is still fearful for his life and family, and hopes that the film will help to protect him from the Bahraini Government. == References ==