Bahrain: Tougher sentence for insulting king

Bahrain has toughened the penalty for anyone insulting King Hamad Bin Isa Al-Khalifa, the flag or the national emblem. On 4 February, just ten days ahead of the third anniversary of the anti-government uprising, the king ratified a law amending Article 214 of the penal code to stipulate that “a punishment of imprisonment for a period of no less than one year and no more than seven years and a fine of no less than BD1,000 ($2,650) and no more than BD10,000 will be inflicted upon any person who offends in public the monarch of the Kingdom of Bahrain, the flag or the national emblem”.