Sheikh Salman’s candidacy for the FIFA presidency is the subject of a legal complaint by a pro-democracy group from Bahrain.

Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB) alleges that Salman – who along with UEFA secretary general Gianni Infantino is a front-runner to become the new president of FIFA on February 26 – was involved in the torture and imprisonment of pro-democracy demonstrators during the 2011 uprising in Bahrain, allegations which he strenuously denies.

ADHRB has filed a complaint to the Swiss government’s contact point at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), alleging that FIFA violated provisions around human rights laid down by the OECD for multinational enterprises by allowing him to stand for the presidency.

“All the evidence suggests that Sheikh Salman was involved in the government crackdown on free expression and human rights,” said Husain Abdulla, executive director of ADHRB.

“This raises serious concerns about his ability to protect the athletes that would be under his care as president of FIFA.”

Another pro-democracy group, the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (BIRD), has alleged that Salman was the head of a committee which was established in 2011 to identify and apply sanctions to individuals and clubs who had been deemed to have been involved in the protest movement.

Salman has always denied that the committee ever met or took any decisions.

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