Bahrain’s Uprising, edited by Ala’a Shehabi and Marc Owen Jones, explores the personal stories behind the Arab Spring’s ‘forgotten front’. Here, Marc Owen Jones, who grew up in Bahrain, shares his experiences of the country then and now.

Read ‘Banned from entry to Bahrain’ here.

Bahrain’s Uprising: Resistance and Repression in the Gulf is available from Zed Books.

Find out about English PEN’s campaigning work on behalf of Bahraini academic and blogger Dr Abduljalil Al-Singace, who is currently serving a life sentence in prison for his peaceful opposition activities.