http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2012/1095/re1.htm
25 April - 1 May 2012
Issue No. 1095
Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875
No Arab Spring for Bahrain
Torture and death lurk behind the return of Bahrain's glitzy Formula 1
race, writes Rasheed Abul-Samh
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Click to view caption
Bahraini protesters express their anger at the government as they
mourn the death of one of their colleagues who was killed by birdshot
rounds after clashes with police maintaining security during Formula One
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
THE government of Bahrain was sure that hosting the Formula 1 race again
last Sunday, after it was cancelled last year because of the violent
clashes between mostly Shia protesters and police, would surely be a sign
that things were improving and that the nation was finally healing.
But the island-state went into a virtual lockdown to produce an event that
was devoid of many spectators, while violent clashes occurred in the
villages surrounding the capital Manama, with many injured and at least
one death.
The now 14-month long civil war between the majority-Shia, who want more
rights and a constitutional monarchy, and the Al-Khalifa ruling family,
who are Sunni, had dropped off the radars of most international media, who
had been much more attracted by the other revolts of the Arab Spring such
as the overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi in Libya and the ongoing fighting in
Syria. Now, the media attention returned, if only for one weekend and for
all the wrong reasons.
The hunger strike of Abdel-Hadi Al-Khawaja, a prominent 50-year-old human
rights activist, who has not had any solid food for more than two months,
came to symbolise the desperation that so many of Bahrain's Shia feel
towards a government that despite cosmetic attempts at reform, has
obstinately refused to share power, release hundreds of political
prisoners, or reinstate those sacked from their jobs after taking part in
anti- government protests that started on 14 February 2011.
A Bahrain court heard appeals on Monday from defence lawyers for
Al-Khawaja and seven other Shia activists, who were all sentenced to life
in prison last year following their involvement in the protests, and want
to have their sentences overturned. Unfortunately, the court adjourned to
30 April, leaving Al-Khawaja's family deeply worried that he may not
survive until then. One of his daughters, Mariam, told the Danish TV2
channel that doctors predict he has only two or three more days to live.
"Al-Khawaja's fate will have considerable impact on what happens in
Bahrain, at least in the short run," said Toby Jones, associate professor
of history at Rutgers University, and who has been closely following
developments in Bahrain. "A move to have him retried in a civilian court
would be a positive development, but I suspect most Bahrainis would see
such a move as too little, too late. And given his grave condition, there
are serious concerns that he may not live long enough to see a new trial
through. His death will unleash a new round of protests and based on past
regime responses, will lead to more anti-protester violence."
King Hamad bin Eissa Al-Khalifa formed an international investigation
panel last year, led by Sherif Bassiouni, which was tasked into looking at
the abuses committed when thousands of Bahraini protesters were arrested,
jailed and tortured. The result was an impressive report that documented
many abuses and recommended several reforms. The king has taken none, and
as Mariam Al-Khawaja told a meeting of activists in Cairo this month, not
a single high-ranking official was fired or punished for the abuses.
A main reason for the reluctance of the Al-Khalifas to implement any
significant reforms is the fact that its rich benefactor neighbor, Saudi
Arabia, has taken a hardline against the protesters, insisting that they
are being instigated by Iran in order to create a Shia-ruled nation on its
doorstep. The United States, which has its 5th Navy Fleet based in
Bahrain, looked the other way in March of last year when Saudi troops
rolled across the causeway into Bahrain, under the guise of being part of
a Gulf Cooperation Council force that King Hamad had asked to come in. But
Bahraini Shia have gone to great lengths to remain independent of Iran,
and no credible evidence of any Iranian involvement in the unrest has been
presented.
"There is no evidence of Iranian involvement. Their insistence is meant to
justify their crackdown," explained Jones. "The Saudis would view the loss
of Bahrain as a vassal state as a strategic calamity. Even without Iranian
involvement, it would result in a significant dent in Saudi hegemony in
the Gulf."
Jones also believes that the Saudis want to maintain the US military
presence in Bahrain as a deterrent to what it sees as the Iranian threat.
"While the Saudis don't want the Americans on their territory, they do
want a US military presence nearby. Bahrain's opposition have not said
they would kick the 5th Fleet out of Manama, but Saudi Arabia certainly
worries that that could be one result of a successful revolution there,"
said Jones. "The Saudis also know that the American geopolitical priority
in the Gulf is to contain Iran. By repeatedly insisting that Iran is
behind the Bahraini uprising, Riyadh seeks to appeal to American
anxieties. Even though the claims of Iranian meddling are wholly
manufactured, they seem to be working. We have neither heard criticism nor
seen constructive engagement by the US in Bahrain."
Bahrainis remain deeply split between those who want to keep the royal
family as is, those who want it reformed and made more democratic, and
those who want them gone completely.
"Some Bahrainis are saying: 'We do not want the Al-Khalifa regime,' and
others are saying, mostly the political societies, that we need a
constitutional monarchy first. So there is a difference in opinion,"
Zainab Al-Khawaja, another daughter of Abdel-Hadi, said in an interview
with Al-Ahram Weekly late last year.
"If you ask me personally, I want to see all the top members of the royal
family on trial. I don't want a constitutional monarchy where the same
people who are responsible for killing our children, for torturing our
fathers, for beating our sisters, remain on their thrones and live
peacefully and happily ever after. It's not the way that this is supposed
to happen," she said.
Yet with the government not releasing political prisoners and unwilling to
even talk about sharing power, the situation in Bahrain seems to be grim
and is already slipping into more violence, with protesters using more
Molotov cocktails and pipe bombs against security forces, much like their
counterparts in Saudi Arabia's Eastern province.
"Bahrain is on edge. The regime clearly thinks it has a winning strategy.
But it has in fact sown the seeds of permanent conflict and resistance.
The regime has sealed Manama off from the worst of the violence, but in
order to sustain that it is forced to carry out a permanent wave of
oppression and brutality in the country's villages," concluded Jones.
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