Albawasil need protection!

And so they should.

A security officer’s job is thankless, hard and requires intelligence, self-control, continuous training and much empathy with people of all walks of life. They also continuously have to make tough choices which must always fall within the rule of law; hence, their continuous appropriate training is critical. The title of “albawasil” – the courageous ones – which is given to them is not undeserved.

They must also continuously be on their best behaviour and must curtail and suppress animalistic instincts and urges to viciously respond to difficult situations with excessive use of force. As security officers, they know that they are always held to much higher standards than the persons they are paid to protect. It is a very tough and demanding job indeed. Not everyone is cut out to be one of the cadres of the Bawasil.

Unfortunately the above description does not wholly apply to the security forces in this country, as much as I would dearly love it be so.

Some of the security officers here do anything but suppress their urges, as witnessed by hundreds of videos on the Internet clearly showing them breaking the very laws they are employed to protect. The BICI itself reserved a large proportion of its findings to clearly show the intransigence of some of the security forces, the contempt they held citizens in and the havoc they wreaked since February last year which so far resulted in five confirmed deaths under torture while in custody and tens killed and attributed to their interventions.

Empathy, on the police’s part, seem to be completely lacking both in the local and foreign cadres. With some of the officers being Bahraini, one would think that they would be more empathetic; hence, act in a better and more humane fashion toward their charges, or in the least act within the bounds of international human rights and norms. That empathy, if it exists in the local cadres, seem to be evidently absent in the foreign recruits. With the vast majority of the MoI’s cadres being foreign and ignorant of our norms and language, how can they even begin to be empathetic to the citizens of this country? Is it a wonder then that they themselves resorted to their own embassies for protection rather than raise their concerns with their own superiors? Of course not. They sought empathy from their countries and brethren as any normal human would; but what they’ve demonstrated by that single action is show that their loyalty does not reside with their employer, let alone to the country that provides for their livelihoods. With that irresponsible action, they’ve also clearly demonstrated the fact that they do not hold their employers in much regard and trust, or at least, they must have recognised that those superiors would not provide them the needed succor and protection. For that, they resorted to their own embassies.

The Cabinet seems to have taken note of their fears and thought of doing something pro-active to address them by proposing tougher sentences on those who attack the police:

The Cabinet yesterday endorsed the compilation of a new bill to ensure stricter punishment for those who attack policemen. According to the suggested amendments, a penalty of 15 years in prison would be awarded to both inciters and attackers.

The Cabinet tasked the body concerned to prepare the necessary legal papers and refer the bill to the Legislative authority.

The decision was made after Interior Minister Lt General Shaikh Rashid bin Abdulla Al Khalifa presented a comprehensive document on the growing violence in the Kingdom.

Prime Minister HRH Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa said that the mounting violence, which resulted in injuries to security personnel in the Kingdom, must be encountered and halted.

He spoke as he chaired the regular Cabinet meeting.
The Cabinet then expressed sorrow in view of growing provocative calls to attack policemen in the Kingdom. [source]

I have no quarrel in principle for the cabinet to demand these increased penalties and I hope that these won’t be open-ended measures which could haphazardly open the doors for further abuse of rights. There is a question of degrees however. With 15 years nominally being a life sentence, isn’t the proposed penalty non-consistent with those limits? Or are there now consequent moves afoot to increase the other sentences to be in concert with this proposal?

With these tough sentences being proposed, it would have been an opportune moment to also remind police personnel that although the government is very keen to protect their safety, it is also the government’s foremost responsibility, as it is their’s, to protect the rights of the individual and it will hold them as security personnel of all ranks to a much higher standard of conduct. There is a real fear that this new proposal might increase the sense of unassailability, and impunity as the BICI report has confirmed, if penalties are considered like this without putting them in the proper frame of reference.

The Cabinet should have also dealt with the police’s loyalty issue, for those who sought the protection of foreign embassies have shown complete contempt for this Kingdom. Can we expect those very police personnel to then acquiesce to orders given by foreign leaders against instructions issued by the hierarchy of this country? I would have thought that the criticality of this issue should have been paramount in the Cabinet’s agenda. Ironically, its resolution is simplicity itself: hire local born and bred Bahrainis to have the honor to serve their flag and their leadership and phase out the foreign cadres with our generous thanks and help them transition to lead pleasant old lives in their own countries.

Another opportunity that the government might have considered through its judicial branch is to demonstrate to us citizens that no one is above the law. Just as it is expedient to apply the law onto those who attack the police, it is as such for those in power who abuse their positions, regardless of whomever they are. With over 80 current cases referred to the Public Prosecutor of police brutality and abuse of power ranging from killing protestors in their charges to torture and wrongful imprisonment, I can’t remember a case where a policeman was penalized – or even censured – for his or her wrongful actions, and I’m not talking about the known torturers who were let slip through due to Law 56 of 2002 either.

I pray for the protection of every single policeman and woman doing their honorable duty in this country and elsewhere around the world. Done properly and within the bounds of human rights, they are the vanguard of safety and security. They are the key to continued peace and stability in any country and they should – indeed, must - be protected physically, legislatively and mentally for their sacrifices, but not at the cost of their impunity. Having mechanisms to independently police the police will help them maintain that peace and tranquility that every society craves.

I also pray for the safety and security of every single citizen and resident of this country from violence and brutality howsoever those may occur and dream of a day where we all bask in the protection of universal human rights, equitable and honorable lives.

I beseech everyone, everyone, in light of the approach of the first anniversary of the Bahraini Spring, to stay calm and think of what is best for this pained and fractured country and its people and get those thoughts to transcend personal prejudices and hate. Think of resolution and rapprochement rather than pour even more fuel on already raging fires.

A glimmer of light at the end of a rather dark tunnel

A group of Bahrainis gathered this morning at Al-Uruba Club, one of the oldest cultural clubs and apparently on their own initiative, to work out a plan to rescue this country from the various ills that has befallen this country. The meeting was led by the highly respected Dr Ali Fakhro, scholar, an ex-minister who held two of the most important portfolios of Education and Health who delivered the following opening speech which set the agenda and objectives of this gathering:

كلمة الدكتور علي فخرو في اجتماع اللقاء الوطني بنادي العروبة

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

ايها الاخوة والاخوات

اهلا بكم في هذا الاجتماع الوطني الجامع ، باسم الوطن كله ، ومن اجل كل شعبه ، بل من اجل كل فرد فيه ، دون منة ودون شروط ، واسمحوا لي ان اقدم خلفية ومقترحات ،ارجو ان تعيننا على اجراء مداولات ايجابية ناجحة هذا الصباح

اولا : لسنا بحزب ولا بجمعية سياسية ولا حتى تكتل سياسي وانما نحن مواطنون نحضر بصفتنا الشخصية البحتة ولا نمثل اي جهة قد ننتمي اليها ، لقد دفعنا الى هذا الاجتماع خوفنا على هذا الوطن الذي يعيش محنة الانقسام بكل انواعه ، ومشاعر التعصب الاعمى غير المنضبط بدين سمح او اخلاق انسانية رفيعة بكل انواعها وكذلك الممحاكات السياسية الت يؤججها اعداء البحرين وتغذيها جهات انتهازية او نفعية او جاهلة .

ثانيا : لقد تدارست مجموعة من اخوانكم واخواتكم المجتمعين معكم اليوم الاوضاع المأساوية التي ذكرتها اعلاه عبر اسابيع طويلة ، وقد ارتأوا ضرورة وجود صوت عاقل جامع ليقترح على اطراف المجتمع المختلفة فيما بينها ، وعلى الاخص السياسية منها ، يقترح عليهم الجلوس مع بعضهم البعض وبحضور ممثلين عنكم ان وافق جمعيهم على ذلك ، من اجل ان يتدارسوا امكانية الاتفاق على مطالب ومقترحات وطنية مشتركة في حدها الادنى المشترك على الاقل ولينقلوها بدورهم الى جهات السلطة المعنية في الدولة من اجل مناقشتها مع تلك الجهات والاتفاق ان امكن على حدود دينا يقبل بها الجميع ( المجتمع والدولة ) للخروج من الازمة الحالية الى رحاب استكمال المسيرة الاصلاحية الديموقراطية الدستورية البرلمانية الهادفة لخير الجميع العادلة مع الجميع ، الآخذة بعين الاعتبار مصالح الجميع

ثالثا : ولان هناك ضرورة لوجود ورقة ينطلق منها النقاش اثناء اجتماع القوى السياسية المجتمعية التي نرجو ان توافق على الاجتماع ، فإننا رأينا ان نقترح عليكم ان توافقوا معنا – مع حريتكم التامة في الرفض او التعديل – ان ينطلق النقاش من النقاط السبع التي اطلقها سمو ولي العهد في فبراير 2011 ، وبالطبع فإن المجتمعين سيكون لهم الحق التام في تعديل تلك المبادرة ،اضافة او انتقاصا او فهما مشتركا لمحتويات بنودها التفصيلية طالماان ذلك التعديل سيكون حصيلة مناقشات المجتمعين واتفاقهم

لقد اعتمد مقترحنا هذا على ان مبادرة سمو الشيخ سلمان هي ارضية معقولة ومقبولة من الكثير وصالحة للاخذ والعطاء وتعبر في مجملها عن قبول كثير من جهات اتخاذ القرار في الدولة على الاقل لغالب ما تقوله وتقترحه .

رابعا : اذا اتفق المجتمعون في ذلك القاء حول مطالب سياسية صالحة لهذه المرحلة من مسيرة البحرين الديموقراطية ، ولنتذكر ان الديموقراطية هس سرورة لها بداية وليس لها نهاية ، فإنهم يستطيعون تكوين وفد ليتقدم بتلك المطالب للجهات المعينة في نظامنا السياسي من اجل مناقشتها ومحاولة اقناعها بتبني تلك المطالب وتنفيذها ضمن جدول زمني وخطوات تراكمية لا تراجع عنها قط

خامسا : نقترح على الاخوة الحاضرين ان ينتخبوا عددا يتراح بين عشرين وثلاثين شخصا ليكونوا لجنة تنسيق ومتابعة تقوم بالاتصالات بكل القوى السياسية والجهات الوطنية المعنية من اجل اقناعها بكل ما ذكر سابقا ومن اجل حضور اعضائها كممثلين عنكم ان تمت الاجتماعات المشتركة

وستكون اللجنة مطالبة بأن تبقى على صلة وثيقة بكم كجمعية عمومية وان صحت التسمية بدعوتكم للاجتماع اذا لزم الامر لاعلامكم بنتائج ما تقوم به وللحصول على موافقتكم ان احتاجت الى وظائف جديدة تقوم بها باسمكم .

سادسا : ان لم نوفق في هذا المسعى فإن الامر سيرجع لكم : تغييرا للاهداف والوسائل او الاكتفاء بما تم وترك الامور للآخرين ،وعند ذاك نكون قد قمنا بواجبنا كمواطنين حتى لا يسجل التاريخ علينا اننا رأينا الوطن وهو يحترق دون ان نحاول ان نقوم بواجبنا لاخراجه من محنته

سابعا : واخيرا رجاء حار ان نبتعد هذا الصباح عن شتم او تحقير ايا كان واي جهة كانت وان نركز على الموضوع الذي جئنا من اجله ، اننا لسنا في مهرجان خطابة وانما في اجتماع لايجاد وسائل وحلول ، فاعينونا على ذلك ، ولنتذكر اننا يجب ان نرتفع فوق الانقسامات ونبتعد عن المهاترات ويكفي الوطن ما يفعهله به بعض المتورين والجهلة والانتهازيين .وبعبارة موجزة نحن معنيين في هذه المرحلة بالاتصال بكل الجمعيات المعنية لحثها على التواصل والاتفاق على مطالب مشتركة ولسنا معنييين حاليا بالاتصال بالجهات الرسمية فقد يأتي ذلك في وقت لاحق مع الآخرين ان امكن او بدونهم ان رغبتم في ذلك في اجتماعات قادمة

لكم التحية ، لكم محبة وطنكم وشعبكم ، والله ندعوه ان يجزيكم الف خير

والسلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته
د . على محمد فخرو
اللقاء الوطني
نادي العروبة
28 / 1 / 2012

English translation by Dr Mike Diboll – with many thanks!

The Speech of Dr. Ali Fakhro at a Meeting of the “National Encounter” Group Held at the Al Uruba Club

In the name of God the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

Oh Brothers and Sisters,

Welcome to this comprehensive National Encounter, held in the name of the entire nation, for the sake of all its people, and for every individual without favour, without preconditions. Allow me present the background to this meeting and its recommendations. Kindly assist us by ensuring that our deliberations this morning proceed in a positive and successful manner.

Firstly, we are not a political party or association, nor are we even political grouping. Rather, we here purely as private citizens are preparing we do not represent any viewpoint to which we might have allegiance. What has motivated us to call this meeting is our fear for our nation which is suffering from every kind of tribulation, division, and fanatical sentiment and blind bigotry unmitigated by any consideration of tolerance or higher human ethics, and political intrigue promoted by the enemies of Bahrain, fed by opportunism and ignorant self-interest.

Secondly, the brothers and sisters gathered here today have carefully studied the tragic conditions mentioned over long and arduous weeks. They have perceived the necessity of a comprehensively acceptable Voice of Reason that can propose to parties from the various communities, in particular political groupings, to sit together in the presence of trusted representatives in order to frame a set of minimum national demands and proposals that are commonly agreed. These in turn can be presented to the relevant state authorities in order to discuss them with the parties concerned, and reach agreement on them if possible along lines acceptable to all stakeholders from both state and society. This is so we may find a way out of the current crisis, magnanimously completing the forward march of parliamentary democracy and constitutional reform aimed at the fair for the good of everyone in the interests of all.

Thirdly, we hope to call a meeting of political and community groups. There must therefore be a document upon which discussion can proceed. Accordingly, it is our suggestion — and you are fully free to agree with us on this suggestion, or reject or amend it — that the discussion commences with discussion of the seven proposals put forward by His Highness the Crown Prince in February 2011. Naturally, the meeting will have the absolute right to amend this initiative, or add to it or subtract from it, or to formulate a common understanding as to its contents, so that the detailed amendments would be the outcome of the discussions the two communities and subject to their agreement. The principles put forward by His Highness Sheikh Salman form the basis of our proposal as they are a reasonable ground for discussion, acceptable to many, and subject to some give and take should render most of what we propose acceptable to many of the state’s decision-makers.

Fourthly, should those gathered at that meeting reach agreement on a set of political demands that are appropriate to this stage in Bahrain’s progress toward democracy, we should remember that while democracy is blessed with a beginning it has in fact no final outcome. Therefore, those gathered should be able to form delegation to present those demands of the appropriate parts of our political system in order to discuss the demands with them and try to persuade them to adopt these demands, implementing them within an agreed timescale, according to a cumulative timeframe which is absolutely irreversible.

Fifthly, we suggest the brothers here present elect a number between twenty and thirty persons to be a coordinating committee following up contacts with all political forces and national stakeholders in order to convince them regarding all that has been mentioned above, and to ensure that its members, as your representatives, conduct joint meetings. It is demanded that the committee will need to remain in close association with you as a general grouping to arrange the public naming of the group, and to invite you to meetings as necessary and to inform you of the outcomes of our activities and to obtain your consent for new roles undertaken on your behalf.

Sixthly, should we be unable to reach any agreement this endeavor, the matter will return to you: this could mean a change of goals or methods, or leaving the matter to others. However, what is essential is that we do our duty as citizens, so that history cannot record against us that we saw our nation aflame, but did nothing to relieve our country from its tribulation.

Seventhly, and finally, it is our ardent hope this morning that we disregard slurs and insults from whatever any party they may arise, so that we may focus on the matter in hand. We are not attending a festival of rhetoric, but are meeting in order to find ways forward and solutions.

Let us fix our sight on that. Let us remember that we must rise above all that divides us, we must banish the vituperation, wrangling and bickering that are harming our nation, we must save our nation from what some hypocrites, ignoramuses and opportunists are putting it through.

In short, we are at this stage concerned to communicate with all groupings, urging them to communicate with one another and agree on common demands. We are not at this stage concerned with communicating with official parties, although this may come about at a later date, possibly involving others, or without them, according to you wishes at further meetings.
Greetings to you all, you are all patriotic and have love for your people. God reward you a thousand-fold.

May peace and God’s mercy and blessings be upon you.

Dr. Ali Mohammed Fakhro
The National Encounter
Al Uruba Club
28th January 2012

The essence of the action here is to define a route to get back to the negotiation table using the Crown Prince’s agreed principles of discussion which he announced in February last year which are:

A fully representative parliament with exclusive legislative authority
An elected and representative cabinet
Equitable electoral districts
Review of Naturalisation Laws
Address administrative and financial corruption
Review sovereign wealth
Address the sectarian impasse

According to reports, some 200 people attended the Uruba Club gathering and 21 were elected to form a committee under the leadership of Dr Ali Fakhro who was elected as Chairman. The others who signed the founding document were Dr. Ali Fakhro, Jassim Murad, Hameed Ali Abdulla, Radhi Al-Mousawi, Ubaidly Alubaidly, Shawqi Alalawi, Mariam Alruai’ie, Abdulmonem Alshirawi, Yousif Zainal, Dr. Mohammed Isa Alkuwaiti, Jameel Alalawi, Ali Rabi’ea, Saeed Alasbool, Abdulla Mutawiee’, Esmat Almousawi, Dr. Wedad Kaiksow, Dr. Hasan Madan, Dr. Hasan Alaali, and Abdulhasan Alhasan. All of these people are luminaries of society and are known for their patriotic stances away from sectarianism which gives this particular committee credibility to try to bridge the chasm and hopefully find a solution.

I wish them all the best of luck. There is an awful lot of hard work to be done yet, and with the first anniversary of Feb 14 approaching fast, things will get very ugly if even a glimmer of resolution is not seen.

I hope that this is the genuine glimmer that everyone is hoping for.

Main sources for this article: Esmat Almousawi on Facebook and @HameedAlmulla‘s Twitter feed
Edit 30 Jan 2012 @ 19:58 to include English translation by Dr Mike Diboll

Bassiouni’s Disappointment

Professor Cherif Bassiouni is visibly disappointed with the regime’s response to his BICI report and is frustrated with the pace of adoption of its recommendations. While he suggests that the US administration should have a more active and visible role into urging the Bahraini regime to accelerate reforms as pointed out in his report and do so in a public manner.

Professor Bassiouni’s also not averse to naming and shaming those who have been proven at fault. Although I don’t regard this last fact as a threat of him actually doing so himself if the pace of change continues in its spiral of deceleration, I too see the merit in exposing them if only to act as an example for others to think of before they too take the path of subjugation. As the saying goes (loosely): the security from punishment is misbehavior (من أمن العقاب أساء الأدب).

What is much more damning in this short report; however, is his evaluation of this snail-paced and superficial changes, is due to the royal family’s overarching preoccupation with their own familial loyalty, unity and internal conflict rather than that of unifying the country itself.

Very perceptive.

The logical thing, in my humble opinion and if I may be so bold as to offer some advice, that would be for the regime to relax its grip on power somewhat and spearhead true reforms. As I’ve said countless times before, this single action will not only save the country from dire consequences, but ironically, will also ensure the regime’s very own survival.

I’m not very sure that at this particular juncture that anyone is intent on listening to logic or sincere advice.

Government admits the ineffectiveness of censorship

With six international human rights organizations releasing stinging reports on the freedom of expression in the Arab world, Bahrain was not spared any of that wrath. And deservedly so for the thousands of websites which have been blocked over the past ten years, a campaign which has intensified especially over the last few years. The government remains unmoved by these criticisms for the large part; although I’ve noticed that two of my sites have mysteriously been unblocked over the last few weeks. “Just Bahraini” the anti-sectarian website I created in 2006 to offer a form of rapprochement is presently unblocked and the Bahraini blogs aggregator too has been unblocked. I look forward to restoring their content soon and bringing them back to life. This is probably as sign that the government has finally discovered that its blocking policy is ineffective and people’s determination to reach blocked content remains largely unhindered.

Another admission of the ineffectiveness of that medieval policy comes from one of the darling ministers of the regime – and as she currently holds three huge portfolios: Social Affairs, Health and Human Rights, has been locally dubbed as Super-Woman or Super-Minister, and rightly so too. When the right honorable lady was interviewed in her Human Rights capacity regarding this particular subject, she issued forth the following priceless gem:

ولدى سؤالها عن المواقع المحجوبة، قالت وزيرة حقوق الإنسان والتنمية الاجتماعية فاطمة البلوشي، خلال لقاء مع منظمة حقوقية دولية إنها «ليست مشكلة… ويمكن استخدام البروكسي».

My translation: And when she was asked about the blocked websites, the Minister of Human Rights and Social Affairs responded during a meeting with an international human rights organisation by saying it’s not a problem… a proxy could be used [to gain access]” [source]

With that issuance, the right honorable lady has squarely killed two bulls with a single bullet; the first is her apparent lack of understanding of the Internet in general, and the second being her flippant admission that people do use proxies to gain access to blocked content; hence, admitting in print that censoring the Internet is useless and futile, and her government is wrong for doing so in the first place.

A friend commented on this situation thusly:

safybh: @mahmood they can use proxy is the new they can eat biscuits.

Indeed!

With ministers like the right honorable Ms Albalooshi, this country simply cannot go wrong.

Destroying a Revolution

One of the most important ways to “win” a revolution in this day and age is the effective use of media tools and keeping your struggle peaceful. That wins you supporters both locally and internationally who can exert pressure on the ruling regime to elicit positive change. The minute that this struggle morphs into violence, that platform of support dissipates and the chances of a successful conclusion to the struggle for change evaporates.

The recent escalation of violence which was undoubtedly translated form Isa Qassim’s last Friday prayer sermon is very worrying and most definitely does not serve the cause. What it does do is play into the hands of the hard-liners in the regime, giving them a gift they have all but lost hope of receiving.

A respected cleric like Isa Qassim should have known better than to allow his passions to boil over and he should have also known that his words will be taken to heart and each will interpret them to suit their own ends, all of which resolves into more violence which will rob the people’s struggles of their efficacy as well as sympathy.

I do hope that he will take the opportunity in his next Friday sermon to address these issues and urge the youth to return to their peaceful means of protesting. In the long run, violence of any kind will not serve any purpose. Peaceful protests and the effective use of media are key to winning not only a battle, but a whole war.

I do fervently hope, that Silmiyya will return, and along with it, a more urgent sense to get this country over its current climate of hate and mistrust.