Mahmood's Den

How about that?

2Connect's CEO Fahad Al-Shirawi

The TRA just issued a hefty fine of BD43,927.120 (that’s US$116,517.56 to non-believers) against 2Connect, you know, the blue man people with the funky YouTube skit?

Well, the story from what I understand from the document is that 2Connect is opposed to blocking anything. The TRA found an opportune moment to slap them on their wallet by getting a complaint from a kid at the British School about them being able to access a pornographic site within the school system, which is connected, yes you guessed it, through 2Connect’s high speed network. Perfect! Someone thought. Let’s use this to really screw 2Connect out of some much needed profit and hey presto, the deal is done!

I would wish to take this opportunity to formally thank the ever watchful TRA in protecting our morals and sanity, and protecting our children’s delicate sensibilities, but stomping on 2Connect rather forcefully and reminding them that they must acquiesce to the government’s directives regardless of how sane or otherwise they are.

One of the most pleasurable things my wife and I do while on holiday is walk!

I know, sounds so mundane doesn’t it? But we love it. We walk, we talk we watch people, observe the surroundings, interact with the locals, or just join hands and silently amble. Walking, we’ve discovered, is one of the best ways to know the locality we’re visiting.

These walks last anything from as little as half an hour to hours on end but almost always don’t have a predetermined route. We look around and let our legs carry us to a destination. Yesterday we did just that. We went to downtown Victoria, found a walkway at the harbour and struck off. We were pleasantly surprised to find that the path carried us along the harbour to the Blue Street Bridge from which we observed that the path carries through to the very end of the inner harbour! We estimated the distance to be around 3 kilometers long so it was shaping to be an excellent walk!

My friends, let me say this again, this is a constructed path for the PUBLIC. It snakes its way at the edge of the shore and rocks of the harbour. Very high end apartments, condominiums and town houses are packed on one side of the path – some of which I’m told are worth over a million dollars – and water is on the other. While there, tens of people were walking together, jogging, walking their dogs or simply sitting on one of the many benches or on the rocks talking, laughing, communicating with each other. Frances and I were in heaven! Beautiful location, beautiful people and very beautiful weather.

Coming home, I traced the route on Google Earth:

According to Google Earth, the path we took was 3.23 kilometers long and is marked with the white line with red dots on the map above. We spent a lovely period of 3 or 4 hours walking to the end, and of course walking back. A good afternoon’s exercise of over 6 kilometers. Beautiful.

I can’t help but wonder why we don’t have such a thing in Bahrain? With a country which is a collection of over 30 islands, shouldn’t we at least be able to have a properly prepared and constructed walkway along the shore of those islands for us to enjoy when we can?

Why is it that the only development we get along the shore is those which essentially adversely impact the environment, some irretrievably so? No sooner than one such project falters, another is announced and yet, none offer public access – other than Diyar Al-Muharraq which publicly announced public access walkways and beaches, but that is very much in the future.

A beautiful construction from flotsam installed at the Inner Harbour Walk protesting against a proposed high-class marina development.

If there is such a process in Bahrain, I’d like to know about it. Because I couldn’t remember seeing any public consultation notices about any of the mega-developments in Bahrain. I think it’s high time that we get involved in this. We can’t really do any worse than the chaos we have at the moment with everything from road systems through to the hodgepodge we see in Juffair and other places. No regard is given for access, emergency services or public access. Or even simple pavements we can safely walk on when not being used as impromptu car parks!

Let me leave you with some of the pictures I took yesterday for you to get the feeling of what I’m talking about. Call this inspiration, if you would.

If there is ever a reason for shutting down the joke that is called “our national television”, then it’s their broadcasting a “crawl txt message” in their ticker describing the majority of the country’s population with a completely offensive and derogatory word.

At around 1.30am this morning, their ticker tape included the word “rawafidh” according to a tweet by Amira Al-Hussaini:

Disgusting! #Bahrain Television showing sectarian messages, where the Shia are called ‘rafedha’ and it seems acceptable! [link]

The messages Amira was talking about are those which appear as a crawl at the bottom of the screen like a ticker tape:

@mahmood I was watching TV at around 1.30am when my I spied with my eyes those text messages at the bottom of the screen #Bahrain [link]

I know those systems intimately, we sell them and have even sold a few to Bahrain TV in the past! I can tell you categorically that NO message appears there UNLESS an operator approves it. If it was put into an automatic mode, then the output is delayed by a few seconds upto several minutes or more in order for the operator to scan the messages before they are posted. There are some features available there as well to automatically scan a dictionary of bad words and reject the messages containing those words completely. So having such a despicable word actually appear on TV is either gross incompetence OR a deliberate result of someone allowing such a message to go through on air. On a National television channel whose population’s majority are rightly offended by the broadcasting of such a derogatory and offensive word.

Never mind that those very population are completely and utterly ignored as non-existant by this so called “informative organ”; when was the last time you heard a Bahrani accent uttered on that screen – other than to make fun of them of course – or even heard the Shi’a Athan being broadcast? Isn’t 70% of the population worth having their call to prayer marked? The sad and shy attempts at having a couple of programs broadcast during Muharram don’t count. Having a few pet-Shi’a so called clerics appear on their illustrious screen doesn’t count. We should have total inclusion in this public facility, or else, allow us to start our own TV and radio channels without harassments and without the repressive and impossible rules put in place to prevent such a thing from ever happening.

Incensed. I immediately fired a Tweet to the country’s Foreign Minister Shaikh Khalid Al-Khalifa (sadly, I intended to also tweet his majesty’s media adviser Nabil Al-Hamar but I mistyped his moniker):

@khalidalkhalifa @alhamar RT @JustAmira: Is it BTV’s policy to call the shia of #Bahrain ‘rawafedh’ now? [link]

I was seeing red.

Fortunately, the gentleman responded soon thereafter:

The foreign minister Shaikh Khalid Al-Khalifa responded:

Totally intolerable .. Btv should pay attention to such stupid incompetence or else be closed and sent to Hell #Bahrain [link]

I wouldn’t expect less from our straight talking foreign minister. He is a gentleman by the true sense of the word and know that he loves the country and everyone in it. Others in positions of power should follow his example.

The resolution to this incident cannot be anything less that firing the person in charge of that ticker tape when the incident happened and fire their immediate supervisor. The TV station, its motives and modes of operation must come under review, and proper integrated programming must be funded and broadcast on that channel catering to ALL the people of Bahrain, rather than a simple minority. Cultural sensitivity training must also be enacted within that organisation. Multiculturalism in that corporation – I know from first hand experience – is imbalanced to say the least.

I would also suggest that you write to the Head of Television, Mr. Fathi Mattar to register your disgust and complaint and ask him to ensure that this kind of situation never happens again.

You can reach Mr. Fathi Mattar at fmattar@brtc.gov.bh. Your email might include the following:

Mr. Fathi Mattar,
Head of Television
Bahrain Radio & Television Corporation
Po Box 1075,
Manama, Kingdom of Bahrain

Dear Mr. Mattar,

It is with extreme concern that I have came to know of the broadcasting at around 01:30AM on 30 August 2010 on your television channel's ticker tape of an extremely derogatory word describing the Shi'a community as "rawafidh". This does not only disgust me, but does so too to the hundreds of millions of Shi'a Muslims around the word. Especially as we near the end of the Holy Month of Ramadhan, the very month which has been blessed with the inception of Islam - the inclusive religion which we all ascribe to and one that teaches us to love one another as a basic tenet of its belief system.

Sir, let me remind you that as you run the only television and radio channels in the Kingdom with in-house production and broadcasting facilities, it behoves you to be careful of your messaging and your duties. This country of ours has been a haven of multiculturalism throughout its history, something we are very proud of. However, irresponsible incidents like this will give rise not only to rightful anger, but also will lead to the fueling of hate which might give rise to turmoil, something I am sure you will not want to see happen in our kingdom.

I urge you to take the necessary steps to ensure that incidents like these never recur on your television and radio channels. You are also strongly advised to instigate multicultural sensitivity training and programs to your staff in order for them to know their responsibilities and to properly evaluate what constitutes acceptable and non-acceptable behavior.

The persons responsible for this morning's incident must be administratively punished in order for them and others within your organisation know that what they have allowed to happen is wrong and should never be repeated again.

I trust that you will do the right thing.

Sincerely yours,

Your name
contact details

Do the right thing.

Two men suspected of attempting to assassinate the editor of a Bahrain newspaper have been arrested early this morning.

The duo, aged 27 and 21, have admitted attacking Al Watan managing editor Muhannad Abu Zeitoun, Public Security chief Major General Tariq bin Dayna said.

They have been referred to the Public Prosecution, he said.

Mr Abu Zeitoun, 31, suffered a shoulder injury after being stabbed with a sharp object and his car was also set on fire at 3am on Wednesday outside the Arabic publication’s office in Riffa.

The Palestinian was taken to hospital, but released shortly after treatment.

His Majesty King Hamad received cables of congratulations from officials and citizens over the arrest, praising the security authorities for the quick action in the case.

They also strongly condemned sabotage and violence in the country and pledged their support to the King for his efforts to strengthen Bahrain as a land of peace, security and justice. GDN

Do those people who took the initiative to congratulate his majesty like this have no shame whatsoever?

For god’s sake some people were arrested but have not been tried and convicted yet you morons!

Talk about jumping the gun just to kiss ass.

Those congratulatory cables should have supported his majesty in his call to apply the law and the observance of all relevant legislation, rather than congratulating him for the arrests. What they have done, in my view, is nothing less than insult his majesty and going completely against his continuous reminders that Bahrain is a country of laws and institutions, not of the haphazard application of the law and chaos.

Absolutely ludicrous.

Bahrain is now on fire. Officially. The King has unambiguously unleashed the security apparatus’ hand in “dealing with saboteurs and terrorists”; those who burn tyres in the streets and lob molotov cocktails on all and sundry. Good, said many. “Deal with them with an iron fist” said others, and recently, we’ve had the usual posse declaring their support and loyalty by taking out press ads and even street hoardings such as these:

When this happens, as we have seen over the last few decades, you can rest assured that the ruling elite aren’t happy and they probably are doing something to appease some criticism, or when they’re possibly threatened that things might go out of hand, or even possibly do the traditional slight of hand to divert attention from something which is happening or about to happen. I’m not a clairvoyant so I wouldn’t know the motivations other than what is plain to see. Could it be to divert people’s attention to the gerrymandering as the elections approach? Where a single vote in a minuscule southern governate equates to 21 in others? Well, I’ll leave these factors to your deductions.

However, things this time – when compared with 2002 and 2006 – have taken a turn for the worse. This time, terrorism charges have been levied against a group of vociferous opposition persons, some of whom have participated in an annual House of Lords seminar in the UK, about human rights and political transgressions in this country. Their reward was to go directly to jail and never pass go.

Of course, when that happens and as they do enjoy tremendous support amongst the disenfranchised, the country goes into a spiral of violence. That is, our own kind of violence – you know, tyre burning, impromptu demonstrations, rock and the occasional Molotov cocktail hurling kind of violence. Nothing really that would lead generally to loss of life. Nothing like what happens in other countries like India for instance, where a minor transgression would result in hundreds dead. But in a supposed affluent country, this kind of “disruption” is a big deal. Some say that it leads to some sort of loss of face, something unacceptable in our culture…

So they get whacked across the head with charges under the Terrorism Law. And soon thereafter, the Public Prosecutor bars any discussion about their cases in the media (all forms of media), something we have witnessed before to be ineffective, but often employed resort.

So, I shall acquiesce to their request and shall quieten my gob.

But before doing that, please allow me to draw your attention to a parallel:

Canada, the lovely country which I’m visiting at the moment for a soon to end holiday, has been rocked over the last couple of days with an arrest of three suspected terrorists. Did you note that I emphasised the word “suspected”? Good. How might you say that they were suspected?

Well, an RCMP investigation lasting 18 months and gaining the required judicial instruments only after showing just cause, arrested three individuals so far and found bomb making material, remote control rigs, books and correspondence to facilitate terrorism acts and the manufacture of explosives. All three have now been presented in court after having lawyers appointed to them and given full access to their clients. Needless to say, as Canadian citizens, they will enjoy the full protection of the law and will be judged and either found guilty or released as innocents. There is of course no question that the media will be barred from reporting on the case, nor have they been held incommunicado.

My friends, we’re not doing ourselves any service by carrying on like this. Making a mountain of a mole hill all the time with and without cause. Sane people should speak to those in power and tell them that the path they have chosen is incorrect and at lease not commensurate with this day and age. That it will be much better for all concerned to release the grip on power a little and share the wealth. That for the sake of the country and the longevity of their rule it’s best to remove the tribal spectacles and include the citizens as true partners in progress. That those who are advising them now are spent and have lost credibility as they cannot integrate into a modern and interconnected world. That we love them and want them to continue. That the only way to do so is to share. That they need to reevaluate their strategy, mission and vision for the country and its inhabitants.

To continue as we have been doing is very trying and tiring and will lead us all into avenues we both won’t like. The chaos that will ensue is not something trivial and will last generations. All that will do is delay us once more from grabbing passing windows of opportunity and to rise to a higher level of responsibility borne out of good governance and accepted civic duties.

Every body I speak to now hardly even thinks of voting. Not only that, most are actually making plans to leave the country. Is this what we want? To live in an actual desert with ghosts? Oppressed and suppressed for ever?

Get things corrected for goodness sake before chaos really ensues. What’s happening now is nothing more than an appetiser of what could be in the offing and I’m sure that none of us looks forward to that.

Thanks Rami!

Are you kidding me?

And you want me to actually take the time to cast my vote?

No thanks.

Hate to say that I told you so, but indications are now heating up to target any secure platform with demands of open access by the so called security services:

As Research In Motion faces an increasingly public dispute with several countries over the ability to monitor communication on its BlackBerry devices, virtually all other major technology communications companies have remained silent on the issue. That may soon change: RIM is likely just the first test case.

The government of India indicated yesterday that RIM isn’t the only company from which it will demand greater monitoring access. State authorities listed Internet phone company Skype SA and Google Inc., provider of the wildly popular Gmail service, as targets.

The move signals that the issue of monitoring data traffic goes far beyond RIM’s encrypted BlackBerrys – and probably has more to do with a looming collision between the advance of digital communication and the security demands of the state than with the Ontario company’s technology.

The Globe & Mail

What’s amazing about this situation is that it will come to pass. It will be condoned and even readily accepted in a few days time. People have become immune to state interference in every facet of their lives, easily sold into the haze of “security” – what it actually is a perverted use of the security ogre to gain access to peoples’ lives.

I don’t mind if this access was required and mandated by legitimate security concerns. I wouldn’t even mind if there was a trusted legal structure in the countries requiring access which protects the gained information and protects against its improper and illegal use. Sadly, none of our countries – the Arab and Muslim world – has anything close to this requirement.

So the wheels are resolutely turning. Against normal people and for various security services. Services who are ungoverned and mostly above the law. Services which are archaic, improperly staffed and completely outdated. Services whose only contribution to the country of their residence is the attempted depletion of the columns of the unemployable. In ours, even that privilege is diverted elsewhere, in true “Athari” style.

The essence is, my friends, is that the so called “security agencies” we are “blessed” with, are ill-suited to challenges of this day and age. And with their refusal to change or even attempt to understand the modern psyche and connectiveness, and with the unabashed aid and support given to them by the ambiguous, partial and directed judicial systems, all of which are resoundingly playing into the bosoms of corrupt political systems, how can we but expect a calamity in the offing?

Look, it’s too much to hope for business (RIM, Apple, Google, Skype, etc) to side with “us”, even though we are their ultimate benefactors. It is governments and political institutions which stand between their products and our pockets. They’re not going to “stand their ground” and state that they’re not going to give away the keys to unlock our privacy. Mark my words, they will. RIM seems to have done so already in the big K. of S. A. and it will in all the other situations too quite readily – okay, they’ll moan and groan and act like a teenage virgin welcoming being ravished, but coyly mind you, at least to seem respectable and not too easy, RIM – as will Skype et al – will ultimately bend over and lube up.

What’s the solution?

I offer you none. Other than to direct you to Open Source. At least with no exclusive economic motive behind those products, and with the varied and disparate developers, maybe, just maybe we can delay the advent of our total violation.

Privacy, my friends, is gone.

THE number of Arab Muslims in the region planning to fast in Ramadan is down by two per cent, according to a new survey.

Ninety-six per cent of Arab Muslims will observe the fast this year, down from 98pc last year, says Arab web portal Yahoo! Maktoob.

Source: GDN · 11 Aug 2010

Yeah sure. I would think the truth to be closer to about 40 – 50% fasting rather than only 4% not fasting! The statistic quoted in the “research” is definitely wrong. For one thing, no Muslim is going to openly admit that they’re not fasting or don’t intend to fast. Apart from it being a deeply personal thing, it’s declaring that one is being not a Good Muslim™. And that, my friends, has some unsavory implications.

I think they should re-do this research in a much simpler way, as follows:

• Compare the sales of selected Khabbaz bakeries before and during Ramadhan, paying particular attention to purchases made earlier in the day
• Check the sales levels of tinned tuna fish and other readily edible packaged foods before and during Ramadhan

With this simple exercise and a moderate understanding of statistics, one could easily project the numbers of those fasting to those who don’t. My gut feeling is that their discoveries will be, well, not very surprising as we all know the actual story.

And let’s not even go and analyse what constitutes a fast acceptable to the One upstairs. Just listen to the kind of questions asked in the several “Ask the Preacher” shows which flood TV channels during the month.

Well, regardless of whether you are fasting, and regardless of how “good” your fast is perceived, I hope you at least spare a thought to those less fortunate than yourself in this month. Go out and do some charity work for a change, and not just by opening your wallet, anyone can do that, go and actually do something constructive this month to alleviate hardships of your fellow human beings in your community.

Happy Ramadhan.

I wish you all a blessed and fulfilling Ramadhan my friends.

Satiated?

Good.

Thanks to the Good Blog for the info.

I don’t particularly care how rich Royal families are or get, and I’ll reserve my own personal views on their legitimacy and that of the cash they clamped their dirty mitts on, but doing this sort of thing:

An Emirati boy racer outside Harrods in London

“Dozens of these cars do laps around Knightsbridge right through the night and the excitement for the drivers seems to be seeing how loud they can rev their engines. The area is fast becoming a very unpleasant place to live.”

The influx of super cars coincides with the so-called “season” when many members of Middle Eastern high society visit London in July and August.

Hisham Alireza, 40, a Saudi Arabian construction company owner who visits his second home in Basil Street, adjacent to Harrods, each summer, said most of those driving the cars are from wealthy Arab families.

He said: “Most come from Qatar, the UAE and Saudi Arabia. Frankly, those of us who have homes in this area are appalled and embarrassed by their behaviour and want to see it stopped.

“The problem is that they come from very closed societies where the men and women are not allowed to mix, so when they come to London in the summer, they go wild. It is a sort of courting ritual.

“Since the Qataris bought Harrods, it has become a fashionable place for them all to meet and show off their toys.”

The Telegraph, UK · hat tip: @JustAmira

is disgusting and shameful.

But then, we have an old local Arab saying:

Which roughly translates to “Shame is but a simple dot, if it falls, then there is no stopping that person from doing even worse deeds“.

There is another saying, maybe as appropriate for this situation:

Translating to: “if one is assured that there will be no punishment or consequence to their actions, will forget social manners”

It looks like our rich compatriots have not only over extended their welcome, but have completely and utterly forgotten their manners!

But will their families even care? Of course not. To their way of thinking, they are way above the law. In fact, they are particularly chosen by Allah to be in that position, so how can they be wrong?

What a bunch of Royal pains in the ass!

It’s going to be on Saturday 23rd October, 2010, HM the King has decreed. So, expect the race to parliament to start in earnest now.

Here’s the first to bolt out of the door:

الظهراني يعلن إعادة ترشحه للانتخابات النيابية 2010

Khalifa Al-Dhahrani

أعلن رئيس مجلس النواب خليفة الظهراني إعادة ترشحه للانتخابات النيابية المقبلة للفصل التشريعي الثالث. وقال الظهراني في بيان صادر عن المجلس أمس إن رغبته في إعادة الترشح «تأتي بناء على طلب الكثير من النواب والمهتمين، وكذلك رغبة المواطنين وأهالي الدائرة التاسعة بالمحافظة الوسطى، وامتداداً للخبرة البرلمانية التي يمتلكها، حيث تم اختياره رئيسا لمجلس النواب طوال الفصلين التشريعيين السابقين، فضلا عن كونه أحد أعضاء المجلس الوطني السابق 1973 ومجلس الشورى 1992-2002م». وأضاف بيان المجلس «كما يأتي إعلانه في إعادة الترشح، رغبة منه في خدمة الوطن والمواطنين والعمل يداً بيد مع الحكومة لتحقيق كل ما فيه مصلحة وخير المملكة ونهضتها تجسيدا للرؤية الإصلاحية لجلالة الملك».

Al-Wasat Newspaper – 9 Aug 2010

Al-Dhahrani declares his candidature for the 2010 elections

The Speaker of the House of Representatives Khalifa Al-Dhahrani announced his candidature for parliamentary’s third term. Al-Dhahrani said in a statement issued by the Council yesterday his intention to re-nominate himself “due to the demands of many members of parliament and other interested parties as well as the demands of citizens and the Central Governate’s 9th district constituents due to his parliamentary expertise as he was elected Speaker for the first two terms of parliament, apart from his being a member of the 1973 parliament and a member of the appointed Shura Council between 1992 – 2002. The statement add that “the announcement of his running once again was due to his desire to serve his country and countrymen and to work hand-in-hand with the government to achieve all that is good for the country and its development as envisaged by the reforming vision of His Majesty the King.

In that case, why is he using Parliamentary mechanisms, time and resources to aid in his own election campaign? To all intents and purposes as the 2nd Parliamentary term has ended and a new election date has been set by the King, then he’s out of a job. He is no longer a Speaker or anything to do with Parliament I think, so why is he even allowed to release a statement from Parliament? Isn’t this a complete and glaring case of mis-use of parliamentary power?

It’s obvious he’s totally in love with that job now, considering that last time he acted as a demure damsel in distress, refusing to stand for re-election in 2006 initially only to renege on that position when patted on the head a few times and making a dramatic entrance.

I think based on this mis-use of power alone he should be booted out of the door never to be allowed back in again. Don’t you?

Isn’t there any election committee to slap him silly for doing this and fire the guy in Parliament who allowed his office to be used unconstitutionally?

My suspicion is that this is not going to be an isolated incident in this election season. It’s now feeling like some MPs have got used to the idea that Parliament is nothing more than their own personal shop and piggy bank to do with what they want without regard to constitutionality or even basic ethics.

Bahrain started it. UAE happily followed, and of course Saudi rushes headlong into the gap and slaps an apparent full ban on the Blackberry services. Now, one country after another is announcing or at least mulling how they too can find an excuse to apply their band on a service that has revolutionised how people communicate on the go.

The scariest device so far invented to authoritarian regimes?

The ever [wannabe] creative Lebanon now ups the anti a bit further, and says that it’s mulling banning the Blackberry services because:

the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority chairman said Beirut will assess security concerns about the smartphones following the arrest of several telecoms employees suspected of spying for Israel. AFP/MSN

There you go, now the remaining 18 Arab countries will all be “contemplating” and many Muslim countries in our illustrious Umma will take this lead (which now officially contains the required passwords: spying and Israel) and will run with it. But they won’t stop at banning Blackberry services, oh no, as their intention is to cut us off from knowledge, choice and the rest of the world, they will expedite their encroachment on curtailing the Internet under this and many other guises.

If we pause a little and try to think about this latest situation rationally, I think one thing which is not said will ultimately be understood: our countries are built on notions of Big Brother. From the way that the religion is applied through to the current crop of political systems, they are all built on the state’s requirement to know every single insignificant thing we do and even think! Their security apparatus is built to serve that requirement, watching every single subject (we really don’t have any “citizens” in our countries, just subjects) is watched. They know every single thing we do, good and bad, and am sure that should they wish, they can blackmail us with information in their files, something that they’re not too shy about doing, and of course, regard for the country’s image in international spheres is immaterial.

With the advent of encryption such as those used by Blackberry and other devices, they suddenly realised that they no longer have immediate access to that information pipe. No matter how much money they throw at decryption and monitoring devices, it’ll take those devices a long time to decode messages, and if and when they do, that piece of information’s useful life would have already expired.

I’m sort of glad that the people who are put in charge of the security apparatus in our countries, are almost always political appointees. Almost no consideration is ever really given to appointee’s technical knowledge, management expertise or even common sense. Loyalty and the ability of the guiltless application of brute and overwhelming force on the other hand, are the top considerations. Therefore, it’s natural that high technology was not molested beyond the usual ham-fisted bans on the usual ogre: block dissenting sites and obfuscate the ban with imbecilic explanations as “corrupting the youth” or “pornographic” or “anti-Muslim” or “anti-Culture”. Of course, these blocks are easily circumvented, thus showing the frivolity of the tools employed to effect the ban, and much more importantly, demonstrates their complete misunderstanding of how the Internet actually works.

It’s too much to hope that with this latest brouhaha around the Blackberry services that they’re starting to actually understand how things work. Not by a long shot. They once again applied 18th century brute-force and blackmail methods to try to “solve” a 21st century technology. These countries’ resort to threats against the Blackberry, apart from making us all as Arab and Muslim human beings the deserved laughing stock of the world, have increased the animosity and disdain the world holds us in.

What is it that the RIM chief said?

“This is about the Internet,” Mr. Lazaridis said. “Everything on the Internet is encrypted. This is not a BlackBerry-only issue. If they can’t deal with the Internet, they should shut it off.” WSJ.com – 5 Aug 2010

Indeed.

If they can’t deal with the Internet, they should shut it off.

And they shall. Given half a chance. And you know what, the sheep that we have been conditioned to be over centuries will just take it in our stride, won’t complain, and will actually start suggesting “alternatives” and that we don’t need the “Western model of the Internet. We’re going to do our own Islamically sanctified version which – by the grace of Allah – will be much better and more secure than the Western decadent version.”

And our incumbent telecoms company seems to be doing just that, or at least preparing for that eventuality:

Batelco responds to Blackberry Customers Concerns about possible Suspension of Service

In response to continued speculation, Batelco has announced that it is working to ensure that any inconvenience will be minimized for its Blackberry customers if Batelco is directed to suspend some Blackberry services such as the popular messenger or email.

“We want to assure all our Blackberry customers that Batelco is working on alternative offers to minimize any inconvenience should some services be suspended,” said Batelco Group General Manager Media Relations Ahmed Al Janahi.

“We will fully comply with any directive to suspend some Blackberry services, should such be issued, as this is a legal obligation on Batelco,” continued Mr. Al Janahi.

“It’s not proper to speculate what the specific alternative offers will be at this stage. Our Marketing and Sales teams are finalizing such offers. We believe that no Batelco customer should be financially penalized if limitations are placed on some Blackberry services – we will address all customers’ concerns as quickly as practicable,” he stated.

Batelco confirmed that no formal directive has been received to date.

“At this stage it is prudent to plan for such a scenario and proactively inform our customers to minimize any concerns they may have. Our commitment to our customers is that we will minimize their inconvenience,” concluded Mr. Al Janahi.

All updates on this matter will be posted on our website http://www.batelco.com/blackberryupdate

What did you expect? They release a statement contesting the ban on the basis of unconstitutionality and the direct negative consequence to their shareholders’ profitability? Do you really expect that any other operator in our country would do such a thing? No of course not. They’ll continue to submissively acquiesce to governmental dictates, regardless of how farcical they are. The situation is very much the same – or actually worse – in every other Arab country. Without exception.

So what are we to do?

• I would suggest that we secure ALL of our electronic communications: you want to surf? put an “s” in the URL and surf securely. Almost all sites will have this already enabled and you would be able to access a site if you use “http://” or “https://” – try it, it’s the easiest thing to do.
• If that doesn’t work, use a Virtual Private Network tunnel to access the Internet and send/receive your email – VPN uses encryption which is hard to break
• Surf the Net using a program like Hotspot Shield, if you find this link blocked, you now know why! By the way, as this application uses VPN to “hide” your source and destinations, it’s an effective application to circumvent website blocks. Surf to your heart’s content!
• Encrypt your email

What else is there that you can do as a human being who respects himself? Easy, send a short email or fax to the TRA or whatever government organisation overseeing telecommunications in your country. Simple tell them that as a “citizen” you oppose any governmental interference to access to information, including the blocking of services or websites. If enough people do this, they might – just might – put public opposition in their psyche and they might – just might – think a little longer before blocking a site or service. Even if they don’t, at least YOU have done YOUR duty.

In Bahrain, please send an email to the TRA at the following address:

Telephone: 80088888
Fax: 17532523
e-mail: consumer@tra.org.bh

A sample letter might contain the following:

Dr. Mohammed Ahmed Al-Amer
Chairman
Telecommunications Regulatory Authority
Kingdom of Bahrain

6 August 2010

Dear sir,

I believe that the only way that our country can prosper in a highly competitive global environment is by its clear and unequivocal adoption of modern and secure communication technologies, unencumbered with governmental control.

Therefore, I strongly urge you to remove any ban applied to websites, data communication ports or communication devices’ services and refuse the application of such restrictions should they not be demonstrably and justifiably obtained through the respected judicial apparatus, always keeping in mind the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and its attendant rights to access to information. Doing so, the TRA will indeed go a long way into establishing a communications environment that enriches the social and commercial fabric of the Kingdom of Bahrain.

Yours sincerely,

Your Name
Address

UPDATE: Bahraini Crown Prince Shaikh Salman Al-Khalifa weighs in on the debate and terms those who block BBM services as “Ignorant, short sighted and unenforceable.” via FM @khalidalkhalifa Twitter account:

Crown prince Salman personally insuring that BBM service will not stop.”Decision to stop it is ignorant,short sighted and unenforceable”

Good! Excellent! Now let’s take this to the next step and codify it so that no one else dares suggest it in the future. And while on the subject, it’s high time to approve the new Press & Publications law which enshrines freedom of the press, unblock the thousands of sites which are administratively banned and ensure that any further website blocks are only done via the judiciary (and not administratively) and unblock the “Breaking News” service on BlackBerries which has been blocked earlier.

Or at least it would have been somewhere other than in our big neighbour to our east…

Saudi groom slapped by mother on wedding night
The groom’s mother became so upset that she hit and insulted him

A Saudi groom was slapped by his mother on his wedding night when he tried , in a romantic Cinderella-inspired touch, to put a shoe on his bride’s foot.

“The shocked mother was so infuriated by the sight of her son helping the bride wear her shoe that she slapped him amid the laughter of the women guests,” Okaz daily reported on Thursday.

“The groom had reportedly agreed with his bride that she walks into the reception hall wearing only one shoe and that her sister would carry the second shoe. The plan was that he would later take the shoe and put it on the bride’s foot in front of the guests. His family was not told about the perceived romantic gesture,” the newspaper said.

However, the groom’s mother became so upset that she hit and insulted him on the grounds that he did not behave as “a genuine traditional oriental man.”

The groom eventually left the reception hall in Tabuk in north-western Saudi Arabia and took his bride to the airport to fly to Malaysia for their honeymoon, the paper said.
In a separate incident in the same city, angry wedding guests left the reception hall after the families of the bride and groom screened a short film “that failed to respect privacy.”

According to Okaz, the short clip highlighted the different stages of the lives of both the bride and the groom, from their early years throughout school and adolescence, and ended with the couple hugging and exchanging a kiss.

However, some guests were shocked, charging that the clip was not acceptable and that it was inspired by movies screened on private television channels.

By Habib Toumi, Bahrain Bureau Chief Published: 17:22 August 5, 2010