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The death of Al-Wefaq?

By on Sunday, August 29, 2004

Not everyone is happy [arabic] with the totalitarian board of Al-Wefaq, so much so that some of their leading lights are deserting and wanting to start another political society. One of these is Dr. Nizar Al-Baharna who is so far insisting on starting a political society to be called “Justice and Progress.”

Dr. Nizar resigned from the board of directors of Al-Wefaq Islamic Action Society recently after struggling for 3 years to get them to accept “opposing views” yet his trials came to naught, hence, he resigned and is starting another society, which reportedly will include a number of ex-Wefaqis.

Dr. Nizar was the Dean of Engineering at the University of Bahrain for some time, he now owns and chairs a computer consultancy company and has a string of academic achievements behind him. He is well respected in the society, especially that his father was an MP in the 1975-dissolved parliament and his uncle is also politically active. Al-Baharna family are well known here and are merchants and landlords.

I wish him all the luck in this new adventure, and hope that the society he is in the process of forming will be first and foremost concerned with Bahraini matters, be non-sectarian, and very importantly less confrontational than Al-Wefaq, and concentrates on really developing and raising the political scene in Bahrain, rather than throw more fuel on various sectarian fires.

This could be the first nail in Al-Wefaq’s coffin. I sure hope that more will follow!

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Comments

  1. anonymous

    The death of Al-Wefaq?

    Is this the death of Al Wefaq or the birth of Al Wefaq’s squabbling twin? If the latter then good as hopefully they’ll cancel each other out; if the former then even better, espcially with Al Wefaq going off the rails/showing its true colours campaigning for vice and virtue squads and segregation.

    I wonder if its a conscious decision calling the new party “Justice and Progress” to echo the name of Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s moderate Islamists?

  2. [deleted]0.01191600 1099323613.647

    The death of Al-Wefaq?

    Mahmood, do explain to us how the various aspects of social security are handled in Bahrain. (For example, retirement and disability pensions, health benefits and support for the unemployed, low-income housing etc). Also, to what extent are utilities and industries nationalised, if at all. (Apologies for my spectacular ignorance, but everyone has to learn sometime.)
    Cheers
    Meggie

  3. anonymous

    The death of Al-Wefaq?

    This sounds like very good news; one small step at a time.

    Glad to have you back.

    M

  4. mahmood

    Don’t do it.

    Ex-official plans political society

    By MOHAMMED AL A’ALI

    A BREAKAWAY Al Wefaq National Islamic Society board member is planning to start his own political society.

    Former treasurer Dr Nizar Al Baharna plans to call it the Justice and Development Society.

    Dr Al Baharna resigned from his Al Wefaq post three months ago, saying the society had failed to deal with serious issues.

    “There is a certain group at Al Wefaq which is controlling everything without giving anyone the chance to voice his opinion. We can’t work in such an environment,” he said yesterday.

    Dr Al Baharna said that Al Wefaq had confined itself to the Islamic direction, neglecting other groups which are a part of Al Wefaq.

    “Al Wefaq is formed from eight groups ranging from university students to businessmen, but regretfully it has been dominated by clergymen,” he said.

    Dr Al Baharna says that many well-known political figures are with him in his proposal to start the new society.

    “I can’t give any names now, but everything will be revealed soon,” he said.

    “Our society will be open for everyone, Shi’ites and Sunnis. It will back His Majesty King Hamad’s reforms, taking into consideration the sacrifices made by many during the 1990s.”

    Dr Al Baharna welcomed a meeting with Al Wefaq next month in the presence of leading clergyman Shaikh Isa Qassim, to discuss his proposal.

    “Whatever the meeting outcome is, the society will go ahead as planned,” he said.

    Al Wefaq treasurer Dr Abduljalil Al Sengase said that society members were not happy with the idea of the new society.

    “Why now? Is it when the opposition is in its strongest period, that someone like Dr Al Baharna comes with such destructive plan?

    “What Dr Al Baharna doesn’t understand is that in Al Wefaq everyone has the right to voice his opinion, but convincing others is something else,” he said.

    Dr Al Sengase said that some board members have posted a letter at the society last night reflecting their support for Al Wefaq.

    “Members wishing to show their support can sign in their names on the letter, which will be used at the meeting with Dr Al Baharna,” he said.

    GDN

    Intimidation?

    [ed: my highlight]

    I’m begining to like this guy!

    [Modified by: Mahmood Al-Yousif (mahmood) on August 31, 2004 11:48 AM]

  5. anonymous

    The death of Al-Wefaq?

    The better the opposition, the better the debate….

    JJ

  6. anonymous

    The death of Al-Wefaq?

    [quote]This could be the first nail in Al-Wefaq’s coffin. I sure hope that more will follow[/quote]
    you don’t know how Al Wefaq strong ,
    actually you make me logh for a long time

    🙂

  7. mahmood

    Re: The death of Al-Wefaq?

    Especially if Al-Wefaq now has adopted the policy that Al-Baharna should have fixed his problems from the inside and worked through the system rather than try to start another political society? Right? So if this is Al-Wefaq’s belief, can you tell me why they boycotted the elections in the first place? Didn’t they say that they are better off working against the government from outside the political tools and parliament?

    That’s the thing that is funny my friend, and I hope that this too will want to make you “logh” for a long time! 🙂

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