…from beneath the crooked bough, witness 230 years of brutal tyranny by the al Khalifas come to an end
Random header image... Refresh for more!

Back to the Narrative of Democracy and problem of Apartheid in Bahrain

by Courtesy

Officially a ‘constitutional monarchy’ is based upon similar models in Europe, the reality in Bahrain is that all political decision-making is subject to royal consent, rendering it a de facto absolute monarchy. Central authority resides in the chief of state, KingHamad b. Isa al-Khalifa and his Court Minister Sheikh Khalid b. Ahmed al-Khalifa. The prime minister serves as head of the government but the position holds only that power granted to it by the chief of state, as it is the King who appoints an individual at his discretion to the role. The incumbent prime minister, since 1970, is Sheikh Khalifa b. Salman al-Khalifa.

BROKEN PROMISES Human Rights, Constitutionalism and Socio-economic Exclusion in Bahrain
by Omar F. Ahmed – 2010 Islamic Human Rights Commission – Paper

Executive Summary
As of 2010 Bahrain has not successfully completed its transition from an absolute monarchy in which unqualified power lies with the unelected head of state to a constitutional monarchy that assigns decision-making authority to an elected legislature and representative government. Socio-economic and political exclusion of the wider population is prevalent. The country’s regional economic success belies the fact that a significant proportion of Bahrainis live in poverty and unemployment.
Resentment is further exacerbated when accusations of profligacy and corruption are levelled at some senior government officials who are protected from legal scrutiny and public accountability due to their close proximity to royal power in the country.

Confrontation between the security forces and protestors has resulted in violence and, on occasions, death. The focus of many demonstrations is allegations of discriminatory practices carried out by the ruling Sunni al-Khalifa family against Bahrain’s majority Shia population. Discriminatory policies are deployed as a tool by the ruling government to marginalise and disenfranchise the largest section of Bahraini society. Though outwardly sectarian in nature, these measures are designed to prevent democratic reform, and are therefore not necessarily concerned primarily with religious exclusion. The response by marginalised Shia in turn is fuelled by socio-economic neglect and political marginalisation as opposed to sectarianism. …more