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Bahrain Updates #16: President Obama’s Second Middle East Speech Date: 05/24/2011 01:05:59 AM

Folks,

Thursday, May 19th, the day that President Obama gave his latest much-anticipated Middle East speech was truly the end of the world rather than the much more ballyhooed date of Saturday, May 21st, heralded by Evangelist Harold Camping which has come and gone. Building on his June 4, 2009 speech in Cairo, Egypt where he recognized Islam and Muslims as partners, acknowledged that Morocco was the first country in the world to recognize the nascent United States in 1777, and, most importantly, gave voice to his and the United States' preference for democratic regimes where people have "the ability to speak your mind and have a say in how you are governed; confidence in the rule of law and the equal administration of justice; government that is transparent and doesn't steal from the people; the freedom to live as you choose," President Obama–commenting on the Arab Spring of rebellions which have so far dislodged autocratic leaders in Tunisia and Egypt and put others on notice–singled out a few regimes for their decisively undemocratic behavior, most particularly the Kingdom of Bahrain.
And though some will point with cynicism and derision at Barack Obama's words claiming they are the same old story, boring, and with the usual rhetoric (all of which are arguable from a certain vantage point), there was, I believe, something new. And even veteran reporter Robert Fisk grudgingly recognized the novelty when he wrote: "There was some knuckle-rapping to Bahrain (no revolution there, of course) and there was not a word about Saudi Arabia, although I rather fancy its elderly king will be on the blower to Obama in the next few days. What's all this about change in the Middle East?"
Yes, it is the knuckle-rapping to Bahrain that should draw our attention, for Obama was indeed selective about his–and, by default, the United States Government's–criticism of the various Middle Eastern regimes he talked about. Of course, the Israeli-Palestinian dialectic has received the lion's share of commentary, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's rejection of Obama's call for a peace settlement based on pre-1967 lines of demarcation between the two states as the main topic of most political pundits. Asserted Obama: "The borders of Israel and Palestine should be based on the 1967 lines with mutually agreed swaps, so that secure and recognized borders are established for both states." Although this has been stated policy by previous US administrations, it was Obama's forthright statement on the issue that has drawn Netanyahu's rebuke, for the US President is publicly rejecting the 1967 takeover by Israel of the West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem. Retorted Netanyahu: "While Israel is prepared to make generous compromises for peace, it cannot go back to the 1967 lines. These lines are indefensible." No doubt newspaper columnists with their Israeli-centric focus will pen much ink in the next few months on the Israeli-Palestinian question, leaving the remainder of Obama's speech untouched. However, one can be certain that on the eastern side of the Middle East, Obama has ignited a fiery kettle in the Gulf Kingdoms which will not remain tepid.
Tis true that the President did not mention the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the sayidat asharq al-awsat or the grande dame of the Gulf, but he did mention the tiny 33-island chain along its eastern shore, viz. Bahrain. Some will see in this silence towards the KSA sinister motives. M. K. Bhadrakumar (Asian Times, "Decoding Obama's Bahrain Puzzle," May 24, 2011) sees it as part of a possible US strategy to gradually empower the majority Shia in Bahrain, imposing a power-sharing arrangement on the minority-Sunni regime, so as to demonstrate to Iran that peaceful democratic regimes–like the majority Shia government in Iraq and the eventual Shia-run government in Bahrain will garner US support, thus posing an "ideological headache for the Islamic regime in Iran." Argues Bhadrakumar: "Thus, reform in Bahrain holds the potential to kick-start an engrossing shadow play within the world of Shi'ism in the Muslim Middle East. If Bahrain can be finessed to follow the 'secular' democratic route of Shi'ite empowerment and be conjoined with Iraq politically, it may hasten the demand for democratic change within Iran itself." If only such foresight were possible by the Washington bureaucracy, I, too, might believe this were so. But, alas, a simpler explanation holds.
Recalling Obama's preference for democratic governments in his 2009 Cairo speech, his chastisement of Bahrain reflects his consistency with those principles. Since the protests started in Bahrain on February 14th, the Bahraini regime has reacted with brutality. And, since mid-March, an orchestrated purge has taken place in the Kingdom–including beatings, arrests, disappearances, detentions, murders, show trials, firings, etc.–which is anything but democratic. Instead, the minority Al-Khalifa government has created the boogeyman of Iranian outside instigation as the cause of all of Bahrain's ills, i.e fodder for those unfamiliar with the Middle East and Bahrain to swallow. Isn't the support of over seventy percent of the population sufficient enough to justify democratic rule? Or does being primarily Shia nullify their democratic voice? If memory serves me, seems that's what the old apartheid regime in South Africa used to say about its majority (yes, it too was over 70%) black opposition–you know, they're black!
Well, just exactly what did President Obama say about Bahrain? Starting slowly, Obama stated that not all of America's friends in the region have reacted to the demands for change consistent with the principles he outlines as part of the transitions to democracy occurring in the Arab world, akin to the democratic transitions in Eastern Europe after the fall of the Berlin Wall. Then, Obama gets quite specific, and he states:
Bahrain is a long-standing partner, and we are committed to its security. We recognize that Iran has tried to take advantage of the turmoil there, and that the Bahraini government has a legitimate interest in the rule of law. Nevertheless, we have insisted publically and privately that mass arrests and brute force are at odds with the universal rights of Bahrain’s citizens, and will not make legitimate calls for reform go away. The only way forward is for the government and opposition to engage in a dialogue, and you can’t have a real dialogue when parts of the peaceful opposition are in jail. The government must create the conditions for dialogue, and the opposition must participate to forge a just future for all Bahrainis.
And further:
In a region that was the birthplace of three world religions, intolerance can lead only to suffering and stagnation. And for this season of change to succeed, Coptic Christians must have the right to worship freely in Cairo, just as Shia must never have their mosques destroyed in Bahrain.
Words of principle and reprimand directed at a long-standing ally can sometimes be just mere words with no action expected to follow. For the monarchs of the Gulf, they would prefer to believe that Obama is much like the previous George W. Bush Administration, where a wink of the eye and the signing of a few multimillion dollar contracts could clear away any hassles or problems; unfortunately, they know that Obama is more than rhetoric and is, instead, a dangerous commodity, as he is more popular amongst their own populations than any of them are. Obama has political capital because people not only believe him when he speaks, but they will march by his words.
So, this brings us back to my earlier claim that the world ended on Thursday, May 19th, for history will record that date as the beginning of the end of the long-standing cordial relationship between the United States and the Gulf Kingdoms. Faced with an existential battle, Bahrain and the other Gulf Kingdoms will pour every spare dinar, dirham, riyal, etc. of oil wealth into undermining the Obama Administration in the upcoming 2012 election and backing the Republican Party to the hilt. Capitulation by Obama is not an option. Concession to democratic rule by Gulf monarchs is out of the question. Who will be left standing will write the history.
Latest Updates
For those following developments in Bahrain closely, I refer you all to The Crooked Bough website for timely updates on the political situation in the Kingdom, as it is beating most outlets at critical reportage coming out of Bahrain. As well, The Crooked Bough is now acting as a repository of all prior Bahrain Updates which are accessible at: http://www.crookedbough.com/?page_id=1154.
About the author:

Until February 15th of this year, I was an Assistant Professor teaching in the American Studies Center at the University of Bahrain. I submitted my resignation following the Fall semester at the end of January, as my wife, a Moroccan national, was granted an immigrant visa to the US by the State Department with the proviso that we be residing within the USA by April 1, 2011. Little did we know in January, when I submitted my resignation, that we would be in a race for time before we could leave, as the Arab rebellions were sweeping from Tunisia to Egypt to Yemen and into Bahrain and beyond. We left Bahrain on February 25th, the day of the largest demonstrations in Bahraini history, and have since been residing in Seattle, Washington.
Background on Bahrain:

On February 14, 2011, the citizenry of Bahrain rose up in opposition to the Al Khalifa monarchy and demanded democratic reforms. Their voices were met with stiff resistance from the autocratic regime which has been in power for over 200 years now. Unbowed, the citizenry took to the Pearl Roundabout in downtown Manama with some advocating for a constitutional monarchy and others a democratic republic. In response, the regime unleashed a reign of terror down on the protesters. Meanwhile, the US was directing its focus on Libya and getting through the United Nations a resolution for a no-fly zone over that country, which passed on Thursday, March 17th. One week prior, on Friday, March 11th, US Defense Secretary Robert Gates flew to Bahrain and met with the King and the Crown Prince, and on Monday, March 14th, approximately 2000 to 3000 Saudi Arabian and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) tanks and troops rolled across the causeway from Saudi Arabia into Bahrain to crush the opposition. The next day, March 15th, King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa issued Royal Decree No. 18 for the year 2011, declaring a three-month "State of National Safety". The Bahrain Defence Forces (BDF) subsequently began a systematic crackdown on anyone who was suspected of opposing the monarchy and calling for democracy. On March 18th, the BDF tore down the Pearl Monument, known to locals as either "Lulu" or "the GCC Monument" and to the international press as "Pearl Square" due to its similarity to Tahrir Square in Cairo, Egypt where protesters had gathered. The regime's crackdown is an attempt to wipe away the memory of the 2011 Bahraini Democratic Spring from the popular mindset, and they are sparing nothing to root out and crush, using force, intimidation, torture, and murder, any further resistance. The silence from most of the mainstream media in America is deafening.
The fact that the US Fifth Fleet is based in Bahrain and the fact that the US is completely dependent on and addicted to Saudi-monarchy oil–i.e. oil doled out by a corrupt and sclerotic regime, and that both regimes (i.e. the Al Sauds and the Al Khalifas)–indeed all GCC regimes–in turn, are kept in power by US guns, makes all the difference–for now at least. The US is clearly supporting the Al-Khalifa monarchy, putting its oil interests ahead of its avowed democratic principles. From all accounts, the beating into submission as well as the subsequent bloodbath continues in earnest. For US citizens, it is another lost opportunity… But with your help and voices, we can eventually rectify our country's policy in this regard and realign it with our country's avowed democratic principles.
US interests in the long term will ultimately be served by supporting democratic elements and, eventually, democratic regimes in the Middle East North Africa (MENA) region. Does that mean we should overthrow existing governments? No, but it does mean that we should not be arming, financially supporting, and enabling corrupt regimes to slaughter opposition forces advocating for democratic rights in their countries, and then remaining silent while it happens. Sycophancy in the service of autocratic rulers with decidedly undemocratic ethos is degrading and demeaning. Such a stance is an affront to humanity. Putting off the goal of aligning ourselves with democratic elements for short-term advantage will have negative repercussions not only on current US foreign policy but, as well, on US domestic policy, as millions of petro-dollars will find their way back into US politics attempting to undermine our democracy here at home. While countering theocratic influence in the region is understandable and necessary, this will require a strategy with quite a bit more sophistication than is presently being demonstrated. As well, implementing such a strategy will necessitate experienced hands who are neither intimidated by the apparent chaos often associated with democratic movements nor infatuated with monarchical tendencies and supportive of elite rule as some bureaucrats appear to be.
NOTE:

Names and other identifying information have been removed and/or redacted in order to protect the safety of the sender[s], unless the person(s) is (are) a reporter or a public activist(s) and want their names to be known, as publicity sometimes gives them some protection from regime retaliation. If you are not a known public activist and/or reporter, please inform me if you would like your name to appear along with your report; otherwise, I will redact it to maintain your anonymity.
regards,
csc
__________________
Colin S. Cavell, Ph.D.

P.O. Box 9087
Seattle, WA 98109

ccavell@gmail.com

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Financial Times Briefing <FT@email.ft.com>

Date: Mon, May 23, 2011 at 10:21 PM
Subject: Mid-East Companies: Foreign media allege Bahrain abuse…
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Foreign media allege Bahrain abuse
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From: thepearlroundabout.org <thepearlroundabout@gmail.com>
Date: Mon, May 23, 2011 at 6:21 PM
Subject: thepearlroundabout.org
To: ccavell@gmail.com

thepearlroundabout.org

Link to thepearlroundabout.org

Bahrain police detain 2 foreign media reporters

Posted: 23 May 2011 01:59 PM PDT

Reuters – Two Bahraini journalists working for Western media were detained and at least one was mistreated by police this week, one of the journalists said on Tuesday.

Bahrain races to restore normality

Posted: 23 May 2011 01:46 PM PDT

FT.com – Bahrain, traumatised by months of protest and repression, hopes to reschedule its Formula 1 race for later in the season after it was cancelled in March because of large pro-democracy protests.

Foreign media allege Bahrain abuse

Posted: 23 May 2011 01:20 PM PDT

FT.com – Bahrain has allegedly arrested and abused local journalists working for foreign news agencies in an escalation of the crackdown just days after Barack Obama, US president, called for dialogue.

‘US complicit in Bahrain govt. crimes’ (video)

Posted: 23 May 2011 04:16 AM PDT

Press TV – Press TV has interviewed Dr. Saeed al-Shehabi, from the Bahrain Freedom Movement, to ask for his insight into the latest developments regarding Bahrain.

Bahrain sentences two protesters to death, frees newspaper columnist

Posted: 23 May 2011 04:15 AM PDT

Miami Herald) – United Arab Emirates-A military tribunal in Bahrain Sunday upheld death sentences against two Shiites for the alleged murder of two policemen at the start of the government's harsh crackdown in March, touching off demonstrations in at least 10 Shiite villages on the small Gulf island.

Bahrain F1 race in Oct a mistake, says Brawn

Posted: 23 May 2011 04:11 AM PDT

Arabian Business – A possible plan to host Bahrain’s postponed Grand Prix in October has been branded a step too far by Mercedes GP boss Ross Brawn.

Crown Prince makes low-key visit to Spanish Grand Prix

Posted: 23 May 2011 03:58 AM PDT

F1 – Speculations and rumours began to emerge at this weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix, that the inaugural Indain GP could be moved from its 30th October race date to the start of December to make way for the postponed Bahrain Grand Prix.

Decoding Obama’s Bahrain puzzle

Posted: 23 May 2011 03:46 AM PDT

Asia Times – The address by United States President Barack Obama on Thursday regarding the Middle East situation was a mixed bag of certainties and ambiguities, although Obama did bring US regional policy frankly and squarely behind the Arab Spring.

Bahrain violence ‘used to force Shia out’ of Sunni kingdom

Posted: 23 May 2011 03:44 AM PDT

Belfast Telegraph – Shia leaders have accused the Bahraini government of using violence, intimidation and mass sackings to drive their community out.

How Bahrain is oppressing its Shia majority

Posted: 23 May 2011 03:34 AM PDT

The Guardian – Bahrain's parliament once gave me a standing ovation, now I've been banned from the kingdom – both for pursuing human rights

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———- Forwarded message ———-
Date: Mon, May 23, 2011 at 5:40 PM
Subject: Bahrain as meme and other writing
———- Forwarded message ———-
Date: Mon, May 23, 2011 at 5:20 PM
Subject: fractures
From The Socialist newspaper, 11 May 2011
Bahrain repression: Muted criticism of West's ally
John Sharpe
The vicious regime in Bahrain has arrested and detained doctors and medical staff for treating injured protesters during recent clashes with security forces. 47 are to be tried in military courts.
The ruling Sunni royal family imposed martial law and thousands of troops from neighbouring Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates were brought in to crush the protests last month.
Dozens of opposition activists have been killed. Hundreds have been detained, four sentenced to death. Four have died in police custody.
Tory Foreign Secretary, William Hague, commenting on the situation in Bahrain, said: "The arrests of opposition figures, the reports of deaths in custody, allegations of torture and the denial of medical treatment, are extremely troubling."
Troubling indeed but not for the reasons he puts forward. Bahrain is regarded by the West as a key ally in the region and a "counterweight to aggressive Iranian designs" (Wall St Journal). The US navy's 5th fleet is based there.
The Wall St Journal spits out the truth when it goes on to explain that the US Obama administration needs to "distinguish between its friends and enemies in the region, urging reforms on the former and encouraging regime change with the latter. Bahrain falls into the camp of friends… The West has no interest in seeing an autocratic but friendly Bahrain replaced by a pro-Iranian, Islamist 'democracy'".

For Libya, regime change but for Bahrain, reform. And urging a monarchy to introduce it to boot!
The Western imperialist governments have little interest in whether Bahrain will "meet all its human rights obligations and uphold political freedoms, equal access to justice and the rule of law" (Hague). Their interests are overwhelmingly concerned with oil, arms sales and political influence, etc, ie the profits of big business.
For that they need governments that are "friends". The interests of workers and poor, and even the middle classes of Bahrain are a long way down the list of priorities.

———- Forwarded message ———-
Date: Mon, May 23, 2011 at 5:21 PM
Subject: PBS: In Bahraini Government Crackdowns, 'Nobody's Untouchable'

REPORT AIR DATE: May 20, 2011

In Bahraini Government Crackdowns, 'Nobody's Untouchable'

SUMMARY

Mansoor al-Jamri, former editor of Alwasat, Bahrain's largest independent newspaper, faces charges that his paper intentionally published false news reports to destabilize the Persian Gulf kingdom. Margaret Warner reports on the case and discusses the government's crackdowns with al-Jamri.

JIM LEHRER: And now Margaret Warner wraps up a week of reporting from Bahrain, that small, but strategic Persian Gulf nation that is home to the U.S. Fifth Fleet.

Tonight, she talks to an editor caught in Bahrain's crackdown on dissenters.

MARGARET WARNER: Mansoor Al-Jamri, former editor of Bahrain's largest independent newspaper, this week found himself being the story, rather than covering it.

On Wednesday, he arrived at Bahrain's High Criminal Court to face charges that his paper, Alwasat, intentionally published false news reports to destabilize the Persian Gulf kingdom. At his lawyer's request, his trial was adjourned until June.

Son of a revered Shia cleric, Jamri spent 20 years in exile in London, then returned about a decade ago to found the paper. The progressive Alwasat was Bahrain's most popular and profitable newspaper. Its reporters covered opposition parties, as well as the government. And Jamri's daily column was a voice for non-sectarian moderation.

During Bahrain's Arab-Spring-inspired protests earlier this year, he urged the Sunni royal family and the Shia-led opposition to negotiate their political differences.

In Bahrain's Crackdowns, 'Nobody's Untouchable'

In Bahrain's Crackdowns, 'Nobody's Untouchable'

But, after the government imposed a crackdown on March 15, Jamri and his newspaper became targets. He was caught up in a crackdown that has detained more than 1,000 Bahrainis, mostly Shias, doctors, nurses, teachers, journalists, office and union workers, and has cost thousands more their jobs.

Government-run Bahrain TV broadcast an expose, charging that Alwasat published items and photos from other outlets as if they were about Bahrain. Jamri and his two top editors resigned. Within days, they were all criminally charged.

Today, critics say, Alwasat is just another government mouthpiece. For daily coverage of Bahrain, readers here now have only state-linked newspapers.

For nearly two months, Jamri and his Sunni wife, also a journalist, have been keeping a low profile close to home.

He spoke with us yesterday, in his first television interview since being charged.

Mr. Al-Jamri, thank you for joining us.

MANSOOR AL-JAMRI, Alwasat: Thank you.

MARGARET WARNER: Why do you think you have been singled out for prosecution?

MANSOOR AL-JAMRI: I'm really very surprised, because I was part and parcel of the reform process. I was invited by the king to come to Bahrain to launch this newspaper, Alwasat, which I founded and launched. And it became very successful commercially and politically.

And then, on the 15th of March, 2011, our press was attacked and damaged. And we had to work from homes. Later on, some e-mails cropped up into our system, which we didn't know they were bogus news, and they were published. Later on, we found all came from one single I.P. address located in a neighboring Gulf state, namely in Saudi Arabia.

They filtered through the system because we couldn't work. We were working from homes and because the authorities didn't give us the protection for our journalists, who were targeted in checkpoints and in every other place.

MARGARET WARNER: So, you were set up?

MANSOOR AL-JAMRI: It was a setup. We were framed into it, and later on attacked, using — using it as a launching pad for closing down the newspaper.

MARGARET WARNER: You were founder of this paper. How does this make you feel?

MANSOOR AL-JAMRI: I feel, really, very sad. The Alwasat newspaper was distinct. It enlarged freedom of expression. It also enabled the leadership of the country to understand things that were not understood because there wasn't the proper coverage.

Ministers, top leadership people, opposition, pro-government, and everybody who was interested in public affairs and issues of Bahrain must read Alwasat. Alwasat was a must-read for anybody interested in Bahrain.

We always acted in good faith, calling for progress towards better democracy and a better reform process. We were part and parcel of the reform process. And to target Alwasat in the way it was targeted, it was targeting the reforms, rather than Alwasat.

MARGARET WARNER: So, what message do you think they were trying to send with the arrest of you and some of your top editors?

MANSOOR AL-JAMRI: I think they want to say that Bahrain now is different; whatever we had before is finished.

I think it is, in a way, to drive despair or to instill fear in many people, so that, oh, gosh, I mean, with all the suffering that we are having, we would love even to go back to what we used to be just prior to the protests.

And I think the message is, you won't even get that level. What we have now, Bahrain has turned from a political crisis into a humanitarian crisis.

MARGARET WARNER: Where does the basic neutering of Alwasat, the charges against you, how does that fit in the broader crackdown of what is going on now?

MANSOOR AL-JAMRI: It is creating — I mean, for — if you target Mansoor Al-Jamri, you will be targeting others as well.

Mansoor Al-Jamri came to Bahrain by an invitation of the king. He came to Bahrain and he was allowed to function and to work on a free — a larger margin for freedom of expression. And to attack that margin, basically, you're sending a message, look, even Mansoor was targeted, and he's been persecuted.

And, therefore, I think the message now, nobody's untouchable. Everybody — we're coming to everybody, and we're going to do whatever we like to do.

MARGARET WARNER: The government insists this is about the Sunni-Shia divide in this society. Is it?

MANSOOR AL-JAMRI: It's not about Shia-Sunni divide, although the confessional divide is being superimposed on the problem, so that to cover it up.

I think this is between aspirational society looking at what is happening in the world and wanting to live in a better condition. The majority of the — majority of Bahrainis, Sunnis and Shias want to have democracy, a constitutional monarchy. And they don't want to have conflict with the ruling family or with the neighboring countries around Bahrain.

As it is now, if you are a Shia, you are told, you are unwanted, you are a — no citizen, you are zero, you are out. If you are a senior official, you will be got ridden of. If are you a Sunni, you're OK, you're our friend.

That is the — that's a very dangerous message for the medium- and long-term. You could create security, but you cannot create stability. And without stability, you don't have prosperity and you can't have democracy and human rights.

To continue in the way as it is now, it is only you're planting problems for the future. It cannot continue. This is not sustainable. We are either one nation and one country, or we can't continue like this.

The way it is now, they have created two nations in one country living apart. One is frightened and one is comforted. This cannot continue forever.

MARGARET WARNER: Now, the government says, once we have restored law and order, which we think we basically have, that we can go back to some sort of political consultation.

Do you think that's possible?

MANSOOR AL-JAMRI: You have many casualties, how will you be addressing those — the injuries, you know, to the nation, people who died in custody, people who died during the protests, those who had been sacked from their jobs, the medical profession that had been targeted, the schools, the way that they were treated?

You can't say to somebody, forget it. And unless you come to realize that something wrong has happened, you just can't forget it, basically.

MARGARET WARNER: You still face trial.

MANSOOR AL-JAMRI: Yes, indeed.

And many people of — many of my fellow countrymen are also facing difficult times. We all, as a nation, are facing a very difficult time. And we need to speak very frankly to each other. And we need to hear each other. We have not been listening to each other for the last month — for the last two months. It is time that we start listening it to each other to find an exit to this crisis.

MARGARET WARNER: Thank you very much.

MANSOOR AL-JAMRI: You're welcome. Thanks.

———- Forwarded message ———-
Date: Mon, May 23, 2011 at 7:16 AM
Subject: Human rights in Bahrain

"I once advocated due process and humane treatment on behalf of Bahrainis who happened to be Sunni. Now, I am advocating due process and humane treatment on behalf of Bahrainis who happen to be Shia, largely. While the Bahraini government celebrated such principles six years ago as applied to my Guantánamo clients, it cannot countenance them now as applied to a majority of its own people, who are the subject of a massive crackdown."
———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Bahrain Center for Human Rights <Bahrain_Center_for_Human_Rights@mail.vresp.com>
Date: Mon, May 23, 2011 at 6:26 AM
Subject: Bahrain government shifts to eliminate virtual protests
To: ccavell@gmail.com

bchr

Bahrain Center for Human Rights

For the Latest updates please follow BCHR on twitter: http://twitter.com/BahrainRights/bchr-7

cnn

Home of the Bahraini activist Nabeel Rajab is attacked, again.

nabeel_house

By the CNN Wire Staff
May 22, 2011 — Updated 0156 GMT (0956 HKT)
(CNN) — The home of prominent Bahraini activist Nabeel Rajab was attacked Saturday, the rights group he heads said.
The attack took place early Saturday morning while Rajab and his family were sleeping, said the Bahrain Center for Human Rights. Assailants launched teargas grenades into the house, breaking the window of Rajab's brother, the group said.
"We had very frightening moments rescuing my brother, his wife and his daughter as they were close to serious suffocation. This is an attempt to murder a member of my family to pressure me to stop my human rights activities," said Rajab, president of the Center.
"Thank God the teargas bombs fell on the tile and not the carpet, which could have caused a fire and could have killed the whole family while they were asleep," he said. "Please do whatever you can to stop the government from attacking me and my family who have nothing to do with my human rights work." Read More on CNN.com
S
ee the photos of the attack damage on Nabeel's public Facebook page

Bahrain: After destruction of the actual protesting site at "the Pearl", the government shifts to eliminate virtual protests

Information community on the internet faces the danger of disappearance due to the brutal crackdown on freedom of expression

Everyone shall have the right to freedom of expression; this right shall include freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing or in print, in the form of art, or through any other media of his choice.
Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights

17th May 2011

Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR) expresses its deep concern regarding the continuous crackdown on the freedom of individuals to express their views and the suppression of Bahraini authorities to freedom of expression in various ways. This report focuses on the repression of freedom of expression through the web space that targeted activists and bloggers on the internet through killing threats and detention leading to a state of extreme self-censorship. Many websites that discuss the local affairs and political events, including discussion forums and blogging pages of Bahraini activists, have been blocked or closed by authorities in Bahrain. The diversity of electronic contents on the web is compromised as more bloggers are disappearing everyday along with the closure of their websites and pages.

Bahrain workers are facing a tyrannical dismissal and penal prosecution as punishment for exercising their legitimate rights

Bahrain Petroleum Company (Bapco) dismissed hundreds of its employees in retaliation for their political views

19 May 2011

Bahrain Centre for Human Rights and Bahrain Youth Society for Human Rights are deeply concerned by Bahrain’s Government persistence in taking arbitrary actions and punishments against the citizens who believes they participated or supported the peaceful protests in February and March. The authorities are targeting the workers in particular; hundreds were tyrannically dismissed from their jobs. As well as prosecuting them criminally as a punishment for exercising their legitimate rights that is guaranteed by the international instruments and ratified by Bahrain.

How Bahrain is oppressing its Shia majority

Bahrain's parliament once gave me a standing ovation, now I've been banned from the kingdom – both for pursuing human rights

Six years ago, Bahrain's parliament gave me a standing ovation. This month, the Bahraini government barred me from entering the tiny kingdom which sits off Saudi Arabia's coast and hosts the US Navy's Fifth Fleet. While this fall from grace might seem extreme, it is easy to explain.

In 2005, I was representing the Bahrainis detained at Guantánamo Bay and, with a colleague, went to Bahrain to advocate on their behalf. We emphasised that the US had denied our clients due process, had asserted that our clients had no right to humane treatment, and had inflicted abuses on certain clients, as corroborated by US government sources.

Bahraini officials welcomed us with open arms. A prominent member of parliament invited us to a session at which Guantánamo would be discussed. There, he thundered that the rights to due process and humane treatment were universal, and decried that they were being denied to his fellow Bahrainis. Pointing to us in a spectators' balcony, he said we had done more for his countrymen than anyone and offered his heartfelt gratitude. His colleagues arose in spontaneous applause. Read more on guardian.co.uk

PR Mercenaries, Their Dictator Masters, and the Human Rights Stain

thor 2Maryam al-Khawaja took the stage at the Oslo Freedom Forum last Tuesday and stunned the audience with her experiences of government violence in the Kingdom of Bahrain. She described the killing of student protestors, the torture of democracy advocates, and how human rights defenders are "disappeared." Maryam also detailed how troops from a neighboring dictatorship, Saudi Arabia, rushed into Bahrain to prop up the crown prince's regime.

Ali Abdulemam, a renowned Bahraini blogger, was also invited to the Oslo Freedom Forum. Ali was imprisoned by his government in September 2010 for "spreading false information." After being released on February 23, he enthusiastically accepted his speaking invitation and plans were made for his travel. And then he disappeared. No one has seen or heard from him since March 18. Read more on huffingtonpost.com

BYSHR updates on the military trials and sentences of civilans and activists in Bahrain

May 19, 2011
Bahrain: Sentencing on 8 protesters and prominent cleric “20 years imprisonment”

Bahrain Youth Society for Human Rights (BYSHR) is deeply concerned about sentencing on 9 demonstrators today in National Safety court ( Emergency court) .

On 19 May , 2011 :

1-Hamid Ibrahim Al-Madhoun
2-Khalil Ibrahim Al-Madhoun
3-Jassim Ali Yahya

Testimony from Richard Sollom, MPH, Deputy Director, Physicians for Human Rights


Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission (TLHRC)
Hearing on Human Rights in Bahrain
Friday, May 13, 2011

Thank you, Mr. Chairman and distinguished Members of the Tom
Lantos Human Rights Commission.

Mr. Chairman, in the interest of time, I’d like to summarize my
remarks and ask that my full statement be made part of the record. In addition, I’d like to submit for the record our full report as well as a list of Bahraini doctors, whose whereabouts remain unknown in the wake of the government crackdown against medical personnel.

19 May 2011

Following reports of torture including an attempted rape against former Front Line Protection Coordinator Abdulhadi Alkhawaja there are grave concerns that his health and even his life may be in danger. Abdulhadi Alkhawaja is currently on trial as part of a group of 21 individuals facing a variety of charges including ”organising and managing a terrorist organisation” and “attempt to overthrow the government by force and in liaison with a terrorist organisation working for a foreign country”. Front Line considers his trial proceedings to fall grossly short of international fair trial standards.

IFJ Calls for End to Intimidation Campaign against Journalists in Bahrain

18 May 2011

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) today condemned the widespread intimidation campaign targeting journalists who work for newspapers which are critical of the Bahraini government. The IFJ accuses the authorities of systematic harassment of media in the wake of recent anti-government protests and says that at least 68 journalists working for two leading Bahraini newspapers, Al Wasat and Al Bilad, have been singled out for sacking, arrests and charges for treason. Others were forced into exile to escape arrest in the on-going clampdown.

Amnesty International: Bahrain activists jailed following 'politically motivated' trials

18 May 2011

The trials of 15 activists convicted over their involvement in pro-reform protests in Bahrain that began in February, were politically motivated and unfair, Amnesty International said today.

A military court in Bahrain’s capital city Manama has over the last few days sentenced the 15 activists, in two separate cases, to between one and four years imprisonment for “participating in illegal demonstrations and inciting hatred against the regime” during popular protests in February and March.



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Ramzi may run for Bahrain after serving doping ban

Posted: 22 May 2011 01:17 PM PDT

AP – Disgraced Olympic 1,500-meter runner Rashid Ramzi has finished serving a two-year ban for doping and could run for Bahrain's national team again.

Bahrain Crackdown Puts Pressure On U.S. Diplomacy

Posted: 22 May 2011 02:51 AM PDT

NPR – When popular uprisings swept through Tunisia, Egypt and Libya, President Obama openly threw his support behind the protesters, trumpeting the dual ideals of democracy and freedom.

Home of a Bahraini activist is attacked, again, rights group says

Posted: 22 May 2011 02:49 AM PDT

CNN – The home of prominent Bahraini activist Nabeel Rajab was attacked Saturday, the rights group he heads said.

Bahrain upholds 2 death sentences in police killings

Posted: 22 May 2011 02:45 AM PDT

(Reuters) A Bahrain emergency appeals court upheld death sentences on Sunday for two men found guilty of killing police officers during recent unrest, punishments human rights activists said were designed to prevent more protests.

Bahrain insists open to dialogue with opposition

Posted: 22 May 2011 02:42 AM PDT

(AFP) The Bahraini government insisted on Friday it remains open to dialogue with the opposition, in line with a call by the US president that was praised by the kingdom's main Shiite opposition group.

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———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Maryam Al-Khawaja <maryam.alkhawaja@gmail.com>
Date: Sun, May 22, 2011 at 3:34 PM
Subject: Updates on trials today, government shifting to eliminate virtual protests
To: Maryam Al-Khawaja <maryam.alkhawaja@gmail.com>

Dear Friends,

In updates about today:

1. Court reaffirmed death penalty on two detainees.

2. 2. More counts of torture.

3. 3. At the hearing of the 21 prominent activists 2 witness accounts were heard and the hearing was postponed until next Wednesday. Details were reported from Abdulhadi Alkhawaja about detention conditions.

4 4. Nabeel Rajab, president of the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights is still banned from traveling.

5. 18 year old Nouf Ramzi Alkhawaja and other students were taken from the exam room at their school and were held for several hours for interrogation. During the interrogation Nouf was slapped hard on her face numerous times.

To read more details please read bottom of email.

Please read:

1. BYSHR updates on the military trials and sentences of civilians and activists in Bahrain: http://bahrainrights.hopto.org/en/node/4082

2. Bahrain workers are facing a tyrannical dismissal and penal prosecution as punishment for exercising their legitimate rights: http://bahrainrights.hopto.org/en/node/4100

3. Bahrain: After destruction of the actual protesting site at "the Pearl", the government shifts to eliminate virtual protests: http://bahrainrights.hopto.org/en/node/4101

Best,

Maryam Al-Khawaja
Contact: +44-7587303080 / +1(401)572-6597

Head of Foreign Relations Office
Bahrain Center for Human Rights

In an update about today’s trials, in the first case, which was the appeal of the death sentence against four young men, the sentence was lifted from two of the four. The two detainees, Qassim Hassan Mattar and Saeed AbdulJalil Saeed received a life imprisonment sentence, annulling the death penalty. On the other hand, the court confirmed the death sentence on Ali AlSingace and AbdulAziz AbdulRedha. This was despite the fact that the lawyers had presented evidence that Ali AlSingace had a broken leg during the time of his alleged crime, and the judge gave no reasons for why the sentence was changed for two and not the others.

In the case of the accused of kidnapping and torture of police officers, Mohammed Habib AlMuqdad, a Swedish citizen, showed the judge what appeared to be a hole drilled into his leg. He told the judge he could show him the rest of the torture marks on his body due to the torture he had been subjected to.

At the hearing of the prominent 21 activists, Lieutenant Isa Sultan was brought as a witness. Isa Sultan is the person in charge of the case and investigations. According to people present at the hearing, he was sweating and appeared very nervous. He said that the defendants were working in coordination with Iran as they all followed Velayat-Al-Faqih and wanted an Islamic Republic. He also said that they received payments of “Khums” which is Islamic taxation. The lawyer asked him how he knew this if there were checks or such, and he responded that they received it all in cash and then used it to buy gas and car tires for the youth to burn on the streets. He then said that the defendants were receiving directions from Hezbullah who told them they must achieve a constitutional monarchy.

Two other witnesses were then questioned who were in charge of the arrest of AbdulJalil AlMuqdad and Hassan Mushaima. The first person was Nawaf Aldoseri and another person who said that they conducted the arrests in a legal manner. When they were about to question Bader Ghaith (the person in charge of Abdulhadi Alkhawaja’s arrest and named as a top torturer by several victims during previous cases) the lawyer asked that the other 3 witnesses be brought for questioning. Salah Alkhawaja’s wife immediately identified Bader AlGhaith as being the person who beat her when arresting her husband and sexually harassing her. The court was adjourned till Wednesday the 25th of this month.

During the last hearing the judge ordered that the detainees be taken out from solitary confinement, but many of them remain in solitary confinement. In the other cases, security personnel had brought a mattress into the cells of the detainees where they were held in solitary confinement and an Indian or Philipino prisoner who have criminal charges to stay in their cells with them. The detainees are not able to even communicate with them due to the language barrier.

When the hearing was over families were told that nobody would be given visitation rights today but were later on called back in. Abdulhadi Alkhawaja and his younger brother Salah (accused in the same case) were seated together and the visit lasted for around 40 minutes. The information below was taken from Abdulhadi Alkhawaja.

– He is still in solitary confinement and some of the detainees had Asian inmates brought into the cells with them which didn’t really help with the solitary confinement problem since communication with them is impossible due to the language barrier.

– In the hospital after his operation they had his eyes constantly covered, had chained his legs and one of his arms so that he couldn’t move and had left only one arm free for the IV line. He remained like that for 6 days and they regularly came in to insult and threaten him while he was in this condition. They kept telling him that they had arrested his eldest daughter Zainab, had raped her and were keeping her in a prison in Saudi.

– He had gone on hunger strike on three different occasions to demand the improvement of their treatment and of his condition in jail. He mentioned that after his surgery he had refused to take even his medicine and they had severely beaten him to stop the hunger strike and when he still refused they tied him in the “Faylaqa” method with one arm loose and forcibly inserted an IV line for him.

– The doctor and nurse who were treating him always had their faces covered when they came to see him. At one point the doctor got really frustrated and started saying who did this to you, and when my father said he did it to himself, the doctor said there is no way a person can cause those types of injuries to himself.

– Insults and dirty language is something the detainees have gotten used to by now, especially when it comes to the detained clerics. The prison guards do everything possible to degrade and insult the detainees and there is no doubt that psychological torture is implemented on all of them. He said that the worst psychological torture is when they in the middle of the night the guards start banging with metal rods on the cells, and shouting really loud then go into the cells and threaten the detainees. He said that many other prisoners were being subjected to torture much worse than what he had gone through and had been threatened not to speak up.

– After the trial before last (in which he had told the judge that he’d been threatened) they had beaten him and left him outside in the sun for half an hour with a sack over his head. He also said that to and from the trials they were always transferred with their hands tied behind their backs and sacks over their heads. This made it difficult to breathe due to the heat and humidity in Bahrain.

They constantly talked about and insulted Maryam AlKhawaja and Nabeel Rajab. They gave him details about what they will do to his daughter Maryam in very vulgar language.

– They’re being kept in AlQurrain prison.

One of the women brought her 22 days old baby to the court as her husband who was detained and had not seen his baby girl yet. He was also previously arrested in the August crackdown. When she had gone into labour she had to convince the ambulance to come because he said he would not go to her area in Sitra. When he finally came he was accompanied by riot police who opened the ambulance door and interrogated her.

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: thepearlroundabout.org <thepearlroundabout@gmail.com>
Date: Sat, May 21, 2011 at 6:13 PM
Subject: thepearlroundabout.org
To: ccavell@gmail.com

thepearlroundabout.org

Link to thepearlroundabout.org

U.S. Official on Perceived Double Standard on Bahrain (video)

Posted: 21 May 2011 10:37 AM PDT

(PBS) U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Jeffrey Feltman said the U.S. and Bahrain have a good working relationship, but "we still have big concerns" about the way the government is handling the opposition.

What happened to Patricia Bulgen?

Posted: 21 May 2011 03:41 AM PDT

It is now 60+ days since Patricia Bulgen, a 78-year-old British Teacher disappeared from her home in Bahrain at the height of the pro-democracy protests. If you have any information which may help locate this lady, please visit www.patriciabulgen.co.uk or email findpatbulgen@hotmail.co.uk.

Bahrain Insists It is Open to Dialogue with Opposition

Posted: 21 May 2011 03:31 AM PDT

(VOA News) Bahrain Insists It is Open to Dialogue with Opposition

‘Bahraini govt. hits social networkers’ (video)

Posted: 21 May 2011 03:29 AM PDT

(Press TV) President of Bahrain's Center for Human Rights Nabeel Rajab says the Bahraini regime dismiss people from their jobs for sending information of the government's harsh crackdown on protesters via social networks.

What Obama could not possibly say

Posted: 21 May 2011 03:25 AM PDT

(Asia Times)

Obama’s Middle East speech missed ‘historic opportunity,’ say many Arabs

Posted: 21 May 2011 03:22 AM PDT

(CS Monitor) While those involved in Arab uprisings welcomed Obama's support, others were disappointed with his failure to apologize for US support for Middle East dictators.

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———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Maryam Al-Khawaja <maryam.alkhawaja@gmail.com>
Date: Sat, May 21, 2011 at 12:49 PM
Subject: Attack on Nabeel's home again, appeal tomorrow on the death penalty and hearing for the 21 political activists
To: Maryam Al-Khawaja <maryam.alkhawaja@gmail.com>

Dear Friends,

Hope this email finds you well.

For the second time in few weeks Nabeel Rajab's family house was attacked early morning Saturday by teargas bombs while the family was sleeping. Nabeel Rajab is the president of the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights and the vice president of FIDH. Today’s (Saturday) attack was different because the teargas bombs were shot into the house on purpose breaking the window of Nabeel's brother, Nader Rajab, section where he lives with his family. Nabeel said: "We had very frightening moments rescuing my brother, his wife and his daughter as they were close to serious suffocation. This is an attempt to murder a member of my family to pressure me to stop my human rights activities. Thank God the teargas bombs fell on the tile and not the carpet which could have caused a fire and could have killed the whole family while they were asleep. Please do whatever you can to stop the government from attacking me and my family who have nothing to do with my human rights work"

In an urgent matter, those who were released from prison are now being called back for interrogations and military courts. It appears now that the cases against them, usually the charges range from illegal assembly, incitement to hatred, incitement against the regimes and so on, were not dismissed. There are several cases in which people have already received sentences ranging from 2-20 years imprisonment. We are currently working on a list of cases and sentences which will be sent to you when ready.

On another note, the appeal against the death penalty in the case of four young men who made coerced confessions to killing two policemen will be tomorrow, Sunday, as well as the hearing of the 21 prominent Bahraini leaders.

In the case of Abdulhadi Alkhawaja, the spokesperson for foreign affairs of the leftist government party in Denmark has stated that if Abdulhadi Alkhawaja is not released soon it will cause a diplomatic crisis between the two countries. This is due to Abdulhadi being a Danish citizen.

Best,

Maryam Al-Khawaja
Contact: +44-7587303080 / +1(401)572-6597

Head of Foreign Relations Office
Bahrain Center for Human Rights

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: thepearlroundabout.org <thepearlroundabout@gmail.com>
Date: Fri, May 20, 2011 at 6:09 PM
Subject: thepearlroundabout.org
To: ccavell@gmail.com

thepearlroundabout.org

Link to thepearlroundabout.org

Bahrain’s ‘revenge drive’ against protesters (video)

Posted: 20 May 2011 12:27 PM PDT

(Amnesty International) Amnesty International researcher Said Boumedouha criticizes the ongoing detention and trials of pro-reform activists.

Briefing: The problem with reinserting Bahrain GP this season

Posted: 20 May 2011 09:57 AM PDT

(James Allen on F1) Another story to break today is the growing energy behind trying to run the postponed Bahrain Grand Prix on October 30, with India moving to the last race of the season on December 4.

F1 » Boullier: We have to think hard about Bahrain

Posted: 20 May 2011 09:03 AM PDT

(crash.net) Renault team boss Eric Boullier has insisted that F1 needs to think long and hard about whether or not the Bahrain Grand Prix should take place.

Robert Fisk: President’s fine words may not address the Middle East’s real needs

Posted: 20 May 2011 08:14 AM PDT

(The Independent) In a keynote speech today, Barack Obama will try to redefine America's relationship with the Arab world. Our writer is sceptical

Official documents prove Salmaniya Hospital equipment was transferred legally to Pearl Roundabout

Posted: 20 May 2011 03:47 AM PDT

(BYSHR) An anonymous source leaked an official document –Attached- issued by Dr. Mohammed Amin Al-Awadhi (Chairman of Doctors) to Dr. Walid Al-Manei (Administrative Executive in the Salmaniya Medical Complex), and document shows a request for providing some medical equipment for the Pearl Roundabout Clinic (where the demonstrators gathered between the 14th of February and the 16th of March to demand political reforms).

PR Mercenaries, Their Dictator Masters, and the Human Rights Stain

Posted: 20 May 2011 02:09 AM PDT

(Huffington Post) Maryam al-Khawaja took the stage at the Oslo Freedom Forum last Tuesday and stunned the audience with her experiences of government violence in the Kingdom of Bahrain. She described the killing of student protestors,

IFJ Calls for End to Intimidation Campaign against Journalists in Bahrain

Posted: 20 May 2011 02:03 AM PDT

(IFJ) The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) today condemned the widespread intimidation campaign targeting journalists who work for newspapers which are critical of the Bahraini government. The IFJ accuses the authorities of systematic harassment of media in the wake of recent anti-government protests and says that at least 68 journalists working for two leading Bahraini newspapers, Al Wasat and Al Bilad, have been singled out for sacking, arrests and charges for treason. Others were forced into exile to escape arrest in the on-going clampdown.

David Cameron under fire for No 10 Crown Prince photocall

Posted: 20 May 2011 01:58 AM PDT

(The Telegraph) David Cameron risked criticism after he was pictured shaking hands with the Crown Prince of Bahrain on the steps of Downing Street.

Cameron embraces tyranny

Posted: 20 May 2011 01:56 AM PDT

(The Independent) As President Obama tells the Middle East to embrace democracy, the Prime Minister welcomes Bahrain's Crown Prince to Britain

Cameron blasted for welcoming ‘torturer’ of Bahrain to No. 10

Posted: 20 May 2011 01:55 AM PDT

(Daily Mail) David Cameron was accused of rolling out the red carpet for Bahrain’s torturer-in-chief last night after holding talks with the head of the hardline Arab regime.

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———- Forwarded message ———-
Date: Sat, May 21, 2011 at 6:49 AM
Subject: Obama's Arab Spring Duplicitous Babble

http://original.antiwar.com/medea-benjamin-davis/2011/05/20/obama-should-follow-his-own-advice-on-the-moral-force-of-non-violence/


———- Forwarded message ———-
Date: Sat, May 21, 2011 at 5:51 PM
Subject: Robert Fisk: President's fine words may not address the Middle East's real needs

Independent.co.uk

Robert Fisk: President's fine words may not address the Middle East's real needs

In a keynote speech today, Barack Obama will try to redefine America's relationship with the Arab world. Our writer is sceptical

Thursday, 19 May 2011

OK, so here's what President Barack Obama should say today about the Middle East. We will leave Afghanistan tomorrow. We will leave Iraq tomorrow. We will stop giving unconditional, craven support to Israel. Americans will force the Israelis – and the European Union – to end their siege of Gaza. We will withhold all future funding for Israel unless it ends, totally and unconditionally, its building of colonies on Arab land that does not belong to it. We will cease all co-operation and business deals with the vicious dictators of the Arab world – whether they be Saudi or Syrian or Libyan – and we will support democracy even in those countries where we have massive business interests. Oh yes, and we will talk to Hamas.

Of course, President Barack Obama will not say this. A vain and cowardly man, he will talk about the West's "friends" in the Middle East, about the security of Israel – security not being a word he has ever devoted to Palestinians – and he will waffle on and on about the Arab Spring as if he ever supported it (until, of course, the dictators were on the run), as if – when they desperately needed his support – he had given his moral authority to the people of Egypt; and, no doubt, we will hear him say what a great religion Islam is (but not too great, or Republicans will start recalling the Barack Hussein Obama birth certificate again) and we will be asked – oh, I fear we will – to turn our backs on the Bin Laden past, to seek "closure" and "move on" (which I'm afraid the Taliban don't quite agree with).

Mr Obama and his equally gutless Secretary of State have no idea what they are facing in the Middle East. The Arabs are no longer afraid. They are tired of our "friends" and sick of our enemies. Very soon, the Palestinians of Gaza will march to the border of Israel and demand to "go home".

We got a signal of this on the Syrian and Lebanese borders on Sunday. What will the Israelis do? Kill the Palestinians in their thousands? And what will Mr Obama say then? (He will, of course, "call for restraint on both sides", a phrase he inherited from his torturing predecessor).

I rather think that the Americans suffer from what the Israelis suffer from: self-delusional arguments. The Americans keep referring to the goodness of Islam, the Israelis to how they understand the "Arab mind". But they do not. Islam as a religion has nothing to do with it, any more than Christianity (a word I don't hear much of these days) or Judaism. It's about dignity, honour, courage, human rights – qualities which, in other circumstances, the United States always praises – which Arabs believe they are owed. And they are right. It is time for Americans to free themselves from their fear of Israel's lobbyists – in fact the Likud Party's lobbyists – and their repulsive slurs of anti-Semitism against anyone who dares to criticise Israel. It is time for them to take heart from the immensely brave members of the American-Jewish community who speak out about the injustices that Israel as well as the Arab leaders commit.

But will our favourite President say anything like this today? Forget it. This is a mealy-mouthed President who should – why have we forgotten this? – have turned down his Nobel Peace Prize because he can't even close Guantanamo, let alone bring us peace. And what did he say in his Nobel speech? That he, Barack Obama, had to live in the real world, that he was not Gandhi, as if – and all praise to The Irish Times for spotting this – Gandhi didn't have to fight the British empire. So we will be treated to all the usual analysts in the States, saying how fine the President's words are, praising this wretched man's speechifying.

And then comes the weekend when Mr Obama has to address the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, the biggest, most powerful lobbyist "friend" of Israel in America. Then it will be all back to the start, security, security, security, little – if any mention – of the Israeli colonies in the West Bank and, I feel sure of this, much mention of terrorism, terrorism, terrorism, terrorism, terrorism, terrorism, terrorism. And no doubt a mention of the killing (let us not use the word execution) of Osama bin Laden.

What Mr Obama doesn't understand however – and, of course, Mrs Clinton has not the slightest idea – is that, in the new Arab world, there can be no more reliance on dictator-toadies, no more flattery. The CIA may have its cash funds to hand but I suspect few Arabs will want to touch them. The Egyptians will not tolerate the siege of Gaza. Nor, I think, will the Palestinians. Nor the Lebanese, for that matter; and nor the Syrians when they have got rid of the clansmen who rule them. The Europeans will work that out quicker than the Americans – we are, after all, rather closer to the Arab world – and we will not forever let our lives be guided by America's fawning indifference to Israeli theft of property.

It is, of course, going to be a huge shift of tectonic plates for Israelis – who should be congratulating their Arab neighbours, and the Palestinians for unifying their cause, and who should be showing friendship rather than fear. My own crystal ball long ago broke. But I am reminded of what Winston Churchill said in 1940, that "what General Weygand called the battle for France is over. The battle of Britain… is about to begin."

Well, the old Middle East is over. The new Middle East is about to begin. And we better wake up.

———- Forwarded message ———-
Date: Sat, May 21, 2011 at 1:52 PM
Subject: Few Surprises in Obama's Mideast Speech

Home > Few Surprises in Obama's Mideast Speech

Few Surprises in Obama's Mideast Speech

By Mathieu
Created 2011-05-20 10:09

Few Surprises in Obama's Mideast Speech

Friday 20 May 2011
by: David Elkins , Inter Press Service [3]

In a much-anticipated speech on the Middle East and North Africa on Thursday, US President Barack Obama broadly outlined an ambitious set of US-guided initiatives intended to reinforce economic and political prosperity, democratic reforms and, most emphatically, self-determination for the millions of protestors throughout the region who have taken to the streets over the past six months.

However, some analysts here were quick to characterise the speech as a recapitulation of earlier policy positions.

"[W]e have a stake not just in the stability of nations, but in the self-determination of individuals. The status quo is not sustainable. Societies held together by fear and repression may offer the illusion of stability for a time, but they are built upon fault lines that will eventually tear asunder," Obama stated [4].

Decades of violent conflict, corruption and diminishing economic opportunities for millions have ingrained the perception – based on both fact and opinion – held by many in the region of the US as being a complicit partner, if not sole instigator, in the perpetuation of such misfortunes: a perception that, since first coming to office, Obama tried to counter assiduously.

Some analysts argue that it was critical for the Obama administration to outline a shift in its regional policy.

"The old way of doing business in the Middle East is no longer sustainable…[T]he Obama administration should redouble its efforts to support the transition by adopting a more comprehensive reform package for Egypt, revive its longstanding but flagging efforts to resolve the Arab-Israeli conflict, and stay the course on Iran," Brian Katulis, a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress, wrote [5] Wednesday.

"Moving more boldly – as President Obama did in his decision on the bin Laden raid – will lead to greater chances for progress and change in the region," Katulis added.

Dr. Paul Pillar, a former Central Intelligence Agency analyst, argued that the speech failed to deliver an immediate shift in overall policy, but left room for some optimism.

Truthout sustains itself through tax-deductible donations from our readers. Please make a contribution today to keep truly independent journalism strong! [6]

"Most appetites – of those on different sides of the issues concerned – will be left unsatisfied by this speech. That is unsurprising, given the political realities with which the president has to work. But there was enough in the appetizer to raise hope that later – even if only in a possible second term, when Mr. Obama will never have to face re-election again – the president will serve up some real meat," Pillar wrote in the nationalinterest.com [7]blog on Thursday.

Since the uprisings began, two parallel themes that emerged along with that of the power of organic, peaceful and popular uprisings yearning for dignity, justice and political reform was that of the US response, which received charges of hypocrisy, to the uprisings and Obama's self-described pragmatic "country-by-country approach and that of the uprisings as presenting an opportunity for a dramatic change in US policy towards the region.

"We have the chance to show that America values the dignity of the street vendor in Tunisia more than the raw power of the dictator," Obama said.

The speech touched on human rights abuses in countries such as Yemen, where the Obama administration has backed a Gulf Cooperation Council- mediated dialogue with President Ali Abdullah Saleh; and in Bahrain, where the US continues to support a dialogue between Bahraini opposition leaders and their government, which has used violence to suppress protests and arrested doctors providing aid to victims.

"The only way forward is for the government and opposition to engage in a dialogue, and you can't have a real dialogue when parts of the peaceful opposition are in jail," Obama said, referring to the protests in Bahrain.

President Obama took a tougher tone in acknowledging the intransigence of some the US's closest allies in the region in suppressing protests, but he did not put forth a clear set of consequences if governments continue such repression.

"[I]f America is to be credible, we must acknowledge that at times our friends in the region have not all reacted to the demands for consistent change — with change that's consistent with the principles that I've outlined today," Obama stated.

The central message in his speech was framed as an optimistic plan forward, rather than a retort to the criticism of the contrasts in US policy in the region – full support, even military intervention in Syria and Libya compared to the negligible US backing for political change in Bahrain and Yemen.

As Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu arrives in Washington Friday and the American-Israeli Public Affairs Committee gears up for its annual conference this weekend in Washington, Obama did not include any profound changes in policy with regards to the Palestinian- Israeli issue.

He stated that the US's focus will now be on Israeli security and, most significantly, pre-1967 borders for a Palestinian state rather than the controversial Israeli settlement-building in the West Bank, the division of Jerusalem or the return of Palestinian refugees

Notably, however, he explicitly denounced the United Nations General Assembly vote on officially recognised statehood planned for September while remaining open to the recent Palestinian national reconciliation between Fatah and Hamas, a group the US considers to be a terrorist organisation.

The largest piece missing from the president's speech was mention of Saudi Arabia – a historically strong US ally that has articulated seemingly divergent policies than those of the US in the regional uprisings.

"Saudi Arabia and the Gulf Cooperation Council's policies have changed quite dramatically in the last couple of months," Gary Sick, former member of the National Security Council under three administrations said on a PRI "To the Point" interview on Thursday.

"One hand we have enormous people-driven change in part of the Arab world and on the other, we have a really counter-revolutionary movement that is saying 'we want nothing to do with any of this,'" Sick added.

Obama's brief mention of Iran, centred on its past human rights abuses, the Iranian government's role as an enabling ally of Syria and its alleged meddling in sectarian divisions in countries such as Bahrain – a shift from the US's concentrated focus in the past on Iran's nuclear weapons programme.

Implicit, however, in his emphasis on self-determinism was that fact that the US, as has been the case since protests began, will wield little influence over the path that each uprising ultimately takes.

"[W]e must proceed with a sense of humility. It's not America that put people into the streets of Tunis or Cairo – it was the people themselves who launched these movements, and it's the people themselves that must ultimately determine their outcome," Obama said.

Visit IPS news [8] for fresh perspectives on development and globalization.

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———- Forwarded message ———-
Date: Sat, May 21, 2011 at 2:16 PM
Subject: PR Mercenaries, Their Dictator Masters, and the Human Rights Stain

PR Mercenaries, Their Dictator Masters, and the Human Rights Stain

Posted: 05/19/11 03:36 PM ET

Maryam al-Khawaja took the stage at the Oslo Freedom Forum last Tuesday and stunned the audience with her experiences of government violence in the Kingdom of Bahrain. She described the killing of student protestors, the torture of democracy advocates, and how human rights defenders are "disappeared." Maryam also detailed how troops from a neighboring dictatorship, Saudi Arabia, rushed into Bahrain to prop up the crown prince's regime.

Ali Abdulemam, a renowned Bahraini blogger, was also invited to the Oslo Freedom Forum. Ali was imprisoned by his government in September 2010 for "spreading false information." After being released on February 23, he enthusiastically accepted his speaking invitation and plans were made for his travel. And then he disappeared. No one has seen or heard from him since March 18.

Beyond disappearing bloggers and rights activists, Bahrain also tries to disappear criticism. The government has been aided by a coterie of "reputation management" experts, including professionals from the Washington, D.C., offices of Qorvis Communications and the Potomac Square Group, in addition to Bell Pottinger out of their offices in London and Bahrain.

Within minutes of Maryam's speech (streamed live online) the global Bahraini PR machine went into dramatic overdrive. A tightly organized ring of Twitter accounts began to unleash hundreds of tweets accusing Maryam of being an extremist, a liar, and a servant of Iran. Simultaneously, the Oslo Freedom Forum's email account was bombarded with messages, all crudely made from a simple template, arguing that Maryam al-Khawaja is an enemy of the Bahraini people and a "traitor." Most of the U.S.-based fake tweeting, fake blogging (flogging), and online manipulation is carried out from inside Qorvis Communication's "Geo-Political Solutions" division.

The effort is mechanical and centrally organized, and it goes beyond the online world. In fact, right before Maryam was to give her speech, she noticed two young women in the crowd who stalk her speeches and heckled her a few days earlier at an event in the U.S.

More so than intimidation, violence, and disappearances, the most important tool for dictatorships across the world is the discrediting of critics like Maryam. For instance, Uyghur activist Rebiya Kadeer is accused of terrorism by the Chinese government, Cuban poet and former political prisoner Armando Valladares is called a "subversive" by the Castro regime, and Human Rights Watch's Jose Miguel Vivanco is branded a CIA agent and "Pinochet supporter" by the Venezuelan government. In each case, the accusations are bogus but their repetition has an impact. The tactic is universal.

The Human Rights Foundation (HRF), the organization that produces the Oslo Freedom Forum, has been described by the Cuban state media as a CIA front, labeled "imperialist" by the Ecuadorean president, and declared "enemies of the state" by the Venezuelan propaganda machine. Rather than addressing criticism head-on, the method is to shoot the messenger.

Oppressive governments are threatened by public exposure, and this means that it's not just human rights defenders but also bloggers, opinion journalists, and civil society activists who are regularly and viciously maligned.

Just as Maryam al-Khawaja was smeared by the Bahraini government's PR campaign as a "terrorist" during this year's Oslo Freedom Forum, Venezuelan media executive Marcel Granier was falsely branded as an "enemy of democracy" by Venezuela's propagandists and their allies at the 2010 Oslo Freedom Forum. Much as Maryam was followed by hecklers and "astroturfers," Granier was libeled by paid PR agents of Hugo Chavez in order to discredit him and his message –that the Chavez administration is a threat to freedom of speech.

These examples illustrate how dictatorships are today able to enhance their skill set and prolong their "communicational hegemony" (as one elected thug calls it) by hiring PR firms to whitewash their records. These companies specialize in burying evidence of human rights violations deep under rosy language about stability, economic growth, and commitments to help the poor. Their efforts also infect sources deemed reliable by many journalists, such as Wikipedia. Numerous governments have paid editors to whitewash their digital reputations.

In May 2010, the Tunisian government hired the Washington Media Group to help its public relations. After inking the half-million dollar contract, the company praised Ben Ali's kleptocratic autocracy as "a stable democracy" and a "peaceful, Islamic country [with] a terrific story to share with the world." They dropped Tunisia as a client only after Ben Ali began picking off protestors with snipers — one week before he fled.

A fawning article on Syria's first lady, Asma al-Assad, appeared in Vogue magazine less than a month before her husband's government brutally put down pro-democracy protestors. How did Asma, wife of a medieval dictator, score a puff piece in Vogue? The fashion magazine article noted that she was accompanied during her interviews by a "high profile American PR" flack. (The uproar caused by the sycophantic Vogue profile was such that its PR people have succeeded in disappearing the piece from their website.)

Even dictators are entitled to a voice in global public opinion, but those who spin for brutal killers — like those running Equatorial Guinea and Libya, for instance — should be exposed as amoral and unperturbed by abetting injustice and repression.

Qorvis Communications, for instance, represents dictators from Equatorial Guinea, Saudi Arabia, and Yemen and has made more than $100 million dollars by helping their many clients battle negative public opinion or bury the truth under a mountain of fluff journalism. This is mercenary work, fighting actively against human rights advances and on behalf of criminals like Equatorial Guinea's Teodoro Obiang. Qorvis exec Matt J. Lauer styles himself as a PR wonderboy rather than as what he is: an accessory to human rights violations. By virtue of whitewashing the Obiang clan's reputation he is engaged in criminal facilitation of the Obiang conspiracy including grand theft, larceny, money-laundering, influence-trafficking, murder and other Obiang activities that would keep any principled PR professional awake at night.

Washington's most notorious lobbyist for tyrants was the late Edward "von" Kloberg, who unapologetically and flamboyantly represented Saddam Hussein and dictators from Romania, the Congo, and Burma (among dozens of others). Kloberg was so venal he became a caricature — even trying to score business with North Korea's Kim Jong Il. Kloberg knew his work was a spectacle and he admitted he was shameless. These other firms do no different, yet try to mask their work by contracting with innocent sounding government bodies. For example, Bell Pottinger worked for the "Economic Development Board" of the Bahraini government, and its work for Aleksander Lukashenko was not specifically detailed.

While Maryam al-Khawaja was bravely giving her speech at the Oslo Freedom Forum, Qorvis staff were busy in their plush offices on Connecticut Avenue helping to distract people from her revealing talk and trying hard to disappear concern over the disappearance of Ali Abdulemam. Meanwhile, the money keeps rolling in.

Thor Halvorssen is president of the New York-based Human Rights Foundation and founder and CEO of the Oslo Freedom Forum. Follow him on Twitter and on Facebook.

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: NYTimes.com <newstracker@nytimes.com>
Date: Thu, May 19, 2011 at 11:42 PM
Subject: My Alerts: Bahrain Alerts (1 article)
To: ccavell@gmail.com

The New York Times

May 20, 2011

My Alerts

ADVERTISEMENT

Alert Name: Bahrain Alerts
May 20, 2011 Compiled: 1:56 AM

WORLD / MIDDLE EAST

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS (NYT)

A security court has sentenced a prominent Shiite cleric and eight others to 20 years in prison for kidnapping a police officer.

About This E-mail

You received this e-mail because you signed up for NYTimes.com's My Alerts tool. As a member of the TRUSTe privacy program, we are committed to protecting your privacy.


———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Hussein Ibish <hussein.ibish@gmail.com>
Date: Thu, May 19, 2011 at 3:31 PM
Subject: New Ibish article in Foreign Policy on Obama's Mideast speech and the problem of interests vs. values
To: halafoundationnetwork <halafoundationnetwork@googlegroups.com>

http://hn.12.sl.pt

One Step Forward; By acknowledging that interests and values sometimes
contradict, President Obama has cleared the path for progress in the

Middle East.

President Obama's Middle East speech couldn't possibly have — and
almost certainly didn't — please all of its potential audiences. His
comments, however, were refreshingly honest in acknowledging the
limitations of American power and influence and even broke new ground
on a number of important subjects.

Obama returned to the theme that characterized his last major Middle
East policy speech, on the Libyan intervention: the intersection, and
often tension, between American interests and values. He wisely chose
not to proffer a facile panacea that would almost certainly have
proven unworkable.

Obama was strikingly frank in acknowledging that many Arabs feel the

United States has pursued its interests "at their expense." And he
bluntly stated that "there will be times when our short-term interests
do not align perfectly with our long-term vision of the region,"
recognizing that there is no clear and consistent formula for
resolving the ongoing contradictions between U.S. values and the
aspirations of Arab peoples with some of Washington's interests and
alliances that are still considered indispensable.

Perhaps the most important change in tone in this regard was on
Bahrain, where Obama condemned the crackdown in much stronger terms
than the United States has to date. He called for dialogue but noted
"you can't have a real dialogue when parts of the peaceful opposition

are in jail." Even more striking, he compared the persecution of Copts
in Egypt with that of Shiites in Bahrain, a stronger statement than
anyone had anticipated. His remarks implicitly recognized the
limitations of American influence with its own allies.

This statement is unlikely to be welcomed by Saudi Arabia and other
Gulf Cooperation Council members, whose perceptions have become
increasingly at odds with new American approaches to the Arab world,
particularly when the Obama administration urged the ouster of former
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak over vociferous Saudi objections.
Nonetheless, as the Associated Press reported today, despite these
disagreements, U.S.-Saudi defense cooperation is expanding, including
the creation of a new "facilities security force" to protect petroleum

and other key installations in the kingdom.

Obama's promise of debt forgiveness to Egypt and expanded trade and
development programs across the region will be broadly welcomed, as
will his commitment to work with Arab reformers and civil-society
groups seeking change. In most cases, including Syria, he stopped
short of calling for regime change, but suggested that Bashar al-Assad
has to either reform or "get out of the way," again the strongest U.S.
statement thus far.

On the most sensitive subject of all, Palestine, Obama reiterated
familiar U.S. policies in support of a two-state solution and
criticized Israeli settlement building. This is noteworthy since the

Israeli government just announced major new settlement expansion
projects in extremely sensitive areas around occupied East Jerusalem,
the continuation of a pattern of such announcements timed to coincide
with major meetings with American officials.

Obama bluntly stated that the continuation of Israel as a "Jewish and
democratic state cannot be fulfilled with permanent occupation." At
the same time, he warned Palestinians against efforts to delegitimize
Israel and correctly pointed out that symbolic measures in the United
Nations would not create a Palestinian state. Obama's invocation of
the 1967 borders recalls President George W. Bush's 2005 statement

that any changes to the 1949 Armistice lines would have to be agreed
by both parties. Obama insisted that "Palestinians should know the
territorial outlines of their state," and suggested that the issues of
borders and security should be dealt with first, and that such
understandings would be the basis for progress on other permanent
status issues. Neither side seems fully comfortable with such an
approach.

Significantly, Obama did not close the door on working with a new
Palestinian unity government, saying that the Fatah-Hamas agreement
raised "profound and legitimate questions" for which Palestinians will
have to provide "a credible answer." This is a far cry from Israel's

blanket rejection of anything springing from the agreement, although
it places the onus on the new Palestinian government to satisfy
American and international expectations on its commitment to peace
with Israel and the rejection of violence.

In essence, the vision of peace Obama reiterated was nothing
particularly new for American policy, but it was considerably at odds
with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's recent speech at the
Knesset. Netanyahu demanded as a prerequisite that Palestinians
recognize Israel as "the nation state of the Jewish people," implying
transhistorical and metaphysical national rights in this territory for
all Jews around the world, whether or not they are Israelis. He

virtually ruled out any compromise on Jerusalem, spoke of annexing
settlement blocs and insisted on a "long-term IDF presence along the
Jordan River," ideas that are clearly at odds with Obama's vision of a
"sovereign and contiguous [Palestinian] state."

The most important message Obama communicated on Palestine is that he
believes a peace agreement is "more urgent than ever," suggesting that
in spite of the growing complications and the looming presidential
election of 2012, his administration will continue to look for
opportunities for progress.

There was a great deal to both please and annoy almost all concerned

parties, and Netanyahu has already signaled his displeasure with the
1967 lines. But it was not a bad step forward: Within the constraints
of U.S. interests and the limitations of its power, Obama offered a
number of important commitments that can, in fact, be fulfilled, and
that help to place the United States more on the side of the
aspirations of the Arab peoples than it ever has been in the past.


Hussein Ibish, PhD
Senior Research Fellow, American Task Force on Palestine
1634 Eye Street NW, Suite 725
Washington, DC 20006
Mobile: (202) 438 7297
hussein.ibish@gmail.com


———- Forwarded message ———-
From: csc <ccavell@gmail.com>
Date: Thu, May 19, 2011 at 7:25 PM
Subject: President Obama Speaks on US Policy in Middle East and North Africa
To: ccavell@gmail.com

Message from sender:

yo

Truthout
Published on Truthout (http://www.truth-out.org)

Home > President Obama Speaks on US Policy in Middle East and North Africa

President Obama Speaks on US Policy in Middle East and North Africa

By James
Created 2011-05-19 10:49

President Obama Speaks on US Policy in Middle East and North Africa

Thursday 19 May 2011
by: President Barack Obama, The White House [3]

I want to thank Hillary Clinton, who has traveled so much these last six months that she is approaching a new landmark – one million frequent flyer miles. I count on Hillary every day, and I believe that she will go down as of the finest Secretaries of State in our nation’s history.

The State Department is a fitting venue to mark a new chapter in American diplomacy. For six months, we have witnessed an extraordinary change take place in the Middle East and North Africa. Square by square; town by town; country by country; the people have risen up to demand their basic human rights. Two leaders have stepped aside. More may follow. And though these countries may be a great distance from our shores, we know that our own future is bound to this region by the forces of economics and security; history and faith.

Today, I would like to talk about this change – the forces that are driving it, and how we can respond in a way that advances our values and strengthens our security. Already, we have done much to shift our foreign policy following a decade defined by two costly conflicts. After years of war in Iraq, we have removed 100,000 American troops and ended our combat mission there. In Afghanistan, we have broken the Taliban’s momentum, and this July we will begin to bring our troops home and continue transition to Afghan lead. And after years of war against al Qaeda and its affiliates, we have dealt al Qaeda a huge blow by killing its leader – Osama bin Laden.

Bin Laden was no martyr. He was a mass murderer who offered a message of hate – an insistence that Muslims had to take up arms against the West, and that violence against men, women and children was the only path to change. He rejected democracy and individual rights for Muslims in favor of violent extremism; his agenda focused on what he could destroy – not what he could build.

Bin Laden and his murderous vision won some adherents. But even before his death, al Qaeda was losing its struggle for relevance, as the overwhelming majority of people saw that the slaughter of innocents did not answer their cries for a better life. By the time we found bin Laden, al Qaeda’s agenda had come to be seen by the vast majority of the region as a dead end, and the people of the Middle East and North Africa had taken their future into their own hands.

That story of self-determination began six months ago in Tunisia. On December 17, a young vendor named Mohammed Bouazizi was devastated when a police officer confiscated his cart. This was not unique. It is the same kind of humiliation that takes place every day in many parts of the world – the relentless tyranny of governments that deny their citizens dignity. Only this time, something different happened. After local officials refused to hear his complaint, this young man who had never been particularly active in politics went to the headquarters of the provincial government, doused himself in fuel, and lit himself on fire.

Sometimes, in the course of history, the actions of ordinary citizens spark movements for change because they speak to a longing for freedom that has built up for years. In America, think of the defiance of those patriots in Boston who refused to pay taxes to a King, or the dignity of Rosa Parks as she sat courageously in her seat. So it was in Tunisia, as that vendor’s act of desperation tapped into the frustration felt throughout the country. Hundreds of protesters took to the streets, then thousands. And in the face of batons and sometimes bullets, they refused to go home – day after day, week after week, until a dictator of more than two decades finally left power.

The story of this Revolution, and the ones that followed, should not have come as a surprise. The nations of the Middle East and North Africa won their independence long ago, but in too many places their people did not. In too many countries, power has been concentrated in the hands of the few. In too many countries, a citizen like that young vendor had nowhere to turn – no honest judiciary to hear his case; no independent media to give him voice; no credible political party to represent his views; no free and fair election where he could choose his leader.

This lack of self determination – the chance to make of your life what you will – has applied to the region’s economy as well. Yes, some nations are blessed with wealth in oil and gas, and that has led to pockets of prosperity. But in a global economy based on knowledge and innovation, no development strategy can be based solely upon what comes out of the ground. Nor can people reach their potential when you cannot start a business without paying a bribe.

In the face of these challenges, too many leaders in the region tried to direct their people’s grievances elsewhere. The West was blamed as the source of all ills, a half century after the end of colonialism. Antagonism toward Israel became the only acceptable outlet for political expression. Divisions of tribe, ethnicity and religious sect were manipulated as a means of holding on to power, or taking it away from somebody else.

But the events of the past six months show us that strategies of repression and diversion won’t work anymore. Satellite television and the Internet provide a window into the wider world – a world of astonishing progress in places like India, Indonesia and Brazil. Cell phones and social networks allow young people to connect and organize like never before. A new generation has emerged. And their voices tell us that change cannot be denied.

In Cairo, we heard the voice of the young mother who said, “It’s like I can finally breathe fresh air for the first time.”

In Sanaa, we heard the students who chanted, “The night must come to an end.”

In Benghazi, we heard the engineer who said, “Our words are free now. It’s a feeling you can’t explain.”

In Damascus, we heard the young man who said, “After the first yelling, the first shout, you feel dignity.”

Those shouts of human dignity are being heard across the region. And through the moral force of non-violence, the people of the region have achieved more change in six months than terrorists have accomplished in decades.

Of course, change of this magnitude does not come easily. In our day and age – a time of 24 hour news cycles, and constant communication – people expect the transformation of the region to be resolved in a matter of weeks. But it will be years before this story reaches its end. Along the way, there will be good days, and bad days. In some places, change will be swift; in others, gradual. And as we have seen, calls for change may give way to fierce contests for power.

The question before us is what role America will play as this story unfolds. For decades, the United States has pursued a set of core interests in the region: countering terrorism and stopping the spread of nuclear weapons; securing the free flow of commerce, and safe-guarding the security of the region; standing up for Israel’s security and pursuing Arab-Israeli peace.

We will continue to do these things, with the firm belief that America’s interests are not hostile to peoples’ hopes; they are essential to them. We believe that no one benefits from a nuclear arms race in the region, or al Qaeda’s brutal attacks. People everywhere would see their economies crippled by a cut off in energy supplies. As we did in the Gulf War, we will not tolerate aggression across borders, and we will keep our commitments to friends and partners.

Yet we must acknowledge that a strategy based solely upon the narrow pursuit of these interests will not fill an empty stomach or allow someone to speak their mind. Moreover, failure to speak to the broader aspirations of ordinary people will only feed the suspicion that has festered for years that the United States pursues our own interests at their expense. Given that this mistrust runs both ways – as Americans have been seared by hostage taking, violent rhetoric, and terrorist attacks that have killed thousands of our citizens – a failure to change our approach threatens a deepening spiral of division between the United States and Muslim communities.

That’s why, two years ago in Cairo, I began to broaden our engagement based upon mutual interests and mutual respect. I believed then – and I believe now – that we have a stake not just in the stability of nations, but in the self determination of individuals. The status quo is not sustainable. Societies held together by fear and repression may offer the illusion of stability for a time, but they are built upon fault lines that will eventually tear asunder.

So we face an historic opportunity. We have embraced the chance to show that America values the dignity of the street vendor in Tunisia more than the raw power of the dictator. There must be no doubt that the United States of America welcomes change that advances self-determination and opportunity. Yes, there will be perils that accompany this moment of promise. But after decades of accepting the world as it is in the region, we have a chance to pursue the world as it should be.

As we do, we must proceed with a sense of humility. It is not America that put people into the streets of Tunis and Cairo – it was the people themselves who launched these movements, and must determine their outcome. Not every country will follow our particular form of representative democracy, and there will be times when our short term interests do not align perfectly with our long term vision of the region. But we can – and will – speak out for a set of core principles – principles that have guided our response to the events over the past six months:

The United States opposes the use of violence and repression against the people of the region.

We support a set of universal rights. Those rights include free speech; the freedom of peaceful assembly; freedom of religion; equality for men and women under the rule of law; and the right to choose your own leaders – whether you live in Baghdad or Damascus; Sanaa or Tehran.

And finally, we support political and economic reform in the Middle East and North Africa that can meet the legitimate aspirations of ordinary people throughout the region.

Our support for these principles is not a secondary interest– today I am making it clear that it is a top priority that must be translated into concrete actions, and supported by all of the diplomatic, economic and strategic tools at our disposal.

Let me be specific. First, it will be the policy of the United States to promote reform across the region, and to support transitions to democracy.

That effort begins in Egypt and Tunisia, where the stakes are high –as Tunisia was at the vanguard of this democratic wave, and Egypt is both a longstanding partner and the Arab World’s largest nation. Both nations can set a strong example through free and fair elections; a vibrant civil society; accountable and effective democratic institutions; and responsible regional leadership. But our support must also extend to nations where transitions have yet to take place.

Unfortunately, in too many countries, calls for change have been answered by violence. The most extreme example is Libya, where Moammar Gaddafi launched a war against his people, promising to hunt them down like rats. As I said when the United States joined an international coalition to intervene, we cannot prevent every injustice perpetrated by a regime against its people, and we have learned from our experience in Iraq just how costly and difficult it is to impose regime change by force – no matter how well-intended it may be.

But in Libya, we saw the prospect of imminent massacre, had a mandate for action, and heard the Libyan people’s call for help. Had we not acted along with our NATO allies and regional coalition partners, thousands would have been killed. The message would have been clear: keep power by killing as many people as it takes. Now, time is working against Gaddafi. He does not have control over his country. The opposition has organized a legitimate and credible Interim Council. And when Gaddafi inevitably leaves or is forced from power, decades of provocation will come to an end, and the transition to a democratic Libya can proceed.

While Libya has faced violence on the greatest scale, it is not the only place where leaders have turned to repression to remain in power. Most recently, the Syrian regime has chosen the path of murder and the mass arrests of its citizens. The United States has condemned these actions, and working with the international community we have stepped up our sanctions on the Syrian regime – including sanctions announced yesterday on President Assad and those around him.

The Syrian people have shown their courage in demanding a transition to democracy. President Assad now has a choice: he can lead that transition, or get out of the way. The Syrian government must stop shooting demonstrators and allow peaceful protests; release political prisoners and stop unjust arrests; allow human rights monitors to have access to cities like Dara’a; and start a serious dialogue to advance a democratic transition. Otherwise, President Assad and his regime will continue to be challenged from within and isolated abroad

Thus far, Syria has followed its Iranian ally, seeking assistance from Tehran in the tactics of suppression. This speaks to the hypocrisy of the Iranian regime, which says it stand for the rights of protesters abroad, yet suppresses its people at home. Let us remember that the first peaceful protests were in the streets of Tehran, where the government brutalized women and men, and threw innocent people into jail. We still hear the chants echo from the rooftops of Tehran. The image of a young woman dying in the streets is still seared in our memory. And we will continue to insist that the Iranian people deserve their universal rights, and a government that does not smother their aspirations.

Our opposition to Iran’s intolerance – as well as its illicit nuclear program, and its sponsorship of terror – is well known. But if America is to be credible, we must acknowledge that our friends in the region have not all reacted to the demands for change consistent with the principles that I have outlined today. That is true in Yemen, where President Saleh needs to follow through on his commitment to transfer power. And that is true, today, in Bahrain.

Bahrain is a long-standing partner, and we are committed to its security. We recognize that Iran has tried to take advantage of the turmoil there, and that the Bahraini government has a legitimate interest in the rule of law. Nevertheless, we have insisted publically and privately that mass arrests and brute force are at odds with the universal rights of Bahrain’s citizens, and will not make legitimate calls for reform go away. The only way forward is for the government and opposition to engage in a dialogue, and you can’t have a real dialogue when parts of the peaceful opposition are in jail. The government must create the conditions for dialogue, and the opposition must participate to forge a just future for all Bahrainis.

Indeed, one of the broader lessons to be drawn from this period is that sectarian divides need not lead to conflict. In Iraq, we see the promise of a multi-ethnic, multi-sectarian democracy. There, the Iraqi people have rejected the perils of political violence for a democratic process, even as they have taken full responsibility for their own security. Like all new democracies, they will face setbacks. But Iraq is poised to play a key role in the region if it continues its peaceful progress. As they do, we will be proud to stand with them as a steadfast partner.

So in the months ahead, America must use all our influence to encourage reform in the region. Even as we acknowledge that each country is different, we will need to speak honestly about the principles that we believe in, with friend and foe alike. Our message is simple: if you take the risks that reform entails, you will have the full support of the United States. We must also build on our efforts to broaden our engagement beyond elites, so that we reach the people who will shape the future – particularly young people.

We will continue to make good on the commitments that I made in Cairo – to build networks of entrepreneurs, and expand exchanges in education; to foster cooperation in science and technology, and combat disease. Across the region, we intend to provide assistance to civil society, including those that may not be officially sanctioned, and who speak uncomfortable truths. And we will use the technology to connect with – and listen to – the voices of the people.

In fact, real reform will not come at the ballot box alone. Through our efforts we must support those basic rights to speak your mind and access information. We will support open access to the Internet, and the right of journalists to be heard – whether it’s a big news organization or a blogger. In the 21st century, information is power; the truth cannot be hidden; and the legitimacy of governments will ultimately depend on active and informed citizens.

Such open discourse is important even if what is said does not square with our worldview. America respects the right of all peaceful and law-abiding voices to be heard, even if we disagree with them. We look forward to working with all who embrace genuine and inclusive democracy. What we will oppose is an attempt by any group to restrict the rights of others, and to hold power through coercion – not consent. Because democracy depends not only on elections, but also strong and accountable institutions, and respect for the rights of minorities.

Such tolerance is particularly important when it comes to religion. In Tahrir Square, we heard Egyptians from all walks of life chant, “Muslims, Christians, we are one.” America will work to see that this spirit prevails – that all faiths are respected, and that bridges are built among them. In a region that was the birthplace of three world religions, intolerance can lead only to suffering and stagnation. And for this season of change to succeed, Coptic Christians must have the right to worship freely in Cairo, just as Shia must never have their mosques destroyed in Bahrain.

What is true for religious minorities is also true when it comes to the rights of women. History shows that countries are more prosperous and peaceful when women are empowered. That is why we will continue to insist that universal rights apply to women as well as men – by focusing assistance on child and maternal health; by helping women to teach, or start a business; by standing up for the right of women to have their voices heard, and to run for office. For the region will never reach its potential when more than half its population is prevented from achieving their potential.

Even as we promote political reform and human rights in the region, our efforts cannot stop there. So the second way that we must support positive change in the region is through our efforts to advance economic development for nations that transition to democracy.

After all, politics alone has not put protesters into the streets. The tipping point for so many people is the more constant concern of putting food on the table and providing for a family. Too many in the region wake up with few expectations other than making it through the day, and perhaps the hope that their luck will change. Throughout the region, many young people have a solid education, but closed economies leave them unable to find a job. Entrepreneurs are brimming with ideas, but corruption leaves them unable to profit from them.

The greatest untapped resource in the Middle East and North Africa is the talent of its people. In the recent protests, we see that talent on display, as people harness technology to move the world. It’s no coincidence that one of the leaders of Tahrir Square was an executive for Google. That energy now needs to be channeled, in country after country, so that economic growth can solidify the accomplishments of the street. Just as democratic revolutions can be triggered by a lack of individual opportunity, successful democratic transitions depend upon an expansion of growth and broad-based prosperity.

Drawing from what we’ve learned around the world, we think it’s important to focus on trade, not just aid; and investment, not just assistance. The goal must be a model in which protectionism gives way to openness; the reigns of commerce pass from the few to the many, and the economy generates jobs for the young. America’s support for democracy will therefore be based on ensuring financial stability; promoting reform; and integrating competitive markets with each other and the global economy – starting with Tunisia and Egypt.

First, we have asked the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund to present a plan at next week’s G-8 summit for what needs to be done to stabilize and modernize the economies of Tunisia and Egypt. Together, we must help them recover from the disruption of their democratic upheaval, and support the governments that will be elected later this year. And we are urging other countries to help Egypt and Tunisia meet its near-term financial needs.

Second, we do not want a democratic Egypt to be saddled by the debts of its past. So we will relieve a democratic Egypt of up to $1 billion in debt, and work with our Egyptian partners to invest these resources to foster growth and entrepreneurship. We will help Egypt regain access to markets by guaranteeing $1 billion in borrowing that is needed to finance infrastructure and job creation. And we will help newly democratic governments recover assets that were stolen.

Third, we are working with Congress to create Enterprise Funds to invest in Tunisia and Egypt. These will be modeled on funds that supported the transitions in Eastern Europe after the fall of the Berlin Wall. OPIC will soon launch a $2 billion facility to support private investment across the region. And we will work with allies to refocus the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development so that it provides the same support for democratic transitions and economic modernization in the Middle East and North Africa as it has in Europe.

Fourth, the United States will launch a comprehensive Trade and Investment Partnership Initiative in the Middle East and North Africa. If you take out oil exports, this region of over 400 million people exports roughly the same amount as Switzerland. So we will work with the EU to facilitate more trade within the region, build on existing agreements to promote integration with U.S. and European markets, and open the door for those countries who adopt high standards of reform and trade liberalization to construct a regional trade arrangement. Just as EU membership served as an incentive for reform in Europe, so should the vision of a modern and prosperous economy create a powerful force for reform in the Middle East and North Africa.

Prosperity also requires tearing down walls that stand in the way of progress – the corruption of elites who steal from their people; the red tape that stops an idea from becoming a business; the patronage that distributes wealth based on tribe or sect. We will help governments meet international obligations, and invest efforts anti-corruption; by working with parliamentarians who are developing reforms, and activists who use technology to hold government accountable.

Let me conclude by talking about another cornerstone of our approach to the region, and that relates to the pursuit of peace.

For decades, the conflict between Israelis and Arabs has cast a shadow over the region. For Israelis, it has meant living with the fear that their children could get blown up on a bus or by rockets fired at their homes, as well as the pain of knowing that other children in the region are taught to hate them. For Palestinians, it has meant suffering the humiliation of occupation, and never living in a nation of their own. Moreover, this conflict has come with a larger cost the Middle East, as it impedes partnerships that could bring greater security, prosperity, and empowerment to ordinary people.

My Administration has worked with the parties and the international community for over two years to end this conflict, yet expectations have gone unmet. Israeli settlement activity continues. Palestinians have walked away from talks. The world looks at a conflict that has grinded on for decades, and sees a stalemate. Indeed, there are those who argue that with all the change and uncertainty in the region, it is simply not possible to move forward.

I disagree. At a time when the people of the Middle East and North Africa are casting off the burdens of the past, the drive for a lasting peace that ends the conflict and resolves all claims is more urgent than ever.

For the Palestinians, efforts to delegitimize Israel will end in failure. Symbolic actions to isolate Israel at the United Nations in September won’t create an independent state. Palestinian leaders will not achieve peace or prosperity if Hamas insists on a path of terror and rejection. And Palestinians will never realize their independence by denying the right of Israel to exist.

As for Israel, our friendship is rooted deeply in a shared history and shared values. Our commitment to Israel’s security is unshakeable. And we will stand against attempts to single it out for criticism in international forums. But precisely because of our friendship, it is important that we tell the truth: the status quo is unsustainable, and Israel too must act boldly to advance a lasting peace.

The fact is, a growing number of Palestinians live west of the Jordan River. Technology will make it harder for Israel to defend itself. A region undergoing profound change will lead to populism in which millions of people – not just a few leaders – must believe peace is possible. The international community is tired of an endless process that never produces an outcome. The dream of a Jewish and democratic state cannot be fulfilled with permanent occupation.

Ultimately, it is up to Israelis and Palestinians to take action. No peace can be imposed upon them, nor can endless delay make the problem go away. But what America and the international community can do is state frankly what everyone knows: a lasting peace will involve two states for two peoples. Israel as a Jewish state and the homeland for the Jewish people, and the state of Palestine as the homeland for the Palestinian people; each state enjoying self-determination, mutual recognition, and peace.

So while the core issues of the conflict must be negotiated, the basis of those negotiations is clear: a viable Palestine, and a secure Israel. The United States believes that negotiations should result in two states, with permanent Palestinian borders with Israel, Jordan, and Egypt, and permanent Israeli borders with Palestine. The borders of Israel and Palestine should be based on the 1967 lines with mutually agreed swaps, so that secure and recognized borders are established for both states. The Palestinian people must have the right to govern themselves, and reach their potential, in a sovereign and contiguous state.

As for security, every state has the right to self-defense, and Israel must be able to defend itself – by itself – against any threat. Provisions must also be robust enough to prevent a resurgence of terrorism; to stop the infiltration of weapons; and to provide effective border security. The full and phased withdrawal of Israeli military forces should be coordinated with the assumption of Palestinian security responsibility in a sovereign, non-militarized state. The duration of this transition period must be agreed, and the effectiveness of security arrangements must be demonstrated.

These principles provide a foundation for negotiations. Palestinians should know the territorial outlines of their state; Israelis should know that their basic security concerns will be met. I know that these steps alone will not resolve this conflict. Two wrenching and emotional issues remain: the future of Jerusalem, and the fate of Palestinian refugees. But moving forward now on the basis of territory and security provides a foundation to resolve those two issues in a way that is just and fair, and that respects the rights and aspirations of Israelis and Palestinians.

Recognizing that negotiations need to begin with the issues of territory and security does not mean that it will be easy to come back to the table. In particular, the recent announcement of an agreement between Fatah and Hamas raises profound and legitimate questions for Israel – how can one negotiate with a party that has shown itself unwilling to recognize your right to exist. In the weeks and months to come, Palestinian leaders will have to provide a credible answer to that question. Meanwhile, the United States, our Quartet partners, and the Arab states will need to continue every effort to get beyond the current impasse.

I recognize how hard this will be. Suspicion and hostility has been passed on for generations, and at times it has hardened. But I’m convinced that the majority of Israelis and Palestinians would rather look to the future than be trapped in the past. We see that spirit in the Israeli father whose son was killed by Hamas, who helped start an organization that brought together Israelis and Palestinians who had lost loved ones. He said, “I gradually realized that the only hope for progress was to recognize the face of the conflict.” And we see it in the actions of a Palestinian who lost three daughters to Israeli shells in Gaza. “I have the right to feel angry,” he said. “So many people were expecting me to hate. My answer to them is I shall not hate…Let us hope,” he said, “for tomorrow”

That is the choice that must be made – not simply in this conflict, but across the entire region – a choice between hate and hope; between the shackles of the past, and the promise of the future. It’s a choice that must be made by leaders and by people, and it’s a choice that will define the future of a region that served as the cradle of civilization and a crucible of strife.

For all the challenges that lie ahead, we see many reasons to be hopeful. In Egypt, we see it in the efforts of young people who led protests. In Syria, we see it in the courage of those who brave bullets while chanting, ‘peaceful,’ ‘peaceful.’ In Benghazi, a city threatened with destruction, we see it in the courthouse square where people gather to celebrate the freedoms that they had never known. Across the region, those rights that we take for granted are being claimed with joy by those who are prying lose the grip of an iron fist.

For the American people, the scenes of upheaval in the region may be unsettling, but the forces driving it are not unfamiliar. Our own nation was founded through a rebellion against an empire. Our people fought a painful civil war that extended freedom and dignity to those who were enslaved. And I would not be standing here today unless past generations turned to the moral force of non-violence as a way to perfect our union – organizing, marching, and protesting peacefully together to make real those words that declared our nation: “We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal.”

Those words must guide our response to the change that is transforming the Middle East and North Africa – words which tell us that repression will fail, that tyrants will fall, and that every man and woman is endowed with certain inalienable rights. It will not be easy. There is no straight line to progress, and hardship always accompanies a season of hope. But the United States of America was founded on the belief that people should govern themselves. Now, we cannot hesitate to stand squarely on the side of those who are reaching for their rights, knowing that their success will bring about a world that is more peaceful, more stable, and more just.

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———- Forwarded message ———-
Date: Thu, May 19, 2011 at 2:19 PM
Subject: Bahrain to expand bases for GCC

Bahrain wants to expand military bases


———- Forwarded message ———-
From: thepearlroundabout.org <thepearlroundabout@gmail.com>

Date: Wed, May 18, 2011 at 6:10 PM
Subject: thepearlroundabout.org
To: ccavell@gmail.com

thepearlroundabout.org

Link to thepearlroundabout.org

Bahrain ex-editors plead not guilty in press trial

Posted: 18 May 2011 09:22 AM PDT

(AP) Three former top editors of Bahrain's main opposition newspaper pleaded not guilty Wednesday to charges of unethical coverage of Shiite-led opposition protests against the kingdom's Sunni rulers.

Five Bahraini journalists detained

Posted: 18 May 2011 09:20 AM PDT

(Committee to Protect Journalists) Bahrain's crackdown against journalists continues unabated with five new detentions in less than a week, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

First woman imprisoned

Posted: 18 May 2011 07:45 AM PDT

(BCHR) Bahrain Youth Society for Human Rights (BYSHR) is deeply concerned about sentence of the first woman participated in the protests.

Bahrain: Speaking softly

Posted: 18 May 2011 06:43 AM PDT

(Human Rights First)

BAHRAIN: Report alleges torture, calls for Obama, U.S. leaders to help

Posted: 18 May 2011 06:41 AM PDT

(LA Times) More than 800 people have been arrested in the Persian Gulf kingdom of Bahrain since mid-February. Most of the detainees have been Shiite Muslims who protested against the Sunni monarchy of King Hamed ibn Isa Khalifa. According to a report Tuesday by New York based nonprofit Human Rights First, most of those detained since anti-government demonstrations began in Bahrain have been arrested without warrants and held at unknown locations, without access to lawyers or relatives.

3 former editors of Bahrain opposition paper plead not guilty to unethical coverage of unrest

Posted: 18 May 2011 06:40 AM PDT

(Washington Post) Three former top editors of Bahrain’s main opposition newspaper pleaded not guilty Wednesday to charges of unethical coverage of Shiite-led opposition protests against the kingdom’s Sunni rulers.

Bahraini activist said threatened with rape – report

Posted: 18 May 2011 06:38 AM PDT

(Reuters) A prominent Bahraini human rights activist said he had been threatened with rape while in custody after he refused to apologise to the king over his role in anti-government protests.

Nine Bahraini policemen injured in protests

Posted: 18 May 2011 06:36 AM PDT

(FT.com) Please respect FT.com's ts&cs and copyright policy which allow you to: share links; copy content for personal use; & redistribute limited extracts. Email ftsales.support@ft.com to buy additional rights or use this link to reference the article – http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/c94f0eb6-8123-11e0-9360-00144feabdc0.html#ixzz1Mi8ZeQ5o Nine Bahraini policemen were injured when the brother of a wounded protester drove a car into security forces, the official news agency said.

Uncertainty Reigns in Bahrain Amid Mix of Normalcy, State of Siege

Posted: 18 May 2011 06:30 AM PDT

(PBS) Margaret Warner reports on how events there have widened the divide between Shia and Sunni Muslims.

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———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Bahrain Center for Human Rights <Bahrain_Center_for_Human_Rights@mail.vresp.com>

Date: Wed, May 18, 2011 at 7:30 AM
Subject: Bahrain: Activist Threatened with Rape & photographers among crackdown’s latest targets
To: ccavell@gmail.com

bchr

Bahrain Center for Human Rights

For the Latest updates please follow BCHR on twitter: http://twitter.com/BahrainRights/bchr-7

URGENT Appeal: Prominent Human Rights Activist Threatened with Rape

16 May 2011

After refusing to apologize on camera to the King:
Prominent Human Rights Activist Threatened with Rape

Joint Statement of the BCHR and BYSHR

Today at the 3rd hearing of the 21 defendants standing trial for charges including attempting to topple the government, former MENA Coordinator of Frontline Defenders and Former President of the Bahrain Centre of Human Rights, Mr. Abdulhadi Alkhawaja was removed from court. This happened immediately after he spoke at the beginning of the trial saying that he was threatened with rape after he refused to apologize to the King on Camera. He also told the judge that he had complained to the court in the previous session that he had been threatened and that the court had not done anything to secure his safety. The court judge refused to listen to these statements and Mr. Alkhawaja was ordered out of the court room even though he said that was all he wanted to say.

Bahrain: Front Line fears for life of Abdulhadi Alkhawaja amid credible allegations of torture and sexual assault

17 May 2011
Following reports of torture including an attempted rape against former Front Line Protection Coordinator Abdulhadi Alkhawaja there are grave concerns that his health and even his life may be in danger.

Abdulhadi Alkhawaja has been held in detention in Bahrain since 9th April and has reportedly been subjected to torture which resulted in his requiring a 4 hour operation in a military hospital following injuries to his head.

CPJ: Five Bahraini journalists detained

New York, May 17, 2011–Bahrain's crackdown against journalists continues unabated with five new detentions in less than a week, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. [..]

In Bahrain, freelance journalist and commentator Abbas al-Murshid was summoned to appear at a police station on Sunday, according to Arabic-language blogs, the Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR), and a Facebook page calling for his release. Al-Murshid is a frequent contributor to the Bahraini daily Al-Waqt as well as numerous online publications, where he has written about Bahrain's social unrest, corruption, institutional discrimination and other topics considered sensitive by the government.

Bahrain: The first woman imprisoned 4 years because she participated in the protests

May 18th, 2011

Bahrain Youth Society for Human Rights (BYSHR) is deeply concerned about sentence of the first woman participated in the protests.

On 17 May 2011:

1- Mohammed Qassim Ghalloum was accused of taking part in illegal assemblies in public areas, committing a number of crimes and disrupting public security in front of Al Safriya Palace “king’s Palace” and the GCC Roundabout “Pearl Roundabout” ( 2 years imprisonment and will be deported as soon as his sentence is over, because according to authorities, he is Iranian)

Top U.S. diplomat presses Bahrain on rights

17 May 2011 14:41
Source: reuters // Reuters

WASHINGTON, May 17 (Reuters) – A senior U.S. diplomat urged Bahrain's rulers on Tuesday to pursue political dialogue with the opposition and stressed "the importance of full respect for universal human rights," the State Department said.

RSF: News photographers among crackdown’s latest targets

Published on Tuesday 17 May 2011.

Many photographers who have been covering the pro-democracy protests taking place in Bahrain since mid-February have been arrested in the past few days. By carrying out these targeted arrests, the Bahraini authorities are trying to limit media coverage of their crackdown on the protests, especially coverage in the international media.

Reporters Without Borders calls for the immediately release of these photojournalists and all the other people who have been arrested for circulating information about the demonstrations and the ensuing government crackdown.

Human Rights First: NEW REPORT: Human Rights Defenders Criticize U.S. Government’s Response to Bahraini Crackdown

May 17, 2011

Washington, D.C. — Following a fact-finding mission to Bahrain earlier this week, Human Rights First is calling on President Obama to stand up for human rights defenders in Bahrain. In his Middle East speech on Thursday, President Obama can send a clear signal that the United States supports human rights and democracy in the Middle East by supporting vulnerable Bahraini activists. In its report released today, Human Rights First publishes first-hand testimonies of the Bahraini government’s crackdown from the perspectives of human rights defenders currently in Bahrain, and provides recommendations for the U.S. and Bahraini governments to end human rights abuses.

Amnesty International Annual Report 2011: The state of the world's human rights – Bahrain Report

Scores of anti-government activists were arrested. Twenty-five leading opposition activists were on trial, two in their absence, accused of plotting to overthrow the government; the 23 were initially denied access to lawyers after their arrest and some said they were tortured. Other unfair trials took place. The authorities restricted freedom of expression, including by shutting down several websites and political newsletters. The government suspended board members of an independent human rights organization. One person was executed.

POMED Notes: “Human Rights in Bahrain”

On Friday, the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission hosted a hearing on the human rights situation in Bahrain. The commission – chaired by James McGovern (D-MA) and Frank Wolf (R-VA) – requested the testimony of the following individuals: Joe Stork, Deputy Director of the Middle East and North Africa programs at Human Rights Watch (HRW); Maryam Al-Khawaja, Head of Foreign Relations Office at the Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR); and Richard Sollom, Deputy Director of Physicians for Human Rights (PHR). The commission had also requested the testimony of Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs William Burns and Under Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Jeffery Feltman who declined the invitation.

Robert Fisk: Why no outcry over these torturing tyrants?

Saturday, 14 May 2011
by: Robert Fisk
independent.co.uk

Christopher Hill, a former US secretary of state for east Asia who was ambassador to Iraq – and usually a very obedient and un-eloquent American diplomat – wrote the other day that "the notion that a dictator can claim the sovereign right to abuse his people has become unacceptable".



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———- Forwarded message ———-
From: NYTimes.com <newstracker@nytimes.com>
Date: Tue, May 17, 2011 at 11:33 PM
Subject: My Alerts: Bahrain Alerts (1 article)
To: ccavell@gmail.com

The New York Times

May 18, 2011

My Alerts

ADVERTISEMENT

Alert Name: Bahrain Alerts
May 18, 2011 Compiled: 1:49 AM

WORLD / MIDDLE EAST

By REUTERS (NYT)

The Iranian government told the convoy, which included 120 students, clerics and activists, to abandon its plan to sail to Bahrain to support Shiite protesters.

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———- Forwarded message ———-
From: thepearlroundabout.org <thepearlroundabout@gmail.com>
Date: Tue, May 17, 2011 at 6:19 PM
Subject: thepearlroundabout.org
To: ccavell@gmail.com

thepearlroundabout.org

Link to thepearlroundabout.org

Bahrain’s assualt on medical professionals

Posted: 17 May 2011 08:56 AM PDT

(Foreign Policy) The United States may not be able to propose solutions for all the Middle East, but it can prescribe the course of events unfolding in some Arab Spring countries. Case in point: Bahrain. After thousands of pro-democracy demonstrators took to the streets in the small Gulf kingdom earlier this year, the Bahraini government's response was brutal and systematic: shoot civilian protesters, detain and torture them, and erase all evidence. On the frontline, treating hundreds of these wounded civilians, doctors gained firsthand knowledge of these abuses.

Top U.S. diplomat presses Bahrain on rights

Posted: 17 May 2011 08:39 AM PDT

(Reuters) A senior U.S. diplomat urged Bahrain's rulers on Tuesday to pursue political dialogue with the opposition and stressed "the importance of full respect for universal human rights," the State Department said.

BAHRAIN: Seven protesters sentenced; defendant details alleged rape threats in custody

Posted: 17 May 2011 08:37 AM PDT

(LA Times) even anti-government protesters on trial before a military court received sentences ranging from one to three years Monday in connection with their participation in anti-government protests in the Persian Gulf kingdom earlier this year, activists said.

Bahrain’s parliament accepts resignations of 7 more Shiite opposition lawmakers

Posted: 17 May 2011 08:35 AM PDT

(Washington Post) Bahrain’s parliament accepted the resignations Tuesday of the last seven lawmakers of the Shiite opposition in a move that could exacerbate sectarian tensions in the strategic Gulf island kingdom.

Witness: Expelled from Bahrain, a nation now in fear

Posted: 17 May 2011 08:30 AM PDT

(Reuters) When I got the usual call to visit Bahrain's Information Ministry, I braced myself for complaints about my coverage of the crackdown on Bahraini Shi'ites protesting against the kingdom's Sunni-led government…

Iranian aid ships turned back from Bahrain

Posted: 17 May 2011 08:27 AM PDT

(Al Jazeera) Two ships carrying Iranian activists return to docks after facing "threats" from warships en route to Bahrain.

Bahrain accepts resignation of opposition MPs

Posted: 17 May 2011 08:22 AM PDT

(Al Jazeera) Resignations over crackdown leave lower house with just 22 members as more accusations of torture are levelled.

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———- Forwarded message ———-
Date: Thu, May 17, 2011 at 6:15 PM
Subject: Tomgram: Nick Turse, Obama and the Mideast Arms Trade


TomDispatch

Tomgram: Nick Turse, Obama and the Mideast Arms Trade

By Nick Turse
Posted on May 17, 2011

Obama’s Reset: Arab Spring or Same Old Thing?
How the President and the Pentagon Prop Up Both Middle Eastern Despots and American Arms Dealers

By Nick Turse

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Hussein Ibish <hussein.ibish@gmail.com>

Date: Tue, May 17, 2011 at 8:34 AM
Subject: New Ibish article: Can Obama's Mideast speech fit the square peg of interests in the round role of values?
To: halafoundationnetwork <halafoundationnetwork@googlegroups.com>

http://hd.im.sl.pt

Can Obama's Mideast speech fit the square peg of interests in the
round role of values?

On Thursday US President Barack Obama will give what will probably be
the most difficult foreign policy speech of his presidency thus far.
Obama will seek to define an overall US approach to the Arab Spring.
However, given the extreme complications facing US policy, it will be
extremely difficult for him to articulate clear principles that can be

consistently implemented.

Obama is likely to begin by focusing on the welcome death of terrorist
leader Osama bin Laden. In spite of the undoubted importance of this
achievement and the ongoing threat posed by his small but deadly group
of followers, Al Qaeda is playing almost no role in the emergence of
the new Middle East.

Instead, the regional order and the Arab state system are being
challenged by pro-democracy protests that threaten American friends
and foes alike. In his well-calibrated speech on the Libyan
intervention, Obama focused on what he identified as a convergence
between “values” and “interests.”

In other instances, these imperatives are at odds, creating what are
likely to be ongoing policy conundrums into the foreseeable future.
The most obvious example is Bahrain, where the United States
disapproved of the government crackdown and Gulf Cooperation Council
intervention, but has been ignored. Because it is the home of the US

Fifth Fleet, and concerns about Iranian designs on the island, the
United States cannot walk away from Bahrain and is left with few
options other than muted protests.

The administration quickly came to the correct approach in Egypt,
urging the ouster of President Hosni Mubarak and a managed transition
toward greater democracy. But this exacerbated situations in which
American allies elsewhere staunchly refused to consider reform and
began to look upon Washington as unreliable, thereby placing values
and interests in a tension that was difficult to reconcile.

The perception that the Americans abandoned a loyal ally in Mubarak
has deeply shaken some long-standing US partners, especially Saudi
Arabia. The Saudis have reacted in part by moving to expand the GCC to
include Jordan and Morocco, potentially creating a broader status
quo-oriented alliance of Sunni monarchies. A striking commentary by
Nawaf Obaid in The Washington Post suggests the development of a much
more independent Saudi foreign policy that finds itself increasingly

at odds with American perceptions.

An opposite but related conundrum has emerged in Syria, where the
United States has been deeply reluctant to clearly call for the
removal of President Bashar al-Assad, a long-time foe. Concerns about
chaos and civil war, the anxieties of US allies – particularly Israel
– and strong suspicions that the Syrian regime will survive the
uprising have prompted a noticeably muted American response.

The United States is a status quo power in a Middle East wracked by
the forces of change, but whose regional influence and power is
perceived, rightly or wrongly, to be waning. No doubt the Americans
would prefer orderly transitions to greater democracy without
upsetting the regional system, but few, if any, Arab governments, pro-
or anti-American, are willing to engage in serious reform. This makes
a clear American statement that it will unequivocally support
pro-democracy demands by Arab citizens difficult to fulfill, and
highlights the extent to which US values and interests will frequently

be difficult to reconcile in the coming months.

Obama will also have to deal with the Palestinian issue under
conditions of extreme uncertainty. The all-important details of the
Hamas-Fatah agreement remain entirely unclear, as does the Israeli
vision for the future. The resignation of the American special envoy,
George Mitchell, indicates the extent to which negotiations are on
hold for the foreseeable future. Moreover, last weekend’s violent
suppression of protesters in numerous border areas by Israel, in which
at least a dozen unarmed Palestinians were killed, reinforces the
issue’s volatility and regional significance.

Obama is likely to reaffirm the US commitment to a two-state solution,
but more detailed comments are unlikely. It would appear a stronger
intervention is being tabled until at least the summer and that
another major diplomatic initiative will probably not emerge until
after the next American election.

This decoupling may be forced, but it’s not necessarily a bad thing.

There can be no questioning the importance of the Palestinian issue to
the Arab uprisings, but there is also a clear logic to treating the
two as parallel but distinct tracks. There are at least as many risks
in lumping them together as dealing with them separately.

For Obama to resolve the clear tension between American interests and
values regarding demands for radical change in Washington’s relations
with allied Arab states is an extraordinary challenge. Coming up with
an actionable formula that can place the US on the side of the
aspirations of the Arab people, which is essential, without further
antagonizing and alarming its already skittish – and, in some
important cases, alienated – allies will be the greatest foreign
policy challenge this young president has yet faced.


Hussein Ibish, PhD
Senior Research Fellow, American Task Force on Palestine
1634 Eye Street NW, Suite 725

Washington, DC 20006
Mobile:
(202) 438 7297
hussein.ibish@gmail.com


———- Forwarded message ———-
Date: Mon, May 16, 2011 at 7:59 PM
Subject: How radical are Bahrain's Shia?
To: "Colin S. Cavell, Ph.D. @ GMail" <ccavell@gmail.com>

How radical are Bahrain's Shia?

Editor's Note: Justin Gengler is a Ph.D. Candidate in Political Science at the University of Michigan. This essay is adapted from data from his 2009 nationally-representative survey of political attitudes in Bahrain. For more from Gengler, visit Foreign Affairs.

By Justin Gengler

In an April 19 op-ed in The Washington Times, Bahrain’s king, Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, wrote that his regime was forced into its ongoing brutal crackdown on political protest and dissent when “the legitimate demands of the opposition were hijacked by extremist elements with ties to foreign governments in the region” – that is, when the movement was hijacked by Shia revolutionaries with ties to Iran.

Such accusations first arose soon after protests began in Bahrain in mid-February. But they took on new momentum on March 7, when several hard-line Shia opposition groups formed an alliance called the Coalition for a Republic, which rejected any political solution short of the wholesale ouster of the ruling Al Khalifa family.

The very name of the coalition evoked the specter of Iran’s Islamic Republic, and seemed to leave Bahrain’s rulers with no choice but to act firmly if they wished to avoid a Shia revolution of their own.

Yet King Hamad’s argument implies that there is a significant proportion of the Bahraini Shia population that would favor an Iranian-style religious regime in Bahrain and would be willing to take up arms to achieve it.

At least as of early 2009, when I undertook the first-ever mass political survey of the country, this was not the case: the vast majority of ordinary Bahraini Shia joined Sunnis in rejecting a system of governance based on or limited to religion.

In my nationally-representative, 435-household study, which employed the widely used Arab Democracy Barometer survey instrument, citizens were asked to evaluate the appropriateness of various systems of government as ways of ruling Bahrain.

About a quarter of all Shia and Sunni respondents deemed a parliamentary system in which only Islamist parties could compete “suitable” or “very suitable.” Over half of each group rejected the option outright, declaring it “not at all suitable.”

A sharia-based system fared even worse among Shia, of which only a quarter felt it was “suitable” or “very suitable,” while 63 percent deemed it “not at all suitable.” Among Sunni respondents, just under half rejected a Bahraini state based on Islamic law, but almost 40 percent felt it would be “very suitable” or “suitable.” Contrary to King Hamad’s implications, then, Shia are no more likely – and, in fact, are somewhat less likely – than Sunnis to favor a religious state.

Even Bahrain’s most extremist Shia elements rejected Islamic-based government. For example, those who indicated that their political views most closely correspond to the al-Haqq Movement, the underground Shia group that is the main sponsor of the Coalition for a Republic, were no more likely to support an Islamist-only parliamentary system or a sharia-based system than were those who identified with the more moderate Al-Wifaq society, which, until a few weeks ago, occupied 18 of 40 seats in Bahrain’s parliament.

Far from supporting the idea of Islamic government, the vast majority of Bahrain’s Shia expressed their desire for an open parliamentary system – that is to say, democracy. Almost three-quarters of Shia responded that a parliamentary system in which leftist, rightist, Islamic, and nationalist parties all compete in elections would be either “very suitable” or “suitable” for Bahrain. Shia support for parliamentary democracy was some 15 percentage points higher, even, than that among Sunnis.

Thus, if Bahrain’s king was correct that the opposition movement had been overtaken by Iranian-backed “extremists,” then the political orientations of Shia would have moved appreciably toward more support for an Islamic-based regime in Bahrain in just two years. In 2009, a little more than half of Shia respondents who identified with a political society named Al-Wifaq as the one most closely representing their own views, while less than 20 percent identified with Al-Haqq. But survey responses also revealed mounting disillusionment with Al-Wifaq’s experiment with political participation, which critics say has achieved little in its five years and comes at the price of government co-optation.

The growing sentiment seized upon by such groups as the Coalition for a Republic, is that if working for reform from within the existing system has proved a dead end, then perhaps the entire regime must change before Shia can achieve political and social influence in Bahrain commensurate with their demographic majority.

Rather than looking to Iran, Bahrain’s rulers should look to themselves to explain Shia radicalization. Indeed, the more telling half of King Hamad’s statement is not the second half – “hijacked by extremist elements with ties to foreign governments in the region” – but the first: “the legitimate demands of the opposition.” The problem in Bahrain is not Iranian-inspired extremism, it is that the Bahraini government’s definition of “legitimate demands” excludes the most basic grievances of ordinary Shia.

Bahraini Shia have long sought an end to religious-based discrimination in public-sector employment, particularly their wholesale exclusion from the police, the armed forces, and the power ministries such as Defense, Interior, and Foreign Affairs. Shia (as well as some Sunnis) decry the state’s decade-old program of naturalizing Arab and non-Arab Sunnis for work in the security services as tantamount to demographic engineering.

Opposition figures in both religious communities complain that the country’s parliamentary districts are gerrymandered around ethnic lines to limit the influence of Al-Wifaq and secular Sunni societies. Bahraini authorities, of course, dismiss all of these accusations.

It is unclear, then, what exactly King Hamad would have been willing to offer the opposition in recognition of its “legitimate demands.” To be sure, it was not resolution of any of the fundamental grievances articulated by Shia. From the ruling family’s perspective, it was precisely the measures that caused these grievances which had limited the extent of the present crisis.

Although the opposition could draw hundreds of thousands to the streets, it had no legal avenue to initiate political reform, and it had utterly no access to weapons with which to fight for it. The authorities, meanwhile, enjoyed a manufactured pro-government majority in parliament and a ready-made force of largely non-Bahraini servicemen with loyalties to none but the state. Clearly, any revision of this status quo is a nonstarter.

In lieu of substantive political concessions, King Hamad followed the lead of other Gulf Cooperation Council countries and offered opponents (and would-be opponents) one thing: money. Shortly after the onset of protests, the government announced generous social welfare packages including increased salaries and benefits, cost-of-living stipends, and plans for new subsidized housing.

The GCC even kicked in a $10 billion aid package of its own, dubbed a “Gulf Marshall Plan” for Bahrain. But this overt attempt at political buy-off only enraged protesters further. As aptly summarized by Ebrahim Sharif, the imprisoned head of Wa’ad, a now-dissolved secular political society, “This is about dignity and freedom – it’s not about filling our stomachs.”

By blaming political opposition on foreign meddling, religious extremism, and socio-economic frustration, Bahrain like other Arab Gulf regimes has sought to obscure and delegitimize elementary sources of discontent, namely targeted political exclusion.

King Hamad’s “extremists,” then, are not Shia Islamists but simply those who refuse to accept the material wealth-for-political silence bargain upon which Bahrain’s ruling regime and those of other Gulf states rest. But in refusing to address the most fundamental demands of mainstream Shia – or indeed to acknowledge the legitimacy of their complaints – Bahrain’s rulers have created a class of citizen every bit as dangerous as the Iranian-backed revolutionaries they seem to fear.

The views expressed in this article are solely those of Justin Gengler. For more from Gengler and excellent long-form analyses, visit Foreign Affairs.

———- Forwarded message ———-
Date: Mon, May 16, 2011 at 7:44 PM
Subject: Closed Kingdom
To: "Colin S. Cavell, Ph.D. @ GMail" <ccavell@gmail.com>


Closed Kingdom

“There are no two ways about it, the regime has waged war on its own people”

Closed Kingdom

by Soraya Esfahani
14-May-2011

As night falls in villages around Bahrain’s capital Manama, candlelight flickers in the dusty streets. Small groups of locals hold peaceful protests. There is an air of fear given what has taken place. Sometimes, the vigils are targeted by police, dispersed with tear gas. But worse, the night time also brings security force raids where people are ripped out of their beds and dragged away in front of screaming wives and children.

This is Bahrain since the Government imposed Martial Law on March 15. A month prior, hundreds of Bahrainis set up camp at Pearl Roundabout in Manama. They were mostly Shia youth, inspired by events in Egypt and Tunisia, who had had enough of unemployment and perceived discrimination by their Sunni rulers. Riding a wave of optimism and hope, tens of thousands more were swept out into the street to join the pro reform demonstrations. What they wanted was a constitutional monarchy, a real one. Instead, the demonstrations were brutally suppressed, 31 people were killed and many more wounded.

It’s now May. Peal Roundabout is no more, destroyed in the final assault by Bahrain’s forces to push protesters from the iconic site as if that would also destroy the hope and optimism of those it attracted.

Since that time, four men have been condemned to death for allegedly running over a policeman during the protests. Many more activists have been charged and are awaiting trial. Bahrain’s Centre for Human Rights says more than 800 people have been arrested. The fear of what happens when someone is arrested is real. It’s not just a fear of arrest, doctored evidence and a show trial. It’s fear of the unknown, of torture, of death. Human Rights Watch says four detainees have died in detention since April 2. The Bahrain Defence Force Hospital says one died of ‘hypovolimic shock,’ which is caused by excessive blood loss. Another died of ‘kidney failure’ and another two died of a pre existing condition, ‘sickle cell anaemia.’

Human Rights Watch, like a handful of other rights organisations, has had a presence in Bahrain since violence erupted. It has been investigating alleged abuses. The US based organisation doesn’t buy the official line about deaths in detention, "Four detainee deaths in nine days is a crime, not a coincidence," said Joe Stork, the deputy Middle East director. "The government tells families of detainees nothing about their whereabouts or well-being while they are alive or about the circumstances of their deaths."

Maryam Al Khawaja, a human rights activist, says the deaths are clear evidence torture is taking place. Her own father, Abdulhadi Al Khawaja, a prominent human rights activist, and two other family members are detained. The family says Abdulhadi was beaten, choked and arrested on April 9. It took two weeks before they received any news of his fate. Finally, he called, saying he was going to stand trial in a military court the next morning. No one was allowed into proceedings, not even lawyers. “We had no idea if he was going to stand trial, if he already had… we didn’t even know what the charges are,” Maryam says from New York. Her father has since been charged with anti regime activities and put on trial with 20 others. Since the arrests began, she has been unable to return home, fearing a similar fate.

There are few activists and protesters still willing to talk openly about what is happening. On the phone, their voices are hushed, they say little. We’re being monitored, they’re listening. On Facebook and email, depending on how you’ve come to their attention, they say the situation is slightly better but only slightly. Many of those who screamed the loudest on February 17 are silent. Eerily so. Some have been forced to contain their views – arbitrarily detained, beaten and released to live in fear.

People too afraid to speak over the phone will meet face to face as the next best option. But even that presents challenges. Taxis draw attention in the villages. One man who won’t share his name, says in a whisper over the phone, ‘Security forces can spot outsiders heading into the villages. Private cars are safer, but even then, who’s safe really?’

Checkpoints have been set up. Residents say they are humiliating and offensive. It’s forced some residents to cease going out into the street, lest they are stopped. Another man, an amateur photographer, is in constant fear of arrest. His tone has changed since February when he openly challenged the government. His brother was arrested praying at a mosque on April 14 he says and his neighbour was dragged away days later. He has heard nothing about either man since: “They gave us no reason, we don’t know where he is and if we ask, no one tells us. We’re not allowed to ask.”

Being in the wrong place and the wrong time is enough to be arrested, “In the morning it’s okay, but after 3 pm if the police see us out in Shia areas, near the shops or houses, sometimes they shoot at us with tear gas or arrest us.” He finishes, “they’ve gone mad.”

In the past few weeks, since arrests have intensified, he has left his camera at home rather than be caught and accused of working against the Government. Or even working as a spy, part of a so called ‘external threat,’ which Bahrain officials have used constantly to justify the crackdown and the continuing presence of Saudi Arabian troops in the country. The threat, according to the Government, is Iran. Protesters reject the suggestion they were backed by Iran or foreign group two months ago. And they reject it still.

Women detained

“Look around you, at all the women, we feel safe. If we didn’t, we wouldn’t have come here with our children,” said one young woman, as she sat in Pearl roundabout on February 19. The protests brought thousands of them onto the street. Dozens are now in prison. BCHR says at least three are pregnant.

One of the youngest detainees is 20 year old Ayat Hassan Yousef Qurmezi, a poet. Her family has not heard from her since she was arrested. They say she is being held in a prison with common criminals and drug dealers.

The arrested cover a wide section of society; activists, athletes, journalists, nurses, doctors and a large number of teachers and students. Hundreds went on strike during the unrest. Reports surface daily of threats, intimidation and abuse in schools, at the hands of security forces.

One account released by human rights campaigners details the harrowing experience at a girls school in Hamad Town two weeks ago. “Police stormed the school without any prior notice… they went to my cousin`s class at 12 pm; they had two girls names… one of them was my cousin,” says the statement.

It’s alleged female police officers took the girls, aged 16 and 17, out of class, into another room to interrogate them, accusing them of anti government activities. Inside, teachers and other students were lined against a wall. The students were ordered to repeatedly slap their teacher in the face, when they refused, the police officers did it for them. They were then taken to the police station.

“A female and then two men… videotaped them and afterwards started calling them names; branded them whores and prostitutes,” says the statement.

It continues, “The police brought a thick plastic hose and lashed and beat the girls on different parts of their bodies (legs, arms, stomach, chest, etc..). My cousin`s head was smashed against the station cell wall several times until she bled; her nose bled, forehead and cheeks were all bleeding from the hard continuous smashing… Now my cousin`s body is all bruised… but worse, she is now psychologically traumatized, mentally withdrawn and too scared to go back to school… for fear of repeated assault.” Furthermore, reports this week that security forces are threatening school girls with rape has unnerved many.

Nabeel Rajab, head of Bahrain’s Centre for Human Rights, who himself was arrested, beaten and released, says there are fears for all detainees, particularly female detainees, “we have not yet seen widespread rape used in prison under this King, we saw a lot of it in the 1990’s, under the previous King… but the problem is the security institute, people working there are from different countries. They’re not afraid of being sued or taken to court. It’s a very worrying situation.”

At least 34 detainees are nurses and doctors from the country’s largest hospital, Salmaniya.

Physicians for Human Rights, a US based watchdog alleges “systematic and targeted attacks against medical personnel, as a result of their efforts to provide unbiased care for wounded protesters.”

The deputy director of PHR, Richard Sollow, says “unfortunately, these incidents aren’t isolated. They seem to be part of a systematic attack on doctors in Bahrain.”

Bahrain’s Government rejects the allegations, arguing many doctors and nurses failed in their duties and impeded patients from getting medical help during the unrest. Government supporters go further, saying these medical professionals ought to be arrested for politicising the hospital and allowing it to become a rallying point for anti government protesters. They even accuse nurses and doctors of refusing to treat Sunni patients.

Receiving medical help in Bahrain is now too dangerous if you have wounds or the tell tale signs of anti riot fire. Free medical advice is now being offered on the internet, through Skype.

Changing Society

Unable to produce reform, the state of fear is pushing moderate Shia Bahraini’s away from political parties like the secular Waad or the Shia al Wefaq and towards more extreme groups, such as the banned Shia party Al Haq.

“Wefaq lost popularity and legitimacy with the Shia, they see it as too willing to compromise with the regime, to accept. Now people are looking elsewhere for options and al Haq is the most obvious choice,” says Shadi Hamid, the director of research at the Brookings Doha Centre.

Rajab agrees the turmoil is causing a shift, “it won’t take long to see extremism born, because we’ve been peaceful and yet we are losing our lives. While the whole world was silent, kids were detained and killed in the street. Peaceful means are not functioning.”

The call throughout Bahrain’s protest movement was ‘No Shia, no Sunni, only Bahraini.’ They were adamant reform would help all. The Island’s Shia’s majority complained they were prevented access to high ranking posts and discriminated against in Government jobs. They were also angry about the Government’s policy of recruiting foreign nationals, from mostly Sunni countries to serve in the police force and military, while they remained unemployed. Their anger was not directed at their Sunni country men, but at the Government. Aside from arrest, many Shia activists are now subject to death threats, intimidation and barrages of vile abuse. An unknown number of Shia mosques have been destroyed too, apparently symbols of the enemy.

“There is no hope for reform in the system, so they have to look outside the system. There is serious polarization now, the Shia and Sunni are at opposite ends of the debate,” says Hamid.

The consequence, one man says, is a torn society. Others are more optimistic about the fate of the Island kingdom.

“It’s been a dark time in Bahrain, but with time I think it will be back to normal. There is a bit of tension between Sunni and Shia, but the majority are living with peace between them,” says Mohammed Janahi a radio DJ, who fully supports the Monarchy. His father is Sunni, his mother is Shia.

Janahi says everybody supported reform, but the movement was hijacked by people with hidden agendas.

“The King and the Crown Prince tried to politically solve the issue and offered unconditional dialogue to the so called pro-reformists and even released prisoners… so what happened after that? Did the opposition accept the dialogue? No, they didn’t, they changed all the reform slogans to death chants against the leadership, slogans of hate and sectarianism .”

Janahi says the voices of people like him were drowned out, replaced by more radical ones, “We were part of the National Unity gathering, we demanded reform but not like they did, we said yes to dialogue, but not to an Islamic Republic.” And that is what many Sunni Bahrainis fear the Shia really want.

Politics

Bahraini’s have been looking for moral support from the international community. The European Union’s foreign policy chief, Catherine Ashton has condemned the crackdown on numerous occasions, including during a meeting with Bahrain’s King Hamad in Abu Dhabi in April. Ashton told reporters, "We discussed the importance of meaningful dialogue, meeting the aspirations of the people of Bahrain and… the respect of human rights.”

There are mixed messages out of Britain – the Crown Prince was invited to the Royal Wedding, but uninvited. All the while, British Foreign Secretary William Hague raised red flags over the Government’s crackdown “…there continue to be many credible reports of human rights abuses. The arrests of opposition figures, the reports of deaths in custody, allegations of torture and the denial of medical treatment, are extremely troubling.”

But the signal out of Washington has infuriated activists. The Obama administration, while sending out the occasional message of ‘concern’ for the situation there, has been virtually silent, particularly as arrests and allegations of torture intensified.

“The US’s reaction has been very disappointing. The US doesn’t want to see the regime fall, it doesn’t support full democracy in Bahrain, because that would mean Bahrain would have a Shia Prime Minister, who would probably open up ties with Iran. Not because the Shia are pro Iran, but in terms of development and interest, that’s what countries do,” says Hamid.

The US’s interests in Bahrain are well known, it’s home to the US Naval Fifth fleet, part of a tool to counter Iran’s regional influence. It receives millions of dollars in US funding each year to buy military hardware and services. It’s a key post for Saudi Arabia too.

“US officials talk of Iranian meddling, but there is much more meddling happening and that is Saudi meddling,” says Hamid.

Rajab and others like him, say human rights abuses will continue as long as the US continues to support the government, “The US has proven to be an obstacle, they are complicit. Bahrain’s Government doesn’t need to change as long as its allies continue to support it.”

And where is all this heading? Neither analysts nor activists see a solution as long as reform is not instituted quickly.

“There are no two ways about it, the regime has waged war on its own people,” says Hamid, “it’s a temporary solution to quell the protests but it does not address the grievances of the Shia. Ultimately, this policy is unsustainable.”

http://www.iranian.com/main/2011/may/closed-kingdom

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: thepearlroundabout.org <thepearlroundabout@gmail.com>
Date: Mon, May 16, 2011 at 6:22 PM
Subject: thepearlroundabout.org
To: ccavell@gmail.com

thepearlroundabout.org

Link to thepearlroundabout.org

How radical are Bahrain’s Shia?

Posted: 16 May 2011 01:36 PM PDT

(CNN World) In an April 19 op-ed in The Washington Times, Bahrain’s king, Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, wrote that his regime was forced into its ongoing brutal crackdown on political protest and dissent when “the legitimate demands of the opposition were hijacked by extremist elements with ties to foreign governments in the region” – that is, when the movement was hijacked by Shia revolutionaries with ties to Iran.

Monarchies seek strength in unlikely alliance

Posted: 16 May 2011 01:31 PM PDT

(FT.com) Wild rumours about Gulf states’ plans to contain Arab uprisings have been circulating for weeks. There was talk of the Gulf Co-operation Council becoming a proper federation of states. There were whispers that Saudi Arabia might even integrate Bahrain.

Iran Sends Solidarity Flotilla Towards Bahrain

Posted: 16 May 2011 01:29 PM PDT

(VOA News) Iran is sending a solidarity flotilla to Bahrain, a move that could escalate regional tensions around the island kingdom's crackdown on mostly Shi'ite protesters.

Bahrain students forced to pledge loyalty

Posted: 16 May 2011 01:28 PM PDT

(Press TV) Bahraini authorities have forced university students to sign a pledge of loyalty to the government or face expulsion, human rights activists say.

Iranian ships carrying aid to Bahrain turned back in Persian Gulf

Posted: 16 May 2011 01:25 PM PDT

(Washington Post) In an action that could increase the tensions between Iran and Arab monarchies, two Iranian ships in the Persian Gulf trying to carry Shiite activists to Bahrain were turned back Monday by warships belonging to the Gulf states coalition that is aiding the island kingdom in its crackdown on anti-government protesters, according to the activists’ Web site.

Bahrain court adjourns trial of protest activists

Posted: 16 May 2011 01:23 PM PDT

(AP) Bahrain's special security court on Monday adjourned until next week the trial of 21 opposition leaders and political activists, mostly Shiites, accused of plotting against the state.

Closed Kingdom

Posted: 16 May 2011 01:19 PM PDT

(Iranian.com) “There are no two ways about it, the regime has waged war on its own people”

Bahrain rights activist’s wife details torture, unfair trial

Posted: 16 May 2011 01:13 PM PDT

(Christian Science Monitor) Bahrain's crackdown on the pro-democracy uprising has shifted from the streets to courtrooms, workplaces, and schools. One prisoner's wife describes sexual assault and psychological abuse.

Students required to sign pledge of allegiance to government

Posted: 16 May 2011 12:47 PM PDT

(LA Times) The Bahrain Youth Society for Human Rights released a statement Sunday saying it was “deeply concerned” the country’s leading university had started requiring students to sign a pledge to support the embattled government of King Hamed ibn Isa Khalifa.

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———- Forwarded message ———-
Date: Mon, May 16, 2011 at 4:19 PM
Subject: Loyalty Pledge Required of Students at the University of Bahrain
To: "Colin S. Cavell, Ph.D. @ GMail" <ccavell@gmail.com>


Loyalty Pledge Required of Students at the University of Bahrain
May 2011

http://thegrumpyowl.com/2011/05/16/loyalty-pledge-of-university-of-bahrain/

TRANSLATION

Document of pledge and assurance of loyalty

Under this document, I the undersigned assure, As a full-time student studying at the University of Bahrain, my complete loyalty to the leadership of the Kingdom of Bahrain, represented by His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, governor of this country may God protect him, and to the rational government.

I also undertake to respect the laws and regulations of the Kingdom of Bahrain, and the laws and regulations of the University of Bahrain, which I have seen in the (Regulations of Professional Conduct Violations for University of Bahrain students), and not to organize or participate in any activity within the campus or outside that is irrelevant to student and academic affairs and authorized research. Or that would harm the reputation of the Kingdom of Bahrain inside and outside.

I am also fully aware that I pay only 6% of the total cost of my tuition, which is approximately 200 BD (523 $) per year, while the State bears 94% of the total cost of my tuition which is estimated to be about 4000 BD (10638.3 $) per year.


Accordingly, I acknowledge that not signing this document means I do not want to pursue my studies at the University of Bahrain, and in the case of signing, I understand that any act committed contrary to policies included in the terms of this document, gives the administration of the University of Bahrain the right to take appropriate actions against me and implement penalties that may reach a maximum of final and immediate expelling from the University of Bahrain.

Full Name:

Student ID:

College:

Department:

Date:

Signature:

The person who sent this to me and translated it also says that on the back of this document, which the signatories were not allowed to leave with, there were another series of points.

Just points about not protesting inside campus and not doing anything against the government, not discussing politics with colleagues and instructors.. etc

This was also related to me:

A heart breaking story I feel like sharing, is that my friend saw brother of martyr Ali mo’men who was brutally murdered by riot police on feb 17th [during the first raid on the Lulu Roundabout] while he was leaving the hall we were signing the pledges at, and carrying the guidelines leaflet that is given to us after we sign. He had to sign on complete loyalty to the king while the regime recently murdered his brother just so he could complete his education.

By forcing its students sign this drivel, The University of Bahrain is not only making a mockery of academic freedom but of loyalty itself.

Loyalty is a feeling that must be inspired in the hearts of people. It cannot be demanded at gunpoint. That’s not loyalty. That’s terror. And terror is a rope that frays quickly and breaks easily. A rope that often ends up wrapped around the neck of the people wielding it.

But I expect nothing better from the brutal despots who rule Bahrain.

How would they know the first thing about dignity or human decency? They have none.

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Maryam Al-Khawaja <maryam.alkhawaja@gmail.com>
Date: Mon, May 16, 2011 at 11:15 AM
Subject: Attempted rape of Alkhawaja in prison and updates
To: Maryam Al-Khawaja <maryam.alkhawaja@gmail.com>

Dear Friends,

Today was the third session in the trial of the 21 prominent Bahraini figures.

The lawyers said today that this case being tried at court is unconstitutional as they are being tried on charges that occurred previous to when this court was instituted (by State of National Safety).

Mohammed Jawad Parweez’s lawyer asked that he be released due to his age and health, but the judge refused. Parweez then took his shirt off to show the judge the torture marks on his body but he was forced to sit down by the security forces in the court room.

At the end of the trial, Abdulhadi Alkhawaja tried to address the court saying that security forces had tried to force him to make a videotaped apology to the king. He refused saying he would apologize if they can prove he did something illegal. As he tried to explain how they attempted to rape him, the security forces forcefully removed him from the court room. He later on told his wife that they took him into another room in which four men came and took their pants off. They then proceeded to touch him and tried to take his pants off saying they were going to rape him. He was unable to defend himself as his hands were handcuffed behind his back, so he threw himself on the ground and hit his head against the floor repeatedly until he lost consciousness. He also told her that he was to have a head scan as there may be damage to his head. He added that they repeatedly told him that they are going to find me (his daughter) and rape me. As a human rights defender this puts me in danger as well.

Ali Salman's (President of AlWefaq Society) step brother, Abbas AlMurshed who is a journalist in AlWaqt newspaper was arrested today.

Students at the University of Bahrain is are being made to sign loyalty pledges: http://thegrumpyowl.com/2011/05/16/loyalty-pledge-of-university-of-bahrain/


Maryam Al-Khawaja
Contact:
+44-7587303080 / +1(401)572-6597
Head of Foreign Relations Office
Bahrain Center for Human Rights

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: thepearlroundabout.org <thepearlroundabout@gmail.com>

Date: Sun, May 15, 2011 at 6:25 PM
Subject: thepearlroundabout.org
To: ccavell@gmail.com

thepearlroundabout.org

Link to thepearlroundabout.org

For Americans, Bahrain is all about the Iranians

Posted: 15 May 2011 01:49 PM PDT

(Troy Media) Rumour has it that U.S. President Barack Obama will address the Muslim World this week – a second instalment of his famous Cairo speech of 2009. In light of the current NATO effort in Libya, and the ongoing violence as Syria struggles to silence protest, not to mention the recent re-alignment of Palestinian politics. there is certainly a lot to talk about. What is unlikely to make the agenda is the disturbing pattern of repression and abuse in Bahrain.

Patrick Cockburn: Bahrain is trying to drown the protests in Shia blood

Posted: 15 May 2011 10:26 AM PDT

(The Independent) World View: Claiming that the opposition is being orchestrated by Iran, the al-Khalifa regime has unleashed a vicious sectarian clampdown

‘Hundreds held’ in Bahrain crackdown (video)

Posted: 15 May 2011 10:25 AM PDT

(Al Jazeera) Wife tells Al Jazeera how her husband was arrested by masked man in a wave of arrests targeting Shias.

———- Forwarded message ———-
Date: Mon, May 9, 2011 at 7:46 PM
Subject: I was just deported from Bahrain
To: "Colin S. Cavell, Ph.D. @ GMail" <ccavell@gmail.com>


I was just deported from Bahrain

"You’re a security risk"

I was just deported from Bahrain

by Soraya Esfahani
29-Apr-2011

I was just deported from Bahrain. Not really something to tell my Mum about, but she’ll find out anyway. With what’s going on one could presume it was because I am a journalist. But alas, that is so cliché. I have no proof, other than soviet style silence and sour expressions, but I think Bahrain’s airport Gestapo suspect I am an agent of Iran. Wow. Me? I’ve waited all my life to be an agent of something. Mostly an agent of chaos because that sounds cool. But of Iran?

I was heading there to see some people I met during the turning point in the pro reform uprising (and I say pro-reform because initially, reform was all people wanted). That day, February 17, Bahrani forces opened fire on peaceful protesters at Pearl Roundabout, in the capital Manama. Four died. In all, Bahrain’s Centre for Human Rights says 31 people have been killed since the uprising began and more than 800 arrested and detained, including more than 80 women.

People are living in fear. Communication lines, phone and email, are allegedly tapped and people are being monitored. All this with Saudi Arabia’s army keeping a watchful eye on and in the country.

With this in mind I headed back to Bahrain. It had been difficult for journalists to enter the country after the first shooting, inside many were working illegally because the Government stopped processing press visas. It has become much worse in the past few weeks and security forces continue to drag protesters, activists, doctors and nurses from their homes at all hours of the night.

But it was not my occupation that caused problems. The grumpy man at the counter didn’t even ask. Unfortunate really, because I had done some serious preparation work… I wasn’t going to offer up my occupation unless they figured it out…But why so shifty you ask? Well when a Government is arbitrarily detaining its citizens, torturing them to death in prisons and kicking the crap out of human rights activists in front of their children, it’s not something you want to publicise. And they don’t permit journalists to work legally so in trying to get the story out, there are little options left.

But I digress.. back to the airport.

Bahrain had lost its sense of humour and sense of reality. I knew it as soon as I stepped into Arrivals. I was hoping for a kind looking young man, the type I might be able to convince. But, the crowd of people parted like Moses did the Red Sea and it was not the promised land that awaited, but the fiery legions of Pharaoh. The immigration official waved me towards him. Yes, you will not be lenient nor fair I thought.

I handed over my little blue book, with the Emu and Kangaroo on its cover, hoping they would give me protection. His face didn’t change. He was not a nature lover.

Our exchange was brief, something like the following:

Grumpy Man: Where are you from?

Doe eyed pessimist: Australia (I think the Emu, Kangaroo and word Australia emblazoned across my passport said it all, but I refrained from sarcasm. I’m told its the lowest form of humour.)

Grumpy Man: (studying my picture and passport details intently.) Are you here for a meeting?

Doe eyed pessimist: No (feigning shock), not at all. I’m here for a break.

Grumpy Man: To do?

Doe eye pessimist: To enjoy two days here, you know, I want to sit by the pool, maybe go to the beach, relax (I knew it was stupid as soon as the words left my mouth).

Grumpy Man continues flipping: The beach? (yes that’s what us filthy heathens do in our spare time, lather ourselves in oil, lay about with sand creeping into our nether regions and pray for damaged yet glowing skin).

As he continues flipping I see several of my Qatar visas flash by, as well as two Iranian ones. Including, unfortunately, the one that was stuck in my passport yesterday. He paused on that page, my black and white visa photo, (necessary) hijab covering my hair, stared back at me like a traitor. He’d seen enough. Abruptly, he snapped my passport shut and told me to go wait on a maroon bench next to some South Asian labourers, caught in bureaucratic limbo.

It was then I realised this was not the Bahrain I knew.

I sat and waited as half a dozen men, coming and going, pushed my little blue passport around on a table, in a little white room. Pictures of the King adorned its windows and door. Eventually I asked what was going on. They told me they were sending me back. The Immigration official said it with a half smirk on his face and as though he was doing me a grand favour, shunting me back to the glitz and fake glamour of Doha. Not even pretending to misunderstand garnered any sympathy. Why? I asked. ‘You’re a security risk,’ he replies seriously. I protests, ‘Me?’ I can’t help but laugh, ‘You can’t be serious?’ Another man, dressed in a white uniform, chimes in, ‘Don’t ask us, we’re passport control you must talk to security.’ I then tried to talk to security, the boss dressed in a white robe and headdress, he just looked at me with disgust and mumbled something. He either didn’t understand English or didn’t want to. ‘You must call the Immigration Department to find out,’ said the uniformed (or uninformed) man.

A businessman from Doha introduced himself, hearing my conundrum. His name was Reza, worked in finance and was being deported too. Apparently, Iran has agents in banking who wear purple ties as well as Jim Morrison shirts (me). Poor Reza was born with an unfortunate name, a Shia very Iranian sounding one (he was British of Pakistani decent fyi and had an Iraqi visa in his passport). We were not alone in having the great Persian Cat shed fur on our clothes. Nearby, a women chimed in, her friend's husband was Iranian. They were supposed to drive from Manama to Saudi Arabia that day together. Immigration had given them one hour to get over the border or else. Or else, she emphasized.

I would have understood if they took issue with my occupation. Persecution is the safe house of dictatorships and the press is the first to feel the guillotine. And sometimes that’s fair enough, the press is mostly full of rubbish anyway. But to see a visa in a passport and raise the national guard?

Bahrain’s Saudi backers (puppet masters as many say) are waging both an ideological and influential war with Iran, unfortunately Bahrain is the battleground. In Iran’s defence (and I can’t get into too much detail because I’m just a rookie agent without the proper security clearance) they didn’t start it. Even Julian Assange and Wikileaks said Bahrain’s government uses the threat of Iran as a reason to snatch billions in US military funding and that there is no evidence of any such threat.

My little debacle, which I’m sure has been mirrored countless times at Bahrain’s International Airport over the past two months, is just one example of the spiral out of control. Bahrain is a secular economic playground in the Persian Gulf, where Gulf Arabs, including Saudi’s, mix with ex pat – red as beetroot Brits at bars. Now it’s unrecognizable. Even from the chilly cold interior of the airport.

Just a last note of irony. The headline of the Gulf Daily Mail that day (April 21), ‘the voice of Bahrain’: ‘Bahrain’s door open to business, says King.’ Could someone please tell him I’m at the airport and the roller doors have just come down?

AUTHOR
Soraya Esfahani is a journalist based in the Middle East.

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