{"id":1431,"date":"2011-05-18T13:24:17","date_gmt":"2011-05-18T20:24:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.crookedbough.com\/?p=1431"},"modified":"2011-05-18T13:24:17","modified_gmt":"2011-05-18T20:24:17","slug":"more-updates-from-bahrain-this-week-date-03232011-111645-pm-wed-23-mar-2011-221645-0700","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.crookedbough.com\/?p=1431","title":{"rendered":"More Updates from Bahrain this week Date: \t03\/23\/2011 11:16:45 PM (Wed, 23 Mar 2011 22:16:45 -0700)"},"content":{"rendered":"
Folks,<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
I keep receiving updates from Bahrain about the deteriorating situation there and the continuing unrest. However, my political instincts tell me that the uprising has been crushed for now. Moreover, while I would like to be writing analyses about Bahrain and the greater MENA revolts fulltime, unfortunately, right now am busy seeking employment given that I'm back in the USA, so I just don't have the time to keep forwarding this material on a regular basis. This is why I ended my "Bahrain Update" last Sunday.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
So, instead of continuing sending out a daily Bahrain Update to a large number of press folks and others, I have chosen only a select few folks, i.e. you, to receive some periodic updates that certain Bahrainis have gone through a lot of trouble to compile and send to me. I will not send all of the reports I get from Bahrain, only one or two that may be helpful for your work. They may help each of you in your own areas of expertise.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Names and other pertinent information will still be redacted to protect the identity of the reporters.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
regards,<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
csc<\/p>\n
__________________<\/div>\n
Colin S. Cavell, Ph.D.<\/p>\n
P.O. Box 9087<\/div>\n
Seattle, WA 98109
(206) 734-8187 <\/div>\n
ccavell@gmail.com<\/a>
http:\/\/www.cscpo.com\/<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
———- Forwarded message ———-
Date: Wed, Mar 23, 2011 at 2:36 PM
Subject: Updates from Bahrain this week
To: ccavell@gmail.com<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

[redacted]<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
I'll be using this email for political uses from now, I am told gmail is the safest, hotmail is more easily monitored. <\/p>\n

Bahraini authorities are spending a lot of time and effort trying to convince people and the world that things are back to normal, but that couldn't be anymore unreal. Checkpoint stories just get worse and worse. Alwasat newspaper published a few stories today http:\/\/www.alwasatnews.com\/3120\/news\/read\/533679\/1.html<\/a> . Summarized translation from the report: A bus transporting employees from ALBA (Aluminum Bahrain) from Demistan, Karzakan, Malkeya areas was stopped and threatened by weapons from going to work, no reasons provided. Two citizens from Demistan were severly beaten on Sunday 20 Mar as well by masked forces that are always stationed by the Supreme Council for Women, one of them was also going to work when they were stopped, beaten and sent back.
\nA citizen from Daih, who preferred not to publish his name, was also heavily beaten at the checkpoint by Bahrain Mall.
Another person who works in Seef District, left work at 4 pm and was heading home when he was stopped at a checkpoint which was crowded and was asked to park aside. Then he was approached by one of men and told he was trying to run over the police force there! He was asked to step out of the car, he was tied to a private bus, about seven people started beating him, insulting and cursing him, focusing on his face and eyes, they didn't stop until his nose broke and started bleeding. As he was released, he was shown to another citizen who was told "do you want what happened to him to happen to you?"<\/p>\n

Several similar stories occurred all over Bahrain. Many people had their phones confiscated, especially Blackberries and I-phones, Bahraini flags are confiscated as well. <\/p>\n

Ministry of Education withdrew scholarships from honor students in UK, Kuwait, Saudi, Egypt and Lebanon for expressing their opinions and participating in protests against violence in Bahrain. About 100 people are missing, which is worrying, because so far, all the people who have been missing, turn up dead! <\/p>\n

We all feel like we are really invaded by Saudi, it feels like we live under their rule. Their soldiers are dressed in Bahraini forces outfits, they ask people are you Sunni or Shia, or they ask you which area you're from, in order to decide what they will do to you. <\/p>\n

Under pressure -or rather threats- from the government, the labor union has suspended the strike yesterday. The large majority of people still didn't go for two reasons, first is, none of the changes they demanded have happened, expelling foreign troops on top those demands, second reason is that they don't really feel safe!<\/p>\n

One of the governments games these days now are to try and stain the uprising by attributing the acts of violence committed by their agents to protesters. Even though I don't see how that is possible considering the way we are suffocated by police patrols and raids all the time. The government is trying to win international media by saying they want dialogue and that we're obstructing that with our violent acts, that they need to "restore order" then they will start reform. This is some of what they've done http:\/\/sunlightfoundation.com\/blog\/2011\/03\/22\/bahrains-pr-team\/<\/a>
\nThey are trying to win the Asian expats here by turning them against the protesters. They are airing news on national TV for the first time in Philipino and Indian, they are spreading news on GDN that protesters are attacking Asians- I don't know how is that possible since all streets leading to Manama where they live are patrolled by police, army or both! <\/p>\n

People are still resisting though. Several decentralized rallies have broken out this week in 5-6 areas repeatedly. No one seems to be willing to give up or just be beaten into what the authorities are claiming to be normal life, there's nothing normal about what's going on these days. <\/p>\n

Besides violence, the government is holding on so dearly to their claims that Iran and Hezbollah are interfering with Bahrain. Iranian and Hezbollah leaders haven't as much as commented on what's happening in Bahrain until the crackdown escalation last week. Sayed Hassan Nasrallah spoke on all the Arab revolutions, Tunisia, Egypt, Yemen, Libya and Bahrain a few days ago for the first time. This was a golden strike for Bahraini authorities, they just went high on this, it was all they talked about on their tv, BNA released statements repeatedly denouncing Iranian and Hezbollah interference in Bahrain and the king himself went as far as saying that this plan which he and the Peninsula Shield have stopped is also a 30 year old Iranian plan. They even filed a complaint to the UN about Iranian interference in Bahrain! I wonder which complaint the UN will consider first, this one, or the ones submitted by opposition fronts and Bahraini people on violence, human rights violations and Saudi illegal military existence in Bahrain..hmmm.. Anyone beside me sensing the overrule of Saudi paranoia here? <\/p>\n

Another sign of the Saudi influence or overrule in Bahrain now is how the region is reacting to our struggle, for example, Al Qaradhawi, famous Sunni Egyptian religious figure, widely followed, spoke against our struggle and urged people not to support it in a speech last week, claiming that it is a fight of Shia against Sunni people. Of course, this is not the first sectarian position I see from the man, in 2006 when the majority of the Arab region supported Hezbollah's position in the war against Israel, students from the American University of Cairo told me that they protested in support of the Lebanese, however, they stopped because Qaradhawi told them it is wrong to support a group of Shia and hold pictures of their leader Nasrallah. Samar Salman wrote about this in AlSafir newspaper http:\/\/www.assafir.com\/Article.aspx?ArticleId=2440&EditionId=1804&ChannelId=42412<\/a> made me feel better to have my sentiment voiced, even if it still won't mean that Qaradhawi followers will buy it.<\/p>\n

The materials below cover the following:<\/div>\n

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