Bahrain may 'include opposition minister', says official 1 hour, 35 minutes ago

Bahrain's new government, which should be formed after a second round of elections on Saturday, may include a minister close to the Shiite opposition, an official told AFP.

The Islamic National Accord Association (INAA), the main party of the Shiite majority, clinched 16 seats in the 40-member parliament and seems assured of winning at least one more in a second round on Saturday.

The new cabinet "may include a personality close to INAA," the official said on condition of anonymity.

He said it would be "a technocrat," adding that this "witnesses a willingness to promote political life" in the Gulf monarchy.

EU says elections in Bahrain have consolidated democratic process

Brussels, Nov 29, IRNA
EU-Bahrain-Elections
The European Union welcomed Wednesday the parliamentary elections in Bahrain, the first round of which was held on Saturday.

"The higher turnout compared to the previous elections held in 2002 shows that the Bahraini people have embraced the importance of the electoral process in developing a democratic state," said the current Finnish EU Presidency in a statement.

"The EU is convinced that the elections have further consolidated the democratic process in the Kingdom of Bahrain," it added.

By William Wallis in Cairo

Published: November 29 2006 02:00 | Last updated: November 29 2006 02:00

Bahrain is unlikely to feature on the agenda when US President George W. Bush meets Nouri al-Maliki, the Iraqi prime minister, in Jordan tomorrow in search of a magic formula to turn the tide of violence in Iraq.

But the tiny Gulf kingdom - host to the US 5th naval fleet - has been buffeted too by the shifting winds of US policy in the region and will be looking to Mr Bush for signs of any fresh change in direction. Because Bahrain, located near Iraq, is also divided between Islam's two predominant sects, the spreading fall-out from the sectarian killing in Iraq is also magnified there.

Bahrain's victorious Shiites look to reassure Sunnis
by Mohammad Fadhel
Mon Nov 27, 7:30 AM ET

Bahrain's Shiite opposition, which made a spectacular entry into the Gulf state's parliament, will initially tread cautiously in order to reassure Sunnis and promote dialogue with the Sunni-led regime, analyists said.

The Islamic National Accord Association (INAA), the main formation of the Shiite majority, clinched 16 seats in the 40-member parliament in Saturday's polls and seems assured of winning at least one more in a second round on December 2.

But the INAA will "not raise explosive issues liable to create tensions with the government in the first three months" of the new chamber's term, said Abdul Hussein al-Metqawie, one of the 16 new INAA lawmakers.

In Bahrain, Democracy Activists Regret Easing of U.S. Pressure

By Faiza Saleh Ambah
Washington Post Foreign Service
Monday, November 27, 2006; A16

MANAMA, Bahrain, Nov. 26 -- Bahrain's government has touted parliamentary elections here as a model for regional reform and a milestone for democracy. But critics say the polls are similar to those in many Arab countries: designed to give the appearance of democracy while maintaining the government's tight grip on power.

Although many countries in the region have introduced various degrees of political participation, from limited municipal councils in Saudi Arabia to spirited parliaments in Kuwait and Yemen, the reforms have consistently fallen short of the freedoms democracy activists have sought.

November 27, 2006
Strong Showing for Opposition Party in Bahrain Elections
By HASSAN M. FATTAH
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, Nov. 26 — Shiite opposition candidates won 16 of the 17 seats they contested in Saturday’s parliamentary elections in Bahrain, the country’s election commission said Sunday.

The opposition now holds 40 percent of the elected Parliament’s 40 seats, with the 17th contested seat to be decided in a runoff on Dec. 2.

But leaders of the predominantly Shiite opposition party, the Wefaq National Islamic Society, said the gains, which were expected, might not translate into much political power. Government loyalists may retain control of much of the remainder of the lower house, depending on the outcome of the runoff. Furthermore, the upper house, which is appointed by King Hamad al-Khalifa, can overrule any act of the lower house.

Great day for democracy in Bahrain
11/26/2006 7:18:00 PM GMT

The United States barks about democracy in the Middle East only when that serves its economic, military, or strategic interests.

But when free and fair elections take place in the Middle East, the U.S. either ignores or tries to block the recurrence of such events.

An example of that is what happened in the Palestinian territories. When fair and democratic elections produced undesirable results for the U.S., it attempted in every possible way to change the outcome of these elections, i.e. topple the Hamas-led government.

Bahrain Shiites ahead in election

MANAMA, Bahrain (Reuters) -- Bahrain's main Shiite Muslim opposition won 16 of parliament's 40 seats but the group said on Sunday it doubted the strong showing would yield much political power in the Sunni-led kingdom.

According to results announced by the justice minister, the Al-Wefaq National Islamic Society secured 16 of the 17 seats it sought and the remaining seat will be decided in a runoff on Dec. 2. The group won 18 municipal seats in Saturday's polls, with official figures putting voter turnout at 72 percent.

The results could give majority Shi'ites a bigger role in the political life of the pro-Western Gulf Arab state, which is ruled by a Sunni monarch.

Islamists do well in Bahrain poll
By William Wallis in Manama

Published: November 26 2006 17:32 | Last updated: November 26 2006 17:32

Elections in Bahrain looked set on Sunday to deliver a parliament dominated by Islamists but divided along sectarian lines, reflecting both a regional surge towards political Islam as well as heightened tensions between Sunni and Shia Muslims.

However, some Bahrainis complained that the results would not reflect the diversity of opinion in the island kingdom, host to the US Navy’s fifth fleet and traditionally more liberal than other Gulf states.

Bahrain Polls Crowded in Tense Elections

By JIM KRANE
The Associated Press
Saturday, November 25, 2006; 5:34 PM

MANAMA, Bahrain -- The Shiite Muslim majority in this small U.S.-allied Persian Gulf nation hoped to increase its political power Saturday in parliamentary elections that have worsened frictions with Bahrain's dominant Sunnis.

With similar tensions weighing heavily on neighboring Arab countries planning their own steps toward democracy, campaigning in Bahrain was marred by sectarian fear-mongering and a backlash against 18 women candidates. Voting also bore signs of organized corruption.

Bahrain Expects Huge Election Turnout
Bahrain Expects Huge Voter Turnout After Divisive Election Campaign
By JIM KRANE
The Associated Press
MANAMA, Bahrain - Campaigning has been dirty and divisive ahead of parliamentary elections Saturday in this U.S. Gulf ally: Mobile text messages warn voters that a landmark Shiite Muslim victory would turn Bahrain into a new Iraq and that female candidates will spread immorality.

Shiites, in turn, accuse the Sunni-run government of plotting to rig the ballot against them in the first election where they stand a chance of turning their demographic majority into political power.

MANAMA, Bahrain, Nov. 24 — For the past month, they have promised the world to voters in this tiny island kingdom off the east coast of Saudi Arabia: better housing, better jobs, higher salaries, and better services. One has even promised greater dignity.

But as more than 200 candidates vied for a seat in Bahrain’s 40-member elected Parliament, the one thing that many were not prepared to promise was far-reaching political change.

“When I speak to supporters, I feel I have to acknowledge, yes, not much is going to change,” said Sheik Ali Salman, the leader of the Wefaq National Islamic Society, Bahrain’s leading opposition movement, which is predominantly Shiite and is vying for 17 seats in Parliament.

BMANAMA, Bahrain (Reuters) -- Bahrainis began voting in the small Gulf state's national elections on Saturday, amid tension between the government and the Shiite Muslim opposition which boycotted polls in the pro-Western kingdom in 2002.

The main opposition group has warned the Sunni-led authorities that any attempt to rig the parliamentary and municipal elections would be vigorously opposed.

Election officials have denied charges of election irregularities and the authorities have set up an election hotline to receive complaints.

Sheikh Ali Salman, head of Al-Wefaq National Islamic Society that represents Shiites, says his group would know the polls were rigged if it did not win 13 of parliament's 40 seats.

Google Earth spurs Bahraini equality drive
By William Wallis in Manama

Published: November 24 2006 21:29 | Last updated: November 24 2006 21:29

Since Bahrain’s government blocked the Google Earth website earlier this year for its intrusion into private homes and royal palaces, Googling their island kingdom has become a national pastime for many Bahrainis.

The site allows internet users to view satellite images of the world in varying degrees of detail. When Google updated its images of Bahrain to higher definition, cyber-activists seized on the view it gave of estates and private islands belonging to the ruling al-Khalifa family to highlight the inequity of land distribution in the tiny Gulf kingdom.

Tensions and apathy color Bahrain elections
By Hassan M. Fattah
The New York Times
One is a former banker who has been smeared as a "Godless communist." Another is a Shiite cleric who previously boycotted the system he now hopes to join. Another has been detained twice by security officials, accused of ties to Al Qaeda.

They are among 200 candidates vying for seats in Bahrain's 40-member Parliament, promising better housing, jobs and services in this tiny island kingdom off the eastern coast of Saudi Arabia.

Almost all, however, have bluntly warned their supporters not to expect much political change in the process.

Discord Attends Bahrain Election
Charges Against Ruling Sunni Minority Mar Run-Up to Saturday Vote

By Faiza Saleh Ambah
Washington Post Foreign Service
Saturday, November 25, 2006; A08

MANAMA, Bahrain -- Friction between Sunni and Shiite Muslims in this strategic Persian Gulf kingdom, which is holding its second parliamentary elections in three decades, has clouded the voting set here for Saturday.

The campaign for the National Assembly's 40-member lower house has been marred by an alleged plot by a senior government official to rig the elections in favor of the ruling Sunni minority.

Bahrain Expects Huge Election Turnout

By JIM KRANE
The Associated Press
Friday, November 24, 2006; 2:20 PM

MANAMA, Bahrain -- Campaigning has been dirty and divisive ahead of parliamentary elections Saturday in this U.S. Gulf ally: Mobile text messages warn voters that a landmark Shiite Muslim victory would turn Bahrain into a new Iraq and that female candidates will spread immorality.

Shiites, in turn, accuse the Sunni-run government of plotting to rig the ballot against them in the first election where they stand a chance of turning their demographic majority into political power.

Bahrain expects huge voter turnout after divisive election campaign

The Associated Press
Freewheeling campaigning for this island kingdom's third-ever parliamentary election came to a close Friday, a day ahead of a historic vote being closely watched in neighboring Persian Gulf monarchies. Huge turnout is expected when polls open Saturday.

Campaigning has been fierce and dirty, with rally tents vandalized, allegations of secret government funding for favored candidates and torrents of text messages flooding mobile phones. Anonymous messages warn Sunni Muslims to back pro-government candidates against the Shiite Muslim-led opposition or face Iraq-style chaos.

Nov 23rd 2006 | MANAMA
From The Economist print edition

But if Bahrainis boycott the vote, change may come in a less welcome way

TOURIST brochures call Bahrain a land of golden smiles. It is true that this tiny island kingdom in the Gulf is a quiet, friendly and mildly prosperous place. But in the run-up to elections seen as a crucial test for democracy in an autocratic region, few smiles are in evidence.

Bahraini natives, who make up two-thirds of the archipelago's 750,000 residents, have reason to be sceptical of the election on November 25th. When he acceded to the throne in 1999, King Hamad al-Khalifa made himself hugely popular by ending a 25-year-long state of emergency that had seen thousands arbitrarily arrested and hundreds sent into exile. But the reclusive king, said to be pressured by conservatives in his family, then broke a promise to revive earlier rules whereby three-quarters of parliamentary seats were freely elected.

Bahrainis to elect their second post-reform parliament
(AFP)

24 November 2006

MANAMA - Bahrainis cast their ballots on Saturday to elect a new parliament, with the mostly-Shia opposition vying to seize a sizable representation after boycotting the last polls.

Polling was due to open at 0800 am (0500 GMT) on Saturday, 24 hours after the close of campaigning.

Some 295,000 eligible voters will choose between 207 candidates, including 17 women, to elect 39 MPs in a similar number of constituencies.

One seat in the 40-strong chamber has already gone to Latifa Al Qouhoud -- a female candidate standing unopposed in her constituency -- making her the first woman MP in the kingdom’s history.

Sectarian tension overshadows Bahrain election as pressure for change grows
By William Wallis in Manama

Published: November 24 2006 02:00 | Last updated: November 24 2006 02:00

Bahrain's main Shia opposition group, el Wefaq National Islamic Society, is portraying tomorrow's parliamentary elections as a last chance to promote peaceful dialogue on the Gulf kingdom's political and economic future.

To cheers and chanting from thousands of supporters, Sheikh Ali Salman, the youthful leader of el Wefaq, warned at a rally this week that if the group's inclusion in parliament did not lead to meaningful change, frustration would boil over on to the streets.

MPs hope blacklist won't affect voting
By TARIQ KHONJI
Published: 24 November 2006

MPs named on a blacklist by the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights (BCHR) said they hoped it would not influence voters' decisions in tomorrow's elections.

The list named 19 MPs, including independents and members of Al Asala Islamic Society and Al Menbar Islamic Society.

The BCHR claims they contributed to human rights violations in the country by ratifying laws that restrict freedoms and contradict human rights norms, including the political societies law, the law on gatherings and demonstrations, the terrorism law and others.

Bahrain politics: Adversarial

November 23rd 2006

COUNTRY BRIEFING

FROM THE ECONOMIST INTELLIGENCE UNIT

Opposition parties are expected to make significant gains in Bahrain's parliamentary elections on November 25th, after four opposition groups decided to end an election boycott. This could potentially work to the advantage of the government, which has sought for some time to regulate opposition movements and bring them into the parliamentary fold. Yet persistent sectarian tensions in the Shia-majority but Sunni-ruled state, coupled with a recent uproar over a report alleging systematic vote-rigging, suggest the new parliament will be combative.

Main political players in Bahrain's elections
By AFP
Middle East Times
Published November 23, 2006

Bahrain, which goes to the polls Saturday to elect a new parliament and local councils, has more than a dozen active political "associations." Political parties remain banned, as they are in other Gulf monarchies.

Following are the main political associations, most of which are fielding candidates in the race for the 40-seat parliament:

- The Islamic National Accord Association (INAA), the main political formation of the Shiite majority and the biggest opposition group in the Sunni-ruled state.

Bahrain opposition fears poll fraud

Bahrain goes to the polls on Saturday

Days before legislative elections in Bahrain, the country's opposition has said it doubts the "fairness of the poll" and warned of possible rigging of the ballot by the government.

The left-leaning National Democratic Action Association [NDAA] has said 10 out-of-constituency public voting centres could be potential points for fraud.

Around 295,000 people are registered to vote in 39 voting centres in the same number of contested constituencies, in addition to 10 public centres.

Bahrain's Shia, who make up a majority of the population see Saturday's polls as a test for the reforms launched by the Sunni-led administration.

Q&A: Bahrain election
The Gulf state of Bahrain goes to the polls on Saturday to elect representatives to their lower house of parliament and five municipal councils.
Intense competition for each seat is expected after groups representing the Shia majority, who boycotted the last vote in 2002, decided to contest the election.

But although the monarchy has been praised in recent years for its democratic progress, recent moves by the Sunni-led authorities have led some to question its commitment to reform and human rights.

What are the major issues?

Although the government has gone some way towards easing the long-running conflict between Bahrain's Shia majority and the ruling Sunni minority, Sunni-Shia tension has again come to the fore.

‘Opposition will be strong this time’
Wefaq leader says no sectarian issues in Kingdom
Sandeep Singh Grewal
Staff Reporter

Al Wefaq National Islamic Society general secretary Shaikh Ali Salman yesterday asserted that the Kingdom did not face any sectarian issues though a lot of things had been said about it in the past.
He told mediapersons at the media centre at the Regency Intercontinental that the upcoming elections would see the emergence of a strong opposition that will work for public welfare.
Candidates from Capital, Muharraq and Northern governorates visited the centre through the day.

Ignorance main obstacle in HIV battle
By REBECCA TORR
Published: 23rd November 2006

IGNORANCE is still hindering the battle against HIV and Aids, along with community care for victims, according to results of a Bahrain survey revealed last night.

The survey, conducted by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in collaboration with the Health Ministry over the last year, targeted Injecting Drug Users (IDUs), pregnant women and university students.

The most frequent misconception among survey participants was that HIV/Aids could be transmitted by mosquito bites. This was stated by 23 per cent of IDUs, and 40pc of students and pregnant women.

Unions oppose ban on strikes
By TARIQ KHONJI
Published: 23rd November 2006

UNION leaders yesterday pledged to demand that the new parliament change an order banning strikes at "vital facilities". They say that it takes away workers' most powerful tool against unjust employers.

The workers' representatives say that the edict issued by Prime Minister Shaikh Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa this week is against International Labour Organ-isation (ILO) standards and agreements that Bahrain has entered into.

General Federation of Bahrain Trade Unions (GFBTU) vice secretary-general Sayed Salman Jaffer Al Mahfooz said workers should have been consulted before it was passed.

King approves three executions
By SARA SAMI
Published: 23rd November 2006

MANAMA: Death sentences against three people convicted separately of two savage murders have been approved by His Majesty King Hamad, it was announced last night. A maid and her accomplice, both Bangladeshi, will die for the murder of a Bahraini mother-of-two, Latifa Abdulla Abdulaziz, in November 2004.

A Pakistani man will be executed for the murder of his Bahraini lover's 72-year-old husband, in August 2003.

Public Prosecutor Ali bin Fadel Al Buainain received the King's written approval last night to carry out the sentences, originally imposed by the High Criminal Court and upheld on appeal by the Court of Cassation.

Letter to SR on Promotion & Protection of the Right to Freedom of Expression

Mr. Ambeyi LIGABO

The Special Rapporteur on the Promotion and the Protection of

the Right to Freedom of Opinion and Expression

Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights

United Nations Office at Geneva

CH-1211, Geneva 10 - Switzerland

BAHRAIN: Expressing themselves, Activists Face State Security Charges

Dear Mr. Ligabo,

We would like to express our deep concerns of detention and crimination of two Bahraini activists, Dr Mohamed Saeed Alsahlawi and Mr Husain Abdulaziz Alhebshi, who have been detained by the local Authorities because they have possesses leaflets and publication calling for the boycott of next election - See their case in the Appendix 1. The charges set forth by the Public Prosecution neglect their right for freedom of expression and could end up facing State security charges, leading to harsh penalties including prolonged imprisonment- See Appendix 2, below.

Bahraini women face uphill election struggle
Web posted at: 11/23/2006 2:5:55
Source ::: AFP
MANAMA • Although women in Bahrain fare better than in other Gulf monarchies, the 18 female hopefuls in Saturday’s parliamentary polls still face an uphill struggle to get elected.

Eight women vied for elected office for the first time in the last parliamentary elections in 2002, but none managed to clinch a seat.

This time round there will be at least one female face in the 40-seat chamber – Latifa Al Qouhoud has already become the first woman MP in the country’s history after she stood unopposed in her constituency.

Salafi leader prefers Islamist parliament for 'nation's sake'
http://archive.gulfnews.com/region/Bahrain/10084607.html

11/22/2006 10:34 PM | By Habib Toumi Bureau Chief

Manama: Outgoing Chamber of Deputies second deputy speaker yesterday said that he looked forward to an Islamist parliament for the sake of the nation.

"I would rather have Islamists from both Sunni and Shiite sects than liberal deputies who do not uphold Islamic values," Al Mouawda told Gulf News.

The Salafi leader, known for his cordial relations with Bahrain's political formations and with the Shiite blocs, said an Islamic composition of the chamber would consolidate relations between the legislative body and the general public and would serve them better.

Bahrain polls: Alleged anti-Shia plot casts shadow
(AFP)

22 November 2006

MANAMA - Claims of a plot to marginalize Bahrain’s Shia majority have cast a shadow on the runup to Saturday’s legislative polls in the Gulf state despite a gag order on the “Bandargate” affair.

A controversial report by purported British spy Salah Al Bandar in which he claimed to have uncovered the conspiracy will have “a definite impact” on Bahrainis for years to come, said Sheikh Ali Salman, who heads the main Shia opposition political group.

Bandar, a Sudanese-born former government consultant, alleged he exposed a secret organization operating within the Sunni-led government to “deprive an essential part of the population of this country of their rights”—an allusion to Shias.

Bahrain Shiite majority in pre-poll show of strength by Ali Khalil
Tue Nov 21, 9:44 AM ET

Thousands of Bahraini Shiites hailed the majority community's sometimes bloody campaign for democracy in the Sunni-ruled Gulf kingdom as they put on a rare show of strength ahead of Saturday's polls.

Leaders of the main Shiite party contesting the elections tempered the message of defiance with calls for national unity and conciliation with the Sunni elite.

But rank and file supporters of the Islamic National Accord Association (Al-Wifaq) punched their fists in the air as they paid tribute to the movement's martyrs at a mass rally Monday evening.

Bahrain bans strikes a month after allowing them
21 Nov 2006 11:26:13 GMT
Source: Reuters
Printable view | Email this article | RSS [-] Text [+]

MANAMA, Nov 21 (Reuters) - Bahrain has banned strikes and worker demonstrations in most business sectors, a month after labour law reforms banning the sacking of strikers encouraged a wave of trade union activity in the Gulf island state.

The United States has urged countries hoping to qualify for a bilateral free trade agreement (FTA) to amend labour laws to comply with international standards that protect worker rights, including the right to associate and bargain for higher pay.

Bahrain Shiite majority in pre-poll show of strength
By Ali Khalil
AFP
Published November 21, 2006

Thousands of Bahraini Shiites hailed the majority community's sometimes bloody campaign for democracy in the Sunni-ruled Gulf kingdom as they put on a rare show of strength ahead of Saturday's polls.

Leaders of the main Shiite party contesting the elections tempered the message of defiance with calls for national unity and conciliation with the Sunni elite.

But rank and file supporters of the Islamic National Accord Association (Al Wifaq) punched their fists in the air as they paid tribute to the movement's martyrs at a mass rally Monday evening.

Candidates express fears over polls transparency
Published: 21 November 2006

CANDIDATES yesterday expressed fears about transparency at Bahrain's 10 general polling stations, at which people will be able to vote irrespective of which constituency they belong to.

Candidates told election officials that they and their representatives would not be able to go to all 10 general polling stations, as well as to those in their respective constituencies.

High Elections Committee executive director Wael Buallay said that since the deadline had passed, the candidates could not register more representatives, but said that the law probably wouldn't have allowed them to have 10 anyway.

Religious fatwas used to explain poll participation

11/21/2006 12:09 AM | By Habib Toumi, Bureau Chief

Manama: Four years ago Salafi leader Shaikh Adel Al Mouawda needed to explain the reasons for his Al Asala Society to contest the elections.

"Entering the parliament is not a religious act. But it becomes a must when there is a need to counter probable harm," he said.

Little did the agenda-setting shaikh know that he was creating a precedent that would be taken up this year by Shiite leaders to explain to their followers the reasons for their controversial decision to end their boycott of the polls and to fully endorse popular participation.

Time 'is right for women winners'
By Geoffrey bew
Published: 20 November 2006

FEMALE candidates have a good chance of winning seats in Bahrain's parliamentary elections, an envoy declared yesterday.

French Ambassador to Bahrain Malika Berak believes the country is ready to elect women when voters go to the polls on Saturday.

"I feel that yes, the chance is big," she told the GDN.

"It is time. They (Bahrainis) don't have to wait any longer."

Ms Berak was speaking after a Press conference at her residence in Manama to announce details of the second Women's Voices Forum.

The three-day event, which starts on Sunday at the Bahrain National Museum, will feature round-table discussions with prominent women from Bahrain

Bahrain: The Authorities continue targeting freedom of expression and commence assault on activists during popular interaction with "Bandargate"
Committee of Solidarity with Activists and Detainees of Conscience in Bahrain

Late yesterday (Saturday), the Bahraini Public Prosecution ordered both Dr. Mohamed Said (dentist-35 years), Hussein Abdul-Aziz to remain in custody pending investigations for a period of 15 days, on two charges. The first is "possession and acquisition of publications without legitimate cause, including favouritism and promotion of the changing systems of the State through illegal means and without a legitimate reason. The second charge is "possession and acquisition of publications, without legitimate reason, containing false news and exciting rumors, and would cause disruption of public security, and damage public interest.

Election panel warns against spreading rumours

The government will crack down on people who question the fairness of elections without proof, an official said, a week before parliamentary and municipal polls. “Those who spread rumours about the integrity of the election or candidates without proof will face prosecution and imprisonment of up to six months or a fine of up to BD500,” an election spokeswoman said. “We challenge any candidate who believes in these allegations to provide proof, to present any name of those so-called ‘roving voters’,” Ahmed said. “The elections enjoy all safeguards to guarantee their fairness ... Doubtful rumours seek to undermine the election process and give it a false negative image,” she said.

Illegal recruiter strikes third time
Another minor maid runs away from sponsor after two weeks’ work
Ayla Marrise G Ginete
Contributor

Alleged illegal recruiter Zoraida Salem has left a distinct trail leading back to her modus operandi of recruiting minors into the housemaid trade.
A third member of her batch girls has run away from her sponsors after just two weeks working for her sponsor.
Twenty one year old Jocelyn Bocanegre, claims to have been a victim of abuse and maltreatment on a daily basis.
“I cannot believe that I am here now; if it weren’t for this taxi driver who pitied me and drove me to the nearest bus station then I would not be here. He was kind enough to driver me there after which I helped by another local man, by paying for my fare,” she said.

Fair polling petition being sent to King
By Geoffrey bew
Published: 20 November 2006

Hundred parliamentary and municipal election candidates have signed a petition demanding fairer polls.

The document is to be sent to His Majesty King Hamad tomorrow, requesting that 10 general polling stations outside normal constituencies be scrapped.

Thirty-five people signed the petition at its launch at the Bahrain Medical Society, Juffair, last Wednesday, before it was circulated among other candidates.

Signatories say that only the 40 constituency polling centres should be open, because more centres will make it difficult to monitor the elections.

New hunger strike over delay in deportations
By BEGENA GEORGE
Published: 20 November 2006

A group of detainees waiting to be deported after serving prison sentences are staging a second hunger strike from today.

Twenty Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi detainees staged a brief hunger strike at the Hidd detention centre on November 12, to protest over delays in sending them home.

They vowed on Saturday to begin a second strike from 2pm yesterday, if promises to send them home quickly were not met.

The prisoners say they waited till yesterday for a response and when they had not heard from any officials about their issue being resolved they decided to resume the strike, but put it off until today.

Bahrain destination for Filipinos
Published: 20 November 2006

BAHRAIN is now in the top 10 worldwide destinations favoured by Filipinos seeking jobs overseas, it was revealed yesterday.

Thirteenth last year, Bahrain is now at number 10 in the list compiled annually by the Philippines' Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) in Manila.

The updated 2006 Fast Stats list released by the POEA showed that the most number of Filipino workers, newly hired for various jobs overseas, went to the Middle East between the months of January and October.

Out of 263,887 that went abroad within those 10 months, 178,685 are now working in jobs in the Middle East region.

Law 'may hit remittances'
By EUNICE del ROSARIO
Published: 20 November 2006

BAHRAIN recruiting agencies are backing a new study predicting losses of up to $250 million (BD94.5m) in annual remittances to the Philippines if it approves a new proposal to double Filipina housemaids' pay to $400 (BD151).

A wage rise would mean that foreign employers would turn to other expat maids willing to work for less, leaving many Filipina domestic helpers unemployed, according to a study compiled by the Philippines-based Federated Association of Manpower Exporters (Fame).

It is estimated that eight million Filipinos work overseas, out of which officials estimate that 80,000 work as maids in various countries.

Election 2006
Central Governorate - Constituency 9
Constituency 9 of the Central Governorate is an area without the normal complaints of the poor and unemployed. The areas of A’ Ali are swank, with only villas. However, the area of East Riffa, comprising a major chunk of the constituency lie in a middle income belt. This is the battleground of some of the famed hats, including Khalifa al Dhahrani (former chairman of the Chamber of Deputies) and Ibraheem Abdulraheem Fakhroo (former chairman of the Riffa Municipal Council), writes Alexander Arackal. For the Chamber of Deputies it is a five-cornered contest, while the battle for the Municipal Council seat is four-cornered.

Election 2006 Bahrain Tribune poll survey
The Bahrain Tribune poll survey revealed several interesting factors in the preference pattern between men and women in the selection of candidates. While 69 per cent of the women respondents said the educational background of a candidate mattered most in selecting their representtive, 50 per cent of the male respondents pitched in for a candidate’s affiliation to political society as the most important factor, which found favour only with 19 per cent of the women.
When it came to popularity of the candidate among the masses, both men and women seemed to agree that it wasn’t that important an issue, with 14 per cent of men rating it high and 12 per cent of the women respondents stating they would give priority to popularity.

Second minor runs to shelter
17-year-old Filipina maid illtreated for four and half months since she began work
Ayla Marisse G Ginete
Contributor

A second underaged Filipina maid sought refuge at the Overseas Workers Welfare Association (OWWA) shelter two days ago.
Safiya arrived at the shelter, heavily bruised all over her body, black and blue in several places, showing the signs of extreme abuse.
The girl arrived at the shelter scared, penniless, and without any belonging.
Less than a month ago, 15-year-old Rosanna Baro had arrived at the shelter for assistance.
Incidentally, 17-year-old Safiya is also a victim of illegal recruitment from the Philippines, and allegedly belonged to the same batch of maids recruited by a Filipino woman by the name of Zuraida Salem.

Shelter for the needy
But some runaways take advantage
Ayla Marisse G Ginete
Contributor

The Overseas Workers’ Welfare Association has never turned away our ‘kababayans’ who needed assistance, no matter how many times they left and returned to the shelter, Philippine Ambassador Eduardo Pablo Maglaya says.
The shelter has implemented a policy of openness and lets in any Filipino in distress, the ambassador reiterated, referring to reports in newspapers about shelter runaways in the past few days. “There is no maximum limit for the inmates to stay in the shelter. As long as their cases are pending in our offices, the inmates stay at the shelter. Not unless they choose to leave the shelter, signing a waiver that the shelter is no more responsible for their well-being,” he said.

Spotlight on media role
Published: 19 November 2006

A SEMINAR on media monitoring during municipality and parliamentary elections will be held tomorrow at the Bahrain Medical Society, Juffair.

The event, which begins at 7pm, is open to media representatives, journalists, political societies, candidates for parliament and municipal councils, in addition to human rights activists and the general public.

The project on media monitoring is organised by the Bahraini Society for Public Freedom and Democracy Support in co-operation with the Arabian Group for Media Monitoring During Elections and the International Media Support, based in Denmark.

Reaching out to workers
Published: 19 November 2006

MORE than 2000 workers from 32 different labour camps across Bahrain took part in the 10th Annual Workers Day, held by the Indian Ladies Association (ILA).

Titled Dil Se (From the Heart), it was part of a string of activities held this year as part of the ILA's Golden Jubilee celebrations, under the theme Building Bridges of Friendship.

It was organised for workers of all nationalities at the Indian Club, in Manama and featured a raffle draw where prizes such as air tickets, watches, electronic home appliances, and calling cards were given away.

Free us now!
By BEGENA GEORGE
Published: 19 November 2006

A GROUP of detainees waiting to be deported after serving prison sentences are threatening to stage their second hunger strike in a week today.

Twenty Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi detainees staged a brief hunger strike at the Hidd detention centre last Sunday, to protest over delays in sending them home.

They vowed yesterday to begin a second strike from 2pm today, if promises to get them home quickly are not met.

They halted the strike last week after talks with officials, but were defiant yesterday, despite being urged by community workers to be patient.

Election leaflets pair arrested
Published: 19 November 2006

MANAMA: Two Bahrainis have been arrested on charges of inciting people to boycott elections and demanding a change in the system of government, Chief Public Prosecutor Ahmed Bucheeri revealed last night.

They were caught red-handed with 1,500 leaflets they were planning to distribute in a number of mosques after Friday prayers.

One of them admitted getting the propaganda material on the Internet, while the other got it printed.

Both were charged with possessing illegal prints calling for changing the government system without any legitimate reason, and possessing illegal prints including false information likely to harm public interest and disrupt law and order.

300 protesters in Bahrain demand investigation into alleged conspiracy to rig elections

The Associated Press
About 300 people demonstrated in this capital city on Friday, demanding that an investigation be launched into allegations of a conspiracy to rig the upcoming parliamentary elections.

Deputy Parliament Speaker Abdul Hadi Marhoon said he participated in the peaceful rally that lasted about an hour "in defense of rights enshrined by the Bahraini constitution." He also called for "greater freedom of expression."

Bahrain's opposition leaders have asked for an investigation into a report distributed last September by a former government consultant, Salah al-Bandar, that made allegations against top government officials, tying them to plans to alter the Nov. 25 elections and deprive Shiites of their rights.

Sectarian split at its peak in Bahrain as elections near
Web posted at: 11/18/2006 2:35:31
Source ::: REUTERS
MANAMA • In an election campaign tent on a patch of dusty wasteland, Shi’ite Bahraini Nader Al Hamad points to the run-down homes nearby; each family has experienced exile, prison, death or unemployment for being Shi’ite, he says.

Hamad is running the election campaign of his wife, Ameena Abbas, a candidate in the Gulf island’s November 25 municipal and parliamentary elections. Shi’ites, the majority in the Sunni-ruled kingdom, boycotted the previous poll in 2002.

Saturday, 18, November, 2006 (27, Shawwal, 1427)

Bahraini Protesters Demand Probe Into Vote-Rigging Plot
Arab News —

MANAMA, 18 November 2006 — Hundreds of opposition activists demonstrated in Manama yesterday to demand a probe into an alleged plot to rig upcoming elections and to change the country’s demographic makeup by granting citizenship to foreigners.

Two activists of Haq, the mainly Shiite opposition group which called the protest, were arrested on the eve of the rally, the group said.

The protesters, gathered outside a mosque, chanted slogans demanding the resignation of the government and raised banners calling on authorities to come clean on the so-called “Bandargate” affair.

Bahraini protesters allege anti-Shiite plot, two activists held Fri Nov 17, 2:07 PM ET

Some 200 people rallied in Manama to demand a probe into an alleged plot by some figures in Bahrain's Sunni-led government to rig upcoming elections and marginalize the Shiite majority.

Two activists of Haq, the mainly Shiite opposition group which called the protest, were arrested on the eve of the rally, the group said.

The protesters, gathered outside a mosque, chanted slogans demanding the resignation of the government and raised banners calling on authorities to come clean on the so-called "Bandargate" affair, an AFP correspondent reported.

Protesters stage sit-in
Published: 18th November 2006

HUNDREDS of protesters called for authorities to lift a ban against media coverage of the Salah Al Bandar case, at a gathering held at the square near the Ras Al Ruman Grand Mosque yesterday, reports REBECCA TORR. For an hour and a half the group held placards and chanted for authorities to open investigations into the Bandargate report. Protesters included various parliamentary candidates, members of the Press, human rights and political activists, as well as Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Network representative Moataz Al Fujari and Arab Working Group for Monitoring Media Coverage of the Elections representative Hameed Khalid. The rally was organised by a group of 20 Bahraini religious scholars, women, human rights and political activists in protest over the government's handling of the Salah Al Bandar case. Protesters also called for authorities to release Bahraini human rights activists Dr Mohammed Saeed Mattar and Hussein Al Hebshi, who were believed to have been detained by the Criminal Investigation Directorate in Adliya on Thursday evening.

Drive to combat organ trafficking
By REBECCA TORR
Published: 18th November 2006

A CAMPAIGN is being launched to stop transplant patients in Bahrain travelling abroad to buy human organs.

Bahrain is being urged to help combat the international trade in organs - and to come up with a legitimate alternative for patients here.

The now-dissolved Bahrain Centre for Human Rights (BCHR) has teamed up with the Coalition for Organ-Failure Solutions (COFS) to address the situation of transplants in Bahrain and the Gulf region.

BCHR vice-president Nabeel Rajab said kidneys were being sold by poor families in Asian countries for as little as a few hundred dollars to $2,000 (BD756).

Activist Detained at Criminal Interrogations
Created 17 Nov 2006 - 00:20
Activist Detained at Criminal Interrogations
Reasons Yet to be Disclosed, BCHR Fears for his Safety
Bahrain Centre for Human Rights
Ref: 06111600

The BCHR has learnt that Human Rights Activist Dr. Mohammed Saeed Mattar, called his family tonight to inform them that he was being detained at the Criminal Investigations, the call was brief and he was not permitted sufficient time to disclose the reasons behind his detention. Dr. Saeed was one of the individuals who signed the petition addressed to the King about the report of the Gulf Democracy Development Center, known locally by "Bandargate" demanding for investigation. His family had been worried for they had been unable to reach him prior to the call.

A Bahraini opposition movement Haq (Right) called on the United Nations Wednesday to investigate allegations that a secret government grouping has been conspiring to fuel sectarian tensions and rig the results of upcoming parliamentary and municipal elections.

In a letter addressed to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan and delivered to Sayed Aqa, the UN Development Programme's (UNDP) Bahrain coordinator, Haq called for the forming of an international fact- finding committee to scrutinize the claims made in an August report by the Gulf Centre for Democratic Development (GCDD).

The 240-page report, dubbed BandarGate after its co-author Salah al-Bandar - a Briton of Sudanese origin who was deported in September to Britain after its publication - alleged that a ring masterminded by a government minister was secretly planning to manipulate the demographic makeup of the country, through the selective granting of citizenship.

Election 2006 Capital Governorate - Constituency 5
This constituency comprises Al Fatheh, Juffair, Ghuraifa, Mina Salman and the Nabih Saleh Island. Juffair area boasts of some of the most luxurious apartments in the Kingdom but the village is a picture in contrast being home to a lot of dilapidated houses. Residents also complain of acute water shortage in the area. Ghuraifa and Juffair also have a number of schools, and the resultant traffic gridlocks are a common sight every school day, says Bonny Mascarenhas. A multi-cornered battle is on the cards for the Parliament seat while for the Municipal Council seat, it would be a triangular fight.

Election 2006 Central Governorate - Constituency 2
Central Governorate - Constituency 2
Constituency 2 of Central governorate has 14 blocks, spread over the two townships of Salmabad and A’ Ali. Some of the blocks bordering Salmabad are just open desert and industrial estates where the only people staying are Bangladeshi and Indian labourers, writes Alexander M Arackal. Both the Chamber of Deputies and the Municipal Council seats would witness four-cornered contests.

The candidates speak...
Poverty alleviation must for survival of democracy: Khamis
How do you rate your chances of winning and why?

'Just Bahraini' push takes off
By TARIQ KHONJI
Published: 16th November 2006

A TOTAL of 89,000 more buttons have been ordered for an anti-sectarianism campaign launched by a Bahraini blogger.

This is in addition to 11,000 pins that have already been made and distributed for Mahmood Al Yousif's 'Just Bahraini' campaign.

The campaign is being financed by donations from the public, with BD5,689 collected so far.

Mr Al Yousif, who runs the popular blog mahmood.tv, placed the orders even though he has yet to collect the full BD8,500 needed to make all 100,000 pins.

"We have received BD5,689 so far with BD2,811 to go," he said.

في حوالي الساعة الثامنة والنصف من مساء هذا اليوم بالتوقيت المحلي تم التأكد من إعتقال الناشط الدكتور محمد سعيد لدى سلطات الأمن البحرينية. والدكتور محمد سعيد هو أحد الشخصيات التي وقعت على العريضة الموجهة لملك البلاد بخصوص مركز الخليج لتنمية الديمقراطية (مواطن) وما عرف محلياً بفضيحة "البندر" والمطالبة بالتحقيق فيها.

Election 2006
Muharraq Governorate - Constituency 1
Constituency one under Muharraq governorate essentially comprises Busaiteen. What makes this area different from other constituencies in the governorate is that it has the smallest percentage of unemployment. But housing is a major issue despite availability of land. It is divided into two parts, the old and new Busaiteen. The new area, known as the Royal Air Force (RAF) is an elite area while the old area is neglected, says Fadhel Hasan.
In the fray for the Chamber of Deputies seat are four candidates with the main contest between the sitting MP Adel Al Moawdah and Yehya Al Mujademi. The triangular fight for Municipal Council seat, however, is expected to be a keen tussle.

Published: 15 November 2006

BAHRAIN has been criticised in a report for failing to introduce a written personal status law to protect women, despite over 20 years of debate over the issue.

The paper, which was presented at the AWO conference yesterday, said that the first organised effort to introduce the law was launched in 1982.

Bahrain University continuous legal education programme director Dr Mohammed Al Masri said that this unofficial committee was followed by numerous efforts by various society figures to help launch such a law.

"These included efforts by both Sunni and Shi'ite clergymen and resulted in the Justice Ministry setting up its own committee, consisting of lawyers and Sharia judges," said Dr Al Masri.

By MOHAMMED AL A'ALI
Published: 15 November 2006

THIRTY-FIVE parliamentary and municipal elections candidates yesterday signed a petition, demanding fairer elections.

The petition, signed at the Bahrain Medical Society, Juffair, is expected to include up to 200 signatures by tonight when it is circulated among other candidates.

It will be sent to His Majesty King Hamad tomorrow, demanding that the 10 current general polling stations at various parts of the country be closed.

They say that only the main polling centres in each governorate should be open because more centres would make it difficult to monitor the elections.

Arab bloggers challenge cultural, political restrictions
By Faiza Saleh Ambah - The Washington Post

Tuesday, November 14, 2006

Jiddah, Saudi Arabia — When he was a college student in Washington state, Saudi Arabia’s most popular blogger, Fouad al-Farhan, donned a T-shirt emblazoned with “Animal Rights Equals Human Rights” and slept on the campus lawn during a hunger strike protesting the slaughter of foxes.

That type of freedom during six years in the United States gave Farhan a taste for expressing himself that he was unable to satisfy when he returned to Saudi Arabia in 2001.

Wired News Peer Pressure

By Mark Anderson
Nov, 13, 2006

CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts -- Internet censorship is spreading and becoming more sophisticated across the planet, even as users develop savvier ways around it, according to early results in the first-ever comprehensive global survey of internet censorship.

The internet watchdog organization OpenNet Initiative is compiling a year's worth of data gathered by nearly 50 cyberlaw, free-speech and network experts across as many countries, whose governments are known internet filterers.

The study systematically tested if, when, how and by whom thousands of controversial websites are blocked in each nation.

By Omran Salman*

Paper presented to the Dissent and Reform in the Arab World Conference, organized by the American Enterprise Institute

Washington - Thursday, November 2, 2006

Introduction

Officially named the Kingdom of Bahrain, Bahrain is the smallest Arab country. An island emirate in the Persian Gulf, Bahrain is located east of Saudi Arabia and west of Qatar. It is a constitutional monarchy headed by King Sheikh Hamad bin Issa Al Khalifa. The head of government, Sheikh Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa, is the prime minister, and presides over a cabinet of 15 members. Islam is the official religion of the state.

11/13/2006 11:29 PM | By Habib Toumi, Bureau Chief

Manama: Bahrain's highest non-official Shiite authority has come under attack from some of its allies who have accused it of not adopting a neutral stand in the upcoming parliamentary elections.

"The Islamic Scholars Council should not dictate how people vote and should allow them to make their own personal choices about the most competent candidates," Al Amal Society head Shaikh Mohammad Ali Al Mahfood said in a press statement. "It looks as if the council has turned into a partisan umbrella for a specific society and this diminishes its authority and confines its influence."

It wasn’t weight but my baby
Filipina housemaid, 45, only thought she was gaining pounds

Forty-five-year-old Filipina housemaid Aurelia Partido had had the biggest surprise of her life as she gave birth to a girl a few days back.
Partido arrived in Bahrain in February to work as maid in a Bahraini household. She did not know that she was pregnant. A medical checkup in the Philippines had given no such indication and she decided to go ahead with her plans to work in Bahrain.
By April, she realised something was amiss but her sponsor ignored her appeals to see a doctor.
The surprise came on November 8. The baby girl, weighing five pounds was delivered at the Salmaniya Medical Complex. There were no complications.

Woman who cried wolf leaves ... again
Embassy shelter has no clue where she is
Ayla Marisse G Ginete
Contributor

Filipina Rosario Pineda, a former tailor who has been in and out of the OWWA shelter since 2003, has reportedly left the shelter again.
Rosario lived at the Overseas Workers Welfare Association shelter, waiting for a settlement of her labour case. She left the shelter on two occasions, disappearing for months on end and was believed to have gone away with her lover only to come back crying and seeking help again.
Pineda signed a waiver before leaving the shelter and has not informed embassy officials about her whereabouts. She has relieved the shelter of any responsibility towards her by signing the waiver document. It is believed that this time she has gone away with another lover.

Jail strike called off
By begena george
Published: 13 November 2006

TWENTY men awaiting deportation after completing prison sentences called off a hunger strike after talks with officials yesterday.

But the men vowed to stage a new hunger strike if arrangements to deport them are not made by Sunday.

They claim they have been languishing in the Hidd detention centre for up to a year, since finishing jail sentences for various crimes.

The Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi men pledged on Saturday night that they would "not touch a drop of water" until arrangements were made to send them home.

Bahrain opposition claims rigging ahead of polls

dpa German Press Agency
Published: Sunday November 12, 2006

Manama- Bahrain's largest opposition Shiite group on Sunday reiterated opposition fears over "vote-buying" and electoral fraud ahead of November 25 elections. Sheikh Ali Salman, head of the al-Wefaq Islamic Society told reporters "a huge amount" of money was being circulated in an attempt to influence the outcome of the elections, alleging that some political societies and groups had been promised thousands of Bahraini dinars in return for their votes.

Salman also expressed alarm over alleged "naturalization" by the government, which the opposition claims is an effort to change the demography of the Gulf island that has a Shiite majority estimated to stand at 75 per cent of the population.

دعا نشطاء سياسيون وحقوقيون ورموز دينية المواطنين إلى التظاهر السلمي يوم الجمعة القادم وذلك من أجل المطالبة بإجراء تحقيق عاجل في ما جاء بتقرير فضيحة البندر.

Women spell out campaign agenda
By REBECCA TORR
Published: 12 November 2006

HOUSING shortages, unemployment and family rights are some of the issues at the forefront of female parliamentary candidates' campaign agendas.

Muneera Fakhro, who is running for a seat in Constituency Four, Central Governorate, is addressing the country's housing crisis and poverty problems.

She said many voters in Isa Town had complained to her of housing problems and were on such low incomes that they couldn't even pay their electricity bills.

"The families that came there (Isa Town) 40 years ago were nuclear families, but then they had children who got married and couldn't find housing and now there are couples living with their children in one room," Ms Fakhro told the GDN.

Maid wins pay battle in part
By BEGENA GEORGE
Published: 12 November 2006

MANAMA: An Indian housemaid who filed a case against her sponsor for not paying her salary for nearly two years, is going home today after getting part of the amount.

Sangeetha Shankar Gaunkar, aged 21, ran away from her sponsor to seek help from the Indian Embassy when her sponsor told her on August 11, without prior notice, that she would be sent home in two days.

She claimed that he owed BD880 and must pay for the air ticket home. The sponsor allegedly promised to pay her the amount at the airport.

She has since, upon the embassy's request, been sheltered by the Migrant Workers' Protection Society (MWPS) until the issue is resolved.

Election 2006
Central Governorate - Constituency 4
Constituency four under the Muharraq Governorate, which includes the northern part of Muharraq, Amwaj Islands and Galali village, is a heavily populated place in the governorate. In addition to their major issues, proper housing projects, unemployment and poverty, a “war of parking” is very predicted to happen soon especially in block number 208. Another issue was getting the citizenship for those who were born and grown up in the country, writes Fadhel Hasan. Four candidates are contesting for the Chamber of Deputies, Abdulrahman Al Nuaimi, Ahmed Sanad Al Benali, Isa Ahmed Abu Al Fateh and Zahra Mohammed Haji Muradi while the fight for the municipal seats is nine-cornered by Abdulmajeed Abdulrahman Akbar, Ahmed Abdulrazaq Mohammed, Hussain Ahmed Al Jowdar, Isa Ali Saad, Moammar Isa Al Manaie, Mohammed Jassim Dakheel, Mohammed Jassim Hamada, Rashid Ibrahim Al Qassab and Wafa Ahmed Abol.

Women in politics is forum focus
By Geoffrey Bew
Published: 11th November 2006

A FORUM promoting the importance of women's involvement in politics is being held today. More than 80 people, including female candidates, are expected to attend the meeting held under the theme Vote for Her.

Staged by the Future Kids Youth Society, it will feature a discussion about what value women can bring to the political process by being elected.

Participants will have the chance to question candidates on any issue they wish.

Four experts have been lined up to give presentations about the achievements of women in key fields of politics, economics, the media and academia.

BD5,000 for a life
By GEOFFREY BEW
Published: 11th November 2006

THE family of an Indian man who died when scaffolding collapsed at a construction site in Sanabis has received more than BD5,000 in compensation and support. Father-of-three Kumarapillai Neelakantan was killed and his Bangladeshi colleague Anwar Abdul Subaharan seriously injured when they fell six floors last month. The 50-year-old died shortly after being taken to Salmaniya Medical Complex, while his colleague, 31, survived and is still being treated for his injuries.

The men were putting finishing touches to grill work on the Tameer Residence apartment block near the Elite Suites Hotel, when the accident happened at around 8.45am.

Bahrain Debates How to Bridge Sunni-Shiite Divide
by Peter Kenyon

Morning Edition, November 10, 2006 · As Iraq's newly empowered Shiite majority struggles to take control of the country, Sunni Arab leaders in other countries with significant Shiite populations have grown increasingly nervous. The Persian Gulf kingdom of Bahrain, for instance, is ruled by a Sunni-led government, despite the island's Shiite Muslim majority.

To Listen to this story
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6466910&ft=1&f=1001&sc=emaf

Central Governorate - Constituency 4
Isa Town came up in 1968 as a major housing project of the Kingdom. It is famous for its traditional bazaars and is home to many schools and universities. It is one of the most important districts in Central Governorate.
There are nine candidates contesting for the Parliament seat with Dr Munira Fakhro, member of central committee of Wa’ad Society, on a very strong wicket, writes Sandeep Singh Grewal. The municipal council will witness a four-cornered contest with Al Wefaq-backed candidate Hamza Saeed Abdullah leading the field.

Eight most important words

REPORT and PICTURES by MANDEEP SINGH
Published: 10 November 2006

POLICE intervened yesterday to disperse more than 100 DHL employees for taking part in an "illegal" demonstration at the company's headquarters in Muharraq.

They broke up what was scheduled to be a three-hour strike from 9am to noon, after about 90 minutes.

The protesters were ordered to disperse at around 10.30am by police officers, who said they did not have permission to protest in the high-security area.

Employees were protesting the sacking of DHL Employees Union president Abdullah Al Khawja, who they claimed was dismissed for standing up for workers' rights.

09 November 2006

Women And Bahrain's Elections (MP3)
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Listen to Women And Bahrain's Elections (Real Player)

Bahrain will hold parliamentary and municipal elections on November 25th. Because eighteen women are running in the elections and one is unopposed, the vote will result in the Gulf region's first female parliamentarian. In October 2002, Bahrain held its first parliamentary election in decades. There was strong participation by female voters in that election, but none of the female candidates won a seat.

U.S. Under Secretary of State Karen Hughes says that Bahrain's upcoming parliamentary elections will be a milestone. Ms. Hughes recently visited Bahrain and met with women candidates. During a news conference in the capital, Manama, she said the country's elections are becoming "more inclusive." Speaking about the women candidates she met, she said: "They are articulate. They are intelligent. They are very impressive. . . .I feel very good about the future of Bahrain."

Wife kidnap probe is sought
By BEGENA GEORGE
Published: 9th November 2006

EMBASSY officials are demanding a government inquiry into the police handling of the kidnapping, beating and robbing of an Indian wife, by four bogus policemen. They want to know why police held the husband in custody for 29 hours after he went to them for help and why the wife was detained for around 17 hours, after her captors released her.

Officials and community leaders also want to know why police who saw the woman being dropped off from a white minivan, 11 hours after she was snatched, did not stop and detain those inside.

Dumping the family
Why do they do it?
Ajit John
Chief Reporter

They came to this country from their villages in India with dream to earn petrodollars. Leaving young wives and sometimes children, these small-time workers have never seen back home to make a life in a new country and earn a living.
Many are deep in debt and become thick-skinned and callous. Too many blows by fate and finally, the little affection they have seems to evaporate from their lives.
In the beginning they send money to the family and keep things going, often balancing priorities between aging parents and wives with exhausting dexterity.

Victims’ families are victims too
Sharada Jayaram
Counselling Contributor

And the statistics have gone up by one with fifty-year-old housewife Kausalya, who was kidnapped from her residence by four men, in the presence of the three men her life revolved around, her husband and her two sons both in their twenties.
The trauma Kausalya is going through at this point undoubtedly is huge. She is possibly upset by the lack of reaction from her husband and sons; being adult men and being in this country for years could they not come to the defence of the helpless one-month new entrant to the Kingdom, wife and mother, in their very own home? She has faced the trauma alone literally, alone, from the start.

Capital Governorate - Constituency 1
All roads lead to this constituency, particularly over weekends, with hordes of tourists flocking to the rows of hotels in the area. For the economy of the Kingdom, it augurs well but for the residents, it’s a veritable nightmare writes Bonny Mascarenhas. Not only do they have a major hassle finding parking space but are also finding it difficult to cope with the activities, some of them illegal, that go with the hospitality industry. It is also one of the very few constituencies to witness a straight contest for the parliamentary seat between arch rivals Adel Al Asoomi and Saadi Mohammed Abdullah. For the Municipal Council, six newcomers will be fighting for the honours.

By GEOFFREY BEW
Published: 9th November 2006

FOUR Thai women who claimed to have been forced to work as prostitutes in Bahrain have been deported.

The alleged victims of human trafficking were sent home on Tuesday night after being questioned and later released by police.

Sources yesterday told the GDN that the women were allowed to collect their belongings from a hotel, but did not receive any compensation or salary payment.

It is understood Thai officials met them at Bangkok International Airport and took them for questioning to try and establish the circumstances of how they arrived in Bahrain and ended up working illegally.

علم مركز البحرين لحقوق الانسان بأن مجموعة من كبار السن دفع لكل منهم مبلغ عشرة دنانير بحرينية (250$) وذلك مقابل قيامهم بمظاهرة أمام نشاط للمعارضة في منطقة الجفير.

Laws to protect rights of Indian workers abroad
But few of them likely to be impressed by assurance

Amendments have been made to the emigration laws as part of a range of measures to protect Indian workers from exploitation by their employers abroad.
While that is very impressive as an ongoing exercise little has been said about the huge exploitation that goes on in the name of ‘protection’ in the country itself, long before the poor labourer leaves its shores.
The new government aims to put in place what it calls a robust mechanism to save job-seeking emigrants from exploitation by recruitment agencies. That should make for a dramatic change seeing as how no agent, however unscrupulous has been punished in a fashion that would serve as an example to the rest of the bloodsucking tribe that is usually in cahoots with the authorities.

The Bahrain Society for Public Freedom and Support for Democracy has issued a report about the election violation.
The report found out that among all the governorates, Muharraq had the maximum violations, 23.53 per cent, followed by Capital governorate in the second place. The head of the team for monitoring the elections for the society, Nasser Burdestani (pictured) told the Tribune, “We monitored all the governorates and found out that there are election violations happening and nothing is being done. There were 18 cases of posters of the candidates being damaged by colours , 11 cases of posters being put at traffic signals and five cases where candidates are putting advertisements outside their constituencies.”

Abused Filipina’s return delayed
Recruiter won’t hand over passport
Ayla Marisse G. Ginete
Contributor

After enduring a barrage of rebuke over phone from her family back home, 15-year-old Rosanna Baro braced herself for another disappointment. The plan to have her repatriated last night did not come through because the agency that recruited her, Al Hayki Manpower Agency, refused to hand over her passport.
Rosanna was in tears when she met Overseas Workers Welfare Association (OWWA) officials on the first day of Eid in tears. She had run away from the abusive sponsors she worked for. Rosanna bore a big scar on her right leg, resembling iron burns, but she insisted that it was a result of falling from a ladder while cleaning a ceiling fan.

By BEGENA GEORGE
Published: 7th November 2006

MANAMA: Four bogus policemen who allegedly snatched a housewife from her home in Sitra early yesterday, dropped her off late last night after beating and robbing her. A police van patrolling the area noticed a white mini-van stopping in front of the house and dropping her off. However, instead of detaining the occupants of the van, they took the Indian housewife into custody. Her husband was also in custody, after being detained for questioning when he went to report the abduction to police.

The 'policemen' beat her up after driving her around different houses and robbing jewellery worth BD1,000 and 5,000 Indian rupees (about BD50) in cash, Kausalya Mohanan, 50, told her husband after she was allowed to see him at CID headquarters.

Filipina ‘assaulted’ by four men who helped her flee sponsor
Ayla Marisse G Ginete
Contributor

A 45-year old Filipina woman running away from her sponsor has claimed to have been assaulted by four men who offered to help her escape to the Philippine Embassy.
Dorina Francisco, who worked as a housemaid claims to have been physically abused by her sponsors making her clean three other houses that belonged to relatives.
“I have suffered much in that house, they made me clean day and night, resulting in me having to work for at least 15-18 hours a day. When I got sick, they refused to take me to the hospital to have myself checked. My hands developed a severe allergy to the cleaning detergents I used there. The bleach I was forced to use with my bare hands burned my skin, and somehow caused an allergic reaction,” she said.

By BEGENA GEORGE
Published: 6th November 2006

POLICE are investigating an incident in which a Pakistani woman suffered horrible injuries after apparently setting herself ablaze. Rubeena Sardar Mohammed, 35, suffered burns to 95 per cent of her body and was last night still critically ill at Salmaniya Medical Complex burns unit.

Her husband also suffered burns to his hands and arms as he tried to put out the flames, sources said.

He was so distressed by his wife's injuries that he had to be admitted to hospital and put under sedation.

The incident happened at the couple's home in Gudaibiya at around 2am on Saturday. The husband was said to have recovered enough to be at his wife's bedside yesterday.

By MANDEEP SINGH
Published: 6th November 2006

WIVES are the victims and husbands the culprits in nearly all the cases being reported to a centre devoted to combating family abuse. About 95 per cent of the nearly 1,000 cases examined so far at the Batelco Care Centre for Family Abuse Cases are women who have suffered physical, emotional or sexual abuse at home.

"The others are either adolescents who have been abused by their parents and peers, or are men abused by over-dominating wives," said clinical psychologist and Bahrain Society for Resistance to Family Violence president Dr Banna Bu Zaboon.

Pledge to fight sectarianism
By GEOFFREY BEW
Published: 6th November 2006

A BAHRAINI blogger spearheading a national campaign against sectarianism is urging politicians to work together and introduce laws that criminalise discrimination. Mahmood Al Yousif is urging candidates to sign a pledge to enact laws and work towards stopping favouritism and inequality in all sectors of society.

Fifteen candidates from two political societies, the National Unity and National Democratic Action Society (Wa'ad), have already signed up to the proposal and based on the success of the campaign, he expects many more to follow.

Secret Report on Muslims Clouds Bahrain Vote
by Peter Kenyon

Weekend Edition Sunday, November 5, 2006 · A report detailing a "secret plan" to suppress Bahrain's Shiite majority -- and stir trouble between Shiite and Sunni Muslims -- looms over upcoming parliamentary elections, despite efforts to ban it.

TO Lisen please go to:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6437617

Mohammad Fadhel
AFP
November 5, 2006

MANAMA -- Aminah Abbas believes she has the perfect qualifications to represent the poor in Bahrain's parliament - she has spent a chunk of her life working as a hawker to support her family.

"All candidates speak of combating poverty and improving living standards, but for me, I'm talking of personal experience," says Abbas, mother of five and one of 18 women candidates in the kingdom's November 25 parliamentary polls.

"I have experienced poverty and all its hardships... I worked as a street vendor to support my family," she says. Her experience of hardship, she adds, prompted her decision to run for parliament. She insists she wants to enter the legislature "to represent the poor."

Women's Petition Committee has given another role of chance for the Sharia Court System, the Ministry of Justice and the government to prove their real intention towards reform of the current Justice system and to implement his majesty the King’s vision towards the overall reform in Political, Economic, Social and Legal system in the Kingdom, besides to implement the United Nation recommendation for the necessity of issuing Family Law.

However, Women Petition Committee noticed that the situation and rulings of the Sharia Courts has deteriorated and worsened. Epecially, since seven Sharia judges were dismissed from the practice because they were unqualified. Moreover, the situation of Execution Courts became worse. Also, the government backed away from pressing for issuing of Family Law which was supposed to be passed during the first parliamentary period.

Web posted at: 11/3/2006 8:33:30
Source ::: AFP
MANAMA • Bahrain’s election commission yesterday rebuffed the country’s main Shiite opposition group which had objected to the participation of military personnel in upcoming polls, saying they were fully entitled to vote.

The supreme election commission “took note of statements by candidates ... (objecting to) voting by military personnel in the general elections on grounds that the military institution should not be politicized,” the commission said in a statement published by the official BNA news agency.

“Military personnel are citizens enjoying the full rights granted by the constitution to all citizens,” the statement said.

Larry Luxner
JTA Wire Service

NOVEMBER 03, 2006
Manama, Bahrain

If you want to find the only synagogue in the Persian Gulf, come to Bahrain -- a tiny desert kingdom linked to Saudi Arabia by the 15-mile King Fahd Causeway.

But don't expect to find kosher restaurants, yeshivas or Yiddishkeit in this land of mosques and minarets; just 36 of Bahrain's 700,000 or so inhabitants are Jews.

That's not much -- but these three dozen people form the only known Jewish community in any of the six countries comprising the Gulf Cooperation Council (Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates).

By Elizabeth Kelleher
Washington File Staff Writer

(file photo AP Images)Washington – Bahrain’s second parliamentary elections in almost three decades are coming up, and U.S. official Karen Hughes is celebrating the inevitability of a milestone: the first woman parliamentarian in the Gulf region.

Hughes, the State Department’s under secretary for public diplomacy and public affairs, spoke to reporters in Manama, Bahrain, on November 1. She applauded the fact that 18 women are running for election to parliament and that one is unopposed, guaranteeing a win.

Before the question-and-answer session with reporters, Hughes had lunch with some of the women candidates. One talked to Hughes about how hard she is working and how difficult campaigning can be.

3 November 2006

MANAMA - Bahrain has shut down an opposition group’s website days after censoring several Internet sites for discussing an alleged plot to maintain Sunni domination of the Gulf kingdom, a political activist said on Friday.

The information ministry blocked the website of the leftist National Democratic Action Association (NDAA) starting on Thursday, the group’s secretary general, Ibrahim Sherif, told AFP.

“We did not receive any notification from the ministry about the reason our website was blocked ... We did not post anything on the website justifying its closure,” he said.

Gulf states urged to fight human trafficking
Wed Nov 1, 2006 7:26 PM GMT

MANAMA (Reuters) - A lack of controls has exacerbated human trafficking into the Gulf, which has a large population of migrant workers, leaving many vulnerable to physical and sexual abuse, a U.N. trafficking expert said on Wednesday.

"Wherever there is an influx of migrant workers, if monitoring and control is less and the governments are less vigilant, there would always be a high percentage of human trafficking," Sigma Huda, special rapporteur on trafficking for the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, told reporters.

by
Wednesday 01 November 2006 9:03 PM GMT

Migrant workers often complain of discrimination

Significant numbers of people from Asia and Africa are being trafficked into Bahrain to be exploited and abused as domestic or sex workers, a UN human rights expert has said.

"I am particularly concerned that a significant number among the approximately 300,000 migrant workers in Bahrain become victims of human trafficking," said Sigma Huda, the United Nations special rapporteur on human trafficking, in a statement after a visit to the country.

Huda noted that about 50,000 of the migrant workers were women.

1 November 2006

Sigma Huda, Special Rapporteur of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights on trafficking in persons, especially women and children, made the following statement to media today at the end of her visit to Bahrain:

Permit me first of all to thank the Government for inviting me to Bahrain. I would also like to commend the Government for the openness and cooperation it has demonstrated in the course of my 4-days fact-finding mission to Bahrain. I have been granted access to all state facilities I had requested to visit, including a labour camp and a processing centre. In addition, I had the chance to consult with senior government officials, members of the judiciary, senior diplomats, United Nations officials as well as representatives of non-governmental organisations, civil society and victims themselves. I would like to thank everybody for taking the time to meet with me and discuss frankly the human trafficking situation in Bahrain.

Agence France-Presse
Last updated 07:30am (Mla time) 11/02/2006

GENEVA -- Significant numbers of people from Asia and Africa are being trafficked into Bahrain to be exploited and abused as domestic or sex workers, a UN human rights expert said Wednesday.

"I am particularly concerned that a significant number among the approximately 300,000 migrant workers in Bahrain become victims of human trafficking," Sigma Huda said in a statement after a mission to the country.

The UN Special Rapporteur on Human Trafficking noted that about 50,000 of the migrant workers were women.

"These migrants are often lured in their country of origin by unscrupulous recruiting agents with false promises of a certain job or certain working conditions," she said.

Bahrain: UN human trafficking expert gives mixed report after fact-finding visit

Human rights Special Rapporteur Sigma Huda
1 November 2006 – While Bahrain has taken measures to address human trafficking, much remains to be done to implement its international obligations, an independent United Nations human rights expert said today at the end of a four-day fact-finding visit.

UN Special Rapporteur on human trafficking in persons, especially women and children, Sigma Huda, praised Bahrain for recognizing human trafficking as a problem and drafting a comprehensive anti-trafficking law bill due to be enacted shortly.

من يخطط لحرب طائفية في البحرين؟

ملخص توصيات الدراسة السرية التي أعدها الدكتور العاني وتقوم بتنفيذها السلطة البحرينية لإقصاء أبناء الطائفة الشيعية اقتصاديا واجتماعيا وسياسيا