Bahrain, not just another Pro Democracy rebellion?

[dubai_phil]

Just another couple of snippets from a long message I got from my friend earlier (her father's family are all Bahraini and most still live there so she has some inside knowledge of sorts)...

 

 

...I think that the Saudi govt are putting pressure on the Bahrain govt to sort it all out. The Prime Minister is a ****** and loves the Saudi's so is letting all this happen. It seems the only decent person in the Royal Family is the Crown Prince who isnt wanting any of this **** to happen...

 

...thats what they [The Bahraini royal family] are ****ting themselves about is losing the power. But thats the thing, the Bahraini people never wanted to get rid of the Royal family, they just want an elected parliament. And the other day the crown prince was in talks with 7 leaders from the opposition parties so we all thought, great, something is finally getting sorted and then the Saudi troops came in and then they announced martial law!!

 

 

I think this puts to bed any debate about the whole thing being staged by Iran. This comes directly from people indigenous to the country (not ex-pats, importantly) and shows that it is simply a case of the common people deciding they have had enbough of the corruption and oppression and standing up for their human rights.

 

TBH the Crown Price is the only one to have emerged from this with any trace of dignity. At least HE gets it and has done since the beginning.

 

And the whole thing has NOT been staged by Iran you are quite correct, it has been going on for some 20 years, there have been many deaths in Sitra over that time. The OP was deliberately worded with a question mark.

 

That doesn't mean that Iran is not trying to exploit the current problems. It also means the situation is far more complex and THAT is the reason the GCC states stepped in and why more days of violence and death will follow. It is a very useful excuse for the corrupt senior regime members who do NOT want to give up power, but the TROUBLE is that it is a clear and present issue in this latest wave of the past days.

 

So before the thread was hijacked by oneview, this is now a fecking mess and it is complicated.

 

Compare the UAE's "regime" and it' treatment of it's subjects to that of Bahrain and the locals here are basically able to get jobs, wedding dowries and prospects for life, unlike many in Bahrain. BUT it hasn't stopped calls starting here for more rights for Emiratis. But here it is mainly the educated Young who are making that case, not a disaffected majority.

 

And Bexy - I have agreed with the original aims of the protesters & the Haq party as I have agreed with the aims of groups in Kuwait. And God knows I have commented enough times on my view that the way that this region treats it's "slave labour" is wrong. 18 years I have been here, if I was a foreigner in the UK I could have had a passport & played cricket for England in that time, here I have nothing and have accepted that as the price to pay for my luck with my life.

 

Let me put it again in simple English. It helps the Americans in their "concerns" with Iran with regard to their Nuclear Ambitions and their hatred of Israel to maintain their Naval presence in Bahrain. It helps the Iranians with their grievance about being kicked out of Bahrain to try and get a "sympathiser" into power in a revolution in Bahrain. The PEOPLE want (and deserve) Human Rights & Representation and a stop to Sectarian discrimination.

 

The WORLD needs Sectarian discrimination to stop as it fosters support for Al Qaeda.

 

Now, working out a solution to all of THAT is not as easy as it first appears, hence the OP with a question mark and hence why Tim Marshall summed it up very well. Bahrain is a pawn and the people AS ALWAYS will end up getting shot. I am only glad of one thing - that I don't have to find an answer

Edited 16 March, 2011 by dubai_phil

[Sheaf Saint]

Yes I agree Phil that the whole situation is a god-awful sh1tty mess, and there is no simple answer as there never is when it comes to geo-politics, particularly in the middle-east where religion always complicates things a whole lot more.

 

As I told my friend in my reply to her earlier today, I have nothing but admiration and respect for the protesters who are putting themselves in the firing line to stand up for freedom from oppression. I don't know if I would ever have the courage to do that myself, but then desparate times call for desparate measures and I suppose I should consider myself extremely lucky that I have never yet had to face that choice.

[dubai_phil]

Well, didn't see that nasty crackdown coming did we?

 

Lots of Political Statements about how nasty and wrong it is, but don't see any no fly zones being set up, and anyone spotted any sanctions?

 

Meanwhile on the subject of outside influences, and a comment I made a couple of days ago about manipulation of Social Media Sites...

 

Lo and behold...

 

Pentagon buys Social Networking Spy software.

 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/social-media/8389577/Pentagon-buys-social-networking-spy-software.html

 

So those who think Social Media could not be used to influence the masses game was a figment of imaginations....

 

And if the Yanks are playing this game you can bet that...

 

And of course the General is quite correct. The Pentagon won't be using it on sites in the USA.

 

But he never mentioned the NSA or FBI did he.

 

Well like I said it's worth a fiver at Ladbrokes that others are doing the same, after all if one company actually produces the software that does that, probably others do as well.