Formula One race starts as tensions are at greatest since Pearl revolution was crushed by repression and western acquiescence
Bahrain is gearing up for trouble as the controversial Formula One grand prix gets under way. But whatever the outcome on the track it's a fair bet that the Gulf island state's political tensions are not going to disappear very soon.
For the government in Manama, the message was one of business as usual as the engines revved up: "The long wait is over," announced an excited statement from its information affairs authority. "The region's biggest sporting and social spectacle is finally here!" Not, however, for the foreign journalists ? not motor racing correspondents ? who were turned away at the airport or denied visas to enter the country.
Anti-government protesters had demanded the F1 event ("Blood on the track") be cancelled in response to human rights violations and a lack of reform since last year's Pearl revolution. That was defeated by repression supported by Saudi Arabia and in effect tolerated by western governments whose enthusiasm for the changes of the Arab spring in other countries does not extend to the Gulf.
Strategic concerns about oil supplies, military bases, Iran and general political stability are some of the reasons for this reticence. Washington and London have urged the Al-Khalifa dynasty to make the changes recommended by the Bahrain independent investigation commission (BICI) last year, and backed dialogue with the opposition. But no action has been taken. Hardliners on both sides of Bahrain's divide now increasingly set the tone. Trust is in short supply.
"The situation is being polarised," Mansour al-Jamri, then respected editor of al-Wasat, the country's only independent newspaper, told the Guardian.
Manama has been able to count on the acquiescence of governments and the active support of others. US and British PR companies are working overtime to get across the official point of view. "Imagine if a British police chief was in Damascus dumping on the protest movement in Syria," said the Labour MP Denis MacShane of the security role of former Metropolitan police assistant commissioner John Yates. "There is a complete double standard when it comes to Bahrain."
Protesters are seeking democracy, but there is an unavoidable sectarian aspect to the conflict in a small country where the ruling dynasty is Sunni and the majority of its subjects are Shia Muslims who are under-represented and face discrimination in all walks of life. In recent days regime thugs have been caught on camera trashing Shia-owned shops while policemen stood by.
Even the slickest PR cannot disguise the fact that the monarchy has failed to enact constitutional and institutional reforms to ensure a fairer division of power. "If they had implemented all the recommendations made by the BICI instead of a handful of them in a half-hearted sort of way, then things could have been different," said Jamri. "It was a golden opportunity that the authorities have thrown away."
Supporters of the government routinely accuse the opposition of working for Iran, whose propaganda machine lambasts Al-Khalifa as western puppets. The BICI found no evidence of Iranian involvement in last year's unrest but the accusation persists. "It's like two different planets," one regime supporter tweeted. "Bahrainis supporting and enjoying F1 and Iranian thugs burning our country!"
It is in this febrile atmosphere that the February 14 Youth Coalition ? one of the main co-ordinators of the protests ? called for "three days of anger" during the grand prix. Al-Wefaq, the mainstream legal Shia opposition movement, is struggling to keep up with younger, angrier activists who call openly for the overthrow of King Hamad. Another growing worry is over the deteriorating health of the jailed militant Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, who has been on hunger strike for more than two months. His death would be a spark that could easily ignite an explosion.
Formula One racing may provide exciting viewing. But it is unlikely to help bring stability to Bahrain.
Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/apr/20/bahrain-grand-prix-divided-state
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