Wednesday, February 09, 2011

update on Bahrain

A comrade in Bahrain sent me this:
"Dear Asa'ad (please do not quote name).
You are aware that there have been mass calls for protest on 14 February in Bahrain. We have turned a day that is supposed to celebrate the 'imposed' constitution into a 'day of wrath'. The government is on high alert and is extremely paranoid. Bahrain TV has non-stop propoganda and cheesy songs about 'King' Hamad (his imposed constitution changed Bahrain from a 'state' to a 'kingdom' and elevated our little man from 'emir' to 'king'). Well the Bahrainis have had enough of their trickery and lies. And we are expecting a speech on the 12th in which he announces some 'concessions' like the release of political prisoners. He also just announced more subsidies, paid out of more national debt (which means our kids will end up paying because they will be introducing taxes soon). I am sure this will not be enough to appease the street. In their pathetic attempts to stave off the protests. Our buffoon foreign minister has called the Qatari Ambassador - presumably to ask the Qataris to ask Aljazeera to not cover the Bahraini protests. Aljazeera was kicked out of Bahrain last year. Also BBC correspondants have been harassed in the past. This is a call for journalists to try their best to send undercover reporters to Bahrain on 14.   In other news, the Head of the National Security Agency has been to Egypt to visit his counterpart, the head of security in Egypt - presumably to get a lesson or two on managing (or not managing) the protests. I really hope we won't see camels unleashed on us. I can vouch that there is no party behind this movement, it is completely grassroot, with both sunni and shia activists. There has been a marked step change in the rhetoric on the street and it is much more nationalistic.  Aljazeera and all other media MUST send reporters to Bahrain immediately.
There has been some coverage so far(see below)"