Elections in Bahrain will not include any opposition candidates : Bahrainis go to the polls on Saturday, but despite a record number of candidates, a restriction on opposition candidates ensures there won’t be any significant change, according to rights organizations.
Elections in Bahrain will not include any opposition candidates
The 40-seat council of representatives, the lower chamber of parliament that advises King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa, who has reigned since his father’s passing in March 1999, is being filled by more than 330 applicants, including a record 73 women. This is an increase from the 293 candidates, including 41 women, who stood for office in the most recent election in 2018.
The Shiite Al-Wefaq and secular Waad parties, which were disbanded in 2016 and 2017, are the two largest opposition groups, but the nation, which is ruled by a Sunni monarchy, has prohibited them from fielding candidates. Human rights advocate for Bahrain based in the UK, Ali Abdulemam, claimed that “this election would not bring about any change.” “We won’t have a thriving country without the opposition,” he told AFP.
Calls for a boycott of the polls on Saturday have been sparked by the limitations, which come more than ten years after a crackdown on Shiite-led protestors calling for political reforms. Since then, authorities have deported many dissidents and jailed hundreds of them, including Sheikh Ali Salman, the chairman of Al-Wefaq. According to Amnesty International, the vote is taking place under a “climate of political repression.”
Amna Guellali, Amnesty International’s deputy regional director, claimed that there is now no real political opposition in Bahrain. The Kingdom “does not accept discrimination, persecution, or the fostering of division on the basis of ethnicity, culture, or faith,” according to Manama.
Since then, authorities have deported many dissidents and jailed hundreds of them, including Sheikh Ali Salman, the chairman of Al-Wefaq. According to Amnesty International, the vote is taking place under a “climate of political repression.” Amna Guellali, Amnesty International’s deputy regional director, claimed that there is now no real political opposition in Bahrain.
The Kingdom “does not accept discrimination, persecution, or the fostering of division on the basis of ethnicity, culture, or faith,” according to Manama. Since then, authorities have deported many dissidents and jailed hundreds of them, including Sheikh Ali Salman, the chairman of Al-Wefaq.
According to Amnesty International, the vote is taking place under a “climate of political repression.” Amna Guellali, Amnesty International’s deputy regional director, claimed that there is now no real political opposition in Bahrain. The Kingdom “does not accept discrimination, persecution, or the fostering of division on the basis of ethnicity, culture, or faith,” according to Manama.
Bahrain, which has 1.4 million residents, is made up of one big island and approximately 34 smaller islands off the east coast of Saudi Arabia. Bahrain is connected to Saudi Arabia by a causeway. It is the smallest country in the Middle East, with about 700 square kilometers (270 square miles).
The island nation, which is strategically allied with the West and has normalized relations with Israel, is situated directly across the Persian Gulf from Iran. It is home to the Fifth Fleet of the US Navy, which has over 7,800 US military personnel stationed there. In 2018, Britain established its 300-person military presence at its first permanent military installation in the Middle East since 1971, which is located close to Bahrain’s capital, Manama.
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