Whose Fault is it Anyway?

Through the years, the people who have visited or lived in Bahrain all shared a similar experience; they were all surprised and pleased by the Bahraini people's tolerance, down to earthness, kindness and generosity. Despite the varying experiences of foreigners and expats in my country, some negative & many positive, one thing the folks I came across stressed: the Bahraini people's goodness.

Bahrain among its Gulf counterparts has always presented the real easts meets west pot, where foriegners and locals all were part of one society. At least that is how it seemed to me. This is now all changing. With the recent wave, no FLOOD, of illegal immigration Bahrainis are becoming less and less tolerant. Racial slurs are printed in the press and celebrated. The patriotic thing it seems is to berate and belitte the naturalized. Uncivilized, uncouth and unworthy are some of the names they have been called.

Emails containing pictures of naturalized citizens' passports are forwarded. A song of an Indian singing Bahraini ana (I am Bahraini) came out mocking those that came adrift the naturalization flood. The author of an article (see below) that I received in yet another forward showed disdain that a Bahraini would be called Daniel/Danielle, wondering if such a name is native or Arab or the name of a prophet.... Ironically, our sectarian rife society unites in discriminating against the new citizens! FYI, Daniel is a prophet in the Torah and Old Testament. Tsk tsk author, do better research next time, it might increasing your credibility.

I have to wonder at all the discriminatory remarks going around. Is this the new low that Bahrainis are stooping to? Is it that these new citizens are the low wall that we can vent our frustrations on? Who would forgo what they would view as a better life for themselves and their kin, what could be their only way out?

Whose fault is it anyways? Shouldn't the mockery and blame be directed towards those who put this policy in effect?

I can't help but think of how all these reactions towards the newly naturalized only serves to further divide our polarized socity. Let's face it folks, naturalized or local, we are all in this mess together. Let us stop slinging mud.

Here is what sparked this rant: (I did not list the author's name, as I got this in a fwd and did not see the original piece)

آشوف طالت وشمخت ... يا مجنسالذي يحصل في بلادنا البحرين .. في هذه الأيام .. من قبل المجنسين الصحراويين .. شيء لا يمكن السكوت عنه أبداً أبداً أبدا , ولا يرضي أي بحريني ( بغض النظر عن إتجاهاته الطائفية أو ميوله السياسية والإجتماعية ) لا من قريب ولا من بعيد ..فهؤلاء المجنسون الصحراويون أصبحوا خطراً خطيراً علينا وعلى أرواحنا وعلى أهلنا وأولادنا حاضراً ومستقبلاً .. وأصبح التصدي لهم يستلزم منا التكاتف جميعاً ضدهم .. وجميعاً تعني جميع البحرينيين الشرفاء من سنة وشيعة بلا أحقاد دفينة ولا عداوات معلنة أو مخفية , واليوم هو يوم الإتحاد مع بعض ووضع الأيادي بعضها مع بعض والوقوف صفاً واحداً للدفاع عن هذا الوطن وأبناءه ضد هؤلاء الذين جائوا كي يفسدوا في أرضنا ويعيثوا فساداً في وطننا ويهددوا أمننا وأمن أهلنا وأولادنا ..هؤلاء المجنسون الصحراويون الذين يتجمعون مع بعض على شكل فرق تخريبية وترهيبية تضم الأعداد الكبيرة من المراهقين والشباب والكبار , والمتسلحين بالسكانين وألواح الخشب الكبيرة المغروس فيها الكثير من المسامير الكبيرة الحجم .. هؤلاء ( الرعاع ) أصبحوا يتواجدون في أماكن كثيرة من البحرين ويمكن لأي شخص أن يرى قطيعهم في الرفاع الغربي والرفاع الشرقي وجو وعسكر والمحرق والبديع وأماكن أخرى كثيرة .. والمشكلة هي أنهم يتحرشون بكل بحريني يقترب منهم أو هم يقتربون منه تعمداً , والذي سبق وأن حصل في مناطق عديدة من البحرين وآخرها في مدينة المحرق .. من هجوم على البحرينيين الآمنين وضربهم بالسكاكين والألواح الخشبية والمسامير وتعريض حياتهم وحياة أسرهم للخطر .. ما حصل هو فقط القليل جداً مما سوف يحصل مستقبلاً من قبل هؤلاء إن يجدوا من يقف في طريقهم ويثبتهم عند حدودهم ويعلمهم أصول الإحترام للبلد التي إحتضنتهم .. فأما الإحترام وأما المغادرة .وهؤلاء المجنسون الصحراويون الذين أصبحوا يسيطرون على موقع منتديات مملكة البحرين ويدخلون إليه بأسماء مستعارة .. مثل أسد تكريت ودانيال نعمة الله .. ويسبون ويلعنون كل بحريني وكل مواطن صالح لبلده وأهله , هؤلاء هم الذين يحتاجون إلى من يقوم بتأديبهم وتأديب أهلهم أولاً لأنهم هم الذين يتسببون في إشعال الفتن بين الشعب البحريني الواحد , وهم الذين يحرضون إخوانهم من بنوا جنسهم ( الصحراوي ) لأعمال التخريب وإشعال الفتنة .. نحن اليوم في البحرين .. نريد أن ننسى إختلافاتنا في وجهات النظر جانباً , ونعتبر أن تلك الإختلافات في وجهات النظر لا يجب أن أن تصل بنا إلى الخلافات حول تأكيد من وجهة نظره هي الصائبة .. نريد أن نثبت المثل الذي يقول أنا وأخى ضد إبن عمي , ولكن أنا وإبن عمي على الغريب .. والغريب هنا هم حملة الأسماء الغريبة في مجتمعنا الخليجي المعروف بأسماءه وبأنسابه .. الغريب هنا هو شريفط ومريفط وتويسان .. الغريب هنا هو دانيال نعمة الله .. دانيال ؟ هل هذا إسم شخص بحريني ؟ هل هي بنت أم ولد ؟ وعندما تسأله عن إسمه يقول هذا إسم نبي من أنبياء الله .. هل سمعتم بإسم النبي دانيال ؟ أستغفر الله العلي العظيم ..لنتحد جميعنا .. سنة وشيعة .. ضد هؤلاء المجنسين الصحراويين قبل فوات الأوان ..

How about we unite not againt the blameless but against the corrupt policy that drowned the country with this flood? How about putting the not-to-be-mentioned report back on the discussion table and investigating its accusations? How about holding those responsible for unleashing the gates responsible? Naaaah, that would be too logical, let's just continue beating on the scapegoat. It won't change a thing but a few ppl might feel better.

Saudi Arabia to lift ban on women drivers

Got this in an email. Congrats to our Saudi sisters on this victory, may this be the first of many human and women rights & freedoms gained back in Saudi and the region as a whole.

Daily Telegraph: Saudi Arabia to lift ban on women driversBy Damien McElroy in Riyadh
Last Updated: 1:02am GMT 21/01/2008

Saudi Arabia is to lift its ban on women drivers in an attempt to stem a rising suffragette-style movement in the deeply conservative state.

Government officials have confirmed the landmark decision and plan to issue a decree by the end of the year.

The move is designed to forestall campaigns for greater freedom by women, which have recently included protesters driving cars through the Islamic state in defiance of a threat of detention and loss of livelihoods.

The royal family has previously balked at granting women driving permits, claiming the step did not have full public support. The driving ban dates back to the establishment of the state in 1932, although recently the government line has weakened.

"There has been a decision to move on this by the Royal Court because it is recognised that if girls have been in schools since the 1960s, they have a capability to function behind the wheel when they grow up," a government official told The Daily Telegraph. "We will make an announcement soon."

Abdulaziz bin Salamah, the deputy information minister, said the official reform programme had been dogged by debate over the issue.

"In terms of women driving, we don't have it now because of the reticence of some segments of society," he said. "For example, my mother wouldn't want my sister to drive.

"It's something she cannot grapple with. But there is change on the way. I think the fair view is that one can be against it but one does not have the right to prevent it."

If the ban on women driving is lifted, it could be years before the full impact is seen. Practical hurdles stopping women obtaining licences and insurance must be overcome.

Mohammad al-Zulfa, a reformist member of the Saudi consultative Shura Council, which scrutinises official policies in the oil-rich state, said reversing the ban was part of King Abdullah's "clever" strategy of incremental reform.

"When it was first raised, the extremists were really mad," he said. "Now they just complain. It is diminishing into a form of consent."

Saudi Arabia maintains a strict segregation of the sexes outside the family home.
An unaccompanied woman must shop behind curtains and cannot hail a taxi.

Critics believe allowing women to drive would be the first step towards a gradual erosion of the kingdom's modesty laws. A woman would have to remove the traditional abaya robe to get a clear view behind the wheel.

"Allowing women to drive will only bring sin," a letter to Al-Watan newspaper declared last year. "The evils it would bring - mixing between the genders, temptations, and tarnishing the reputation of devout Muslim women - outweigh the benefits."

Saudi women have mounted growing protests. Fouzia al-Ayouni, the country's most prominent women's rights campaigner, has risked arrest by leading convoys of women drivers. "We have broken the barrier of fear," she said. "We want the authorities to know that we're here, that we want to drive, and that many people feel the way we do."

My Beloved's Fool

My heart bleeds as I hear news of my beloved. I stare on, listening while my heart is thumping in my chest, thinking to myself, where is this, this isn’t the beloved that I know. I don’t recognize this monster that is being described. This terror, corruption, greed and evil that has ingrained itself into the very fabric of this beloved of mine. What has become of my beloved and where is she headed to? Destruction, doom, and sadness seem to be the path she is heading off to. Fool that I am I fell for her. Drunk in her love, I swallowed all the lies and believed that a leopard can change its spots.