Today our people commemorate
the first anniversary of the 14 February 2011 popular movement. They commemorate
the fall of martyr Ali Mushaima who was followed by more than 60 other martyrs
killed by live bullets, or internationally banned lead shotguns, or direct
rubber bullets, or asphyxiation from teargas forbidden to use in closed areas
yet hailed by riot police into houses, or from torture to death inside Bahraini
prisons and detention centers as was the fate of martyrs Abdulkarim Fakhrawi,
Abdulrasool Alhujairi and others.
The regime has returned to the
grip of the security state and its control over all aspects of political life.
Particularly after 13 March 2011, the political solution was abandoned and
replaced by a security and military solution, leading the country into a dark
and grim phase where explicit and flagrant violations of human rights were
committed, where the Constitution and the National Action Charter -approved by
more than 98% of the people in 2001- were ignored and where official
institutions overlooked all governing laws, brutalizing political opposition
groups and their allies, reviving a new McCarthyism era in Bahrain. Thousands of
people have been imprisoned, collective punishment was inflicted on large groups
of people and more than 4400 people were expelled from their jobs by virtue of
their political and religious affiliations. All of this has resulted in a
security state, with severely deteriorating national economy as never witnessed
in decades past despite the “generous” aid that the regime has received from the
Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).
A year into the popular
movement and its demands, the political and constitutional crisis stands
clearly, in spite of all attempts to bury it with security tactics that only
exacerbated the situation, and in spite of all attempts to ignite sectarian
strife within society and to damage social unity by fabricating conflicts with
evident abhorrent goals.
The Central Committee in the
National Democratic Action Society, “Waad”, has held its third session and
discussed the political situation in its meeting on Saturday 11 February,
stressing a number of primary issues:
First:
Waad
stresses that the crisis that shook the country for more than ten years,
exploding on 14 February 2011, is beyond doubt a political and constitutional
crisis affecting all aspects of economic and social life, and is due to the
absence of a real political solution. This crisis increases in intensity as the
government insists on continuing their security measures, which have only proven
a failure for many years. The regime is not serious about a political solution.
On the contrary, it continues to procrastinate while the majority of Bahrainis
persistently demand real reforms and long-term political settlement based on
honouring the constitution that affirmed that sovereignty is “in the hands of
the people, the source of all powers.” Bahrainis demand this sovereignty through
an elected representative council with full legislative powers, fair electoral
districts based on equal vote for each citizen, and fighting financial and
administrative corruption that has long drained the government budget. The
solution to the deepening political crisis can only be through a serious
dialogue between the government and political opposition, based on the grounds
of the initiative launched by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, in addition
to the Manama Document principlesand the recommendations of the Bahrain
Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI).
Second:
National unity is a vital part of the struggle, and any attempts to rapture it
by fabricating conflict will lead to civil and social unrest. We stress the need
for all official institutions to stop sectarian aggravations and attempts for
sectarian division. We hold the regime responsible for preserving the social
fabric of our community and for controlling the sectarian instigators who are
currently being used as tools against the political opposition and its
legitimate demands.
Third:
the
regime has to restrain its security forces and prohibit them from using
excessive force against peaceful protestors, especially as they continue today
to use the same force condoned by the BICI report. In fact, there is has been
higher use of force against protestors causing permanent disabilities.
Collective punishment is also being practiced daily against families in various
areas. We demand presenting all those who violated human rights and committed
torture and extrajudicial killing to the courts of justice.
Fourth:
The GCC Roundabout
“Lulu Roundabout”, was the center of the
popular movement for more than a month (from the 14th of February to
the 16th of March, 2011). In this site, blood was shed, wounds were
inflicted, and our people gave great sacrifices with noble spirits and raised
heads, despite the repression that distinguished no man from woman, no child
from elderly. This roundabout transformed into a symbol of struggle that most
Bahrainis take pride in. The struggle for democracy, however, stretches to all
corners of Bahrain, all streets and public spaces, and is not restricted to one
location, regardless of its importance and symbolism. We warn the security
forces of continuing their repression against citizens and protesters, who
exercise their freedom of expression peacefully, and we hold them responsible
for their lives and properties. Moreover, the political responsibility of the
opposition necessitates defending these citizens of all religious affiliations
and defending their right to freedom of expression, considering doing so as a
patriotic responsibility. Recognizing that political work requires deep patience
until the legitimate demands are achieved, we confirm and reiterate that all of
Bahrain’s lands are sites for people’s political and social action, earned by
these people’s struggle, persistence and resilience. The demands of the
opposition are not for limited to a single day, but are relevant during all
year, in all local, regional and international arenas, as they are legitimate
demands and constitute the core of the conflict in our country.
Fift
h:
Holding firmly on to the
peacefulness principle of the popular movement is critical for our continued
national struggle for freedom, democracy and equal citizenship. Deviation from
this peacefulness that opposition has long maintained will cause further
political and sectarian strife, the harms and destructive effects of which will
not escape any citizen. This means that everyone must be careful and cautious
not fall into the trap of those who instigate and aggravate and of those who
mis-portrayed the political conflict as a security conflict. Falling into this
aggravators’ trap would benefit only the enemies of our people, and will give
false justification to further delay the political and human rights changes that
our people deserve.
Sixth:
We believe in and demand the
implementation of the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry report
recommendations, which the government had promised to implement and has yet to
execute anything worthy of notice. Implementation of these recommendations must
include the immediate release of all political detainees, on top of which is the
General Secretary of Waad, our brother Ebrahim Sharif Al-Sayed, seeing that the
report confirmed and declared the illegality of their trials. We also call for
the return of all employees who have been arbitrarily laid off following the
events and over their peaceful political stances, putting a stop to the
continued insults that come their way. We also believe that the Manama Document
signed by the political opposition on the 12th of October can
constitute a bridge towards the resolution of this crisis. Our country will not
see the end of this security crisis without a public announcement of ceasing the
assault on peaceful protestors, therefore considering it a gesture of faith to
begin serious political dialogue between opposition and the regime, and to begin
the process of transitional justice that starts with the implementation of the
Bassiouni report.
Seventh:
The Arabic identity of
Bahrain and the unity of the GCC that is talked about today is not new to us,
and has rather been the heart of our political stances. It is above the cheap
bargaining attempts that some pursue in the media in hope of personal gain. The
Arabic identity of Bahrain and its connection to the GCC has been a popular
demand and call that political forces in the Gulf have raised decades ago. In
1970, the United Nations sent a special mission to investigate the inclinations
and affiliations of the Bahraini people, who unequivocally confirmed, Sunni and
Shia alike, their Arabic identity and their affiliation and belonging to the
great Arab nation, after such mission Bahrain obtained its independence. In
2001, the Bahraini people renewed their Arabic identity and their belief in the
independence and unity of their homeland when they voted for the National Action
Charter.
Waad is an extension
of the historical Gulf and Arab political organizations of the past, starting
from the Arab nationalist movement, to the revolutionary movement, to the
Popular Front for the Liberation of the Arabian Gulf that began in the 60s of
last century and was able to free areas in the province of Dhofar, Oman,
managing it against the interference of the Shah, the British and the Jordanians
alike, to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Oman and the Arabian Gulf,
moving to the Popular Front of Bahrain and finally becoming the Waad of today.
We believed and continue to believe in the Arabic identity of the Gulf and in
the unity of its lands. We have sacrificed many martyrs in the fight for this
cause and this principle. When the Gulf Cooperation Council was created in 1981,
we reiterated that it was a council for the regimes only and demanded that a
council be created to represent the gulf people. We called for integration among
the GCC countries and the issuance of one common currency, one passport, and the
equal treatment of all GCC citizens in rights and obligations. We reaffirm today
that the only way forward for these regimes is to take the necessary steps that
benefit their people, on top of which are the implementation of true democracy,
involving the GCC citizen in framing his/her political reality and future, and
starting to build the true democratic institutions that are based on human
rights as understood by the principles and bases of international conventions
and treaties.
Eighth:
The
popular movement in Bahrain comes as an extension to the Arab Spring that began
in Tunisia and moved to Egypt, Libya, Yemen, Syria, Morocco, Jordan, Palestine
and other Arab countries. It aims to attain the ambitions of the Bahraini
citizens for freedom, democracy and equal citizenship regardless of political or
sectarian affiliations. The congruity and harmony between the various political
and social components of society is a goal that we aspire to achieve, which
would guarantee the dignity and welfare of each citizen and the attainment of
his/her legitimate ambitions. We extend our hands to all the political powers
that believe in the type of serious reform that respects people rights, protects
their dignity and establishes a civil democratic state.
Glory and
immortality to the martyrs and heroes of Bahrain
Freedom to the
political prisoners
Victory to the great
Bahraini people
National Democratic Action
Society
14 February 2012