F1! Cancel the race; regime is disgraced. Make it happen; regime is busted

Will the Gand Prix take place this year in Bahrain? Do Bahraini people want it to be held? Some do and some don’t.

Will it be? Or will it NOT?

Outline

On the ground, no political reform whatsoever has been established since last year. As a matter fact, the Government of Bahrain (GoB) has escalated its violence and atrocities against the people, resulting in the killing of more civilians and innocent people. GoB’s security policies, instead of its immediate implementation of BICI (Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry) recommendations, promised to put an end to the people’s movement by February 2012, which is far from being applicable.

Raids are taking place on a daily basis. People are suffocating because of tear and toxic gases every hour. The scenario is the same. People demonstrate peacefully. Security forces disperses demonstrators using excessive force. Clashes erupt. People get injured and many instances killed. Others suffocate. Mercenaries raid the village of demonstrators. Innocent people get beaten, arrested, tortured, then either released with their swollen body or sent to prosecution, which in almost all cases result in a short period sentence, that prolongs or extends automatically.

Mercenaries and thugs, brutally, attack a peaceful and unarmed civilian - Nuwaidrat

Media is still biased. Campaigns against opposition members, leaders and societies continue to play a dirty role in inflaming and aggravating the situation. Employees who have been fired from their jobs, post the crisis, based on sectarian hatred/motives are still out on streets, protesting and demanding to have their rights back, through re-instating them, unconditionally. Those who were arrested and sentenced to imprisonment are still in prison and still being mistreated. BICI recommended releasing all prisoners who were arrested because of practicing their right of freedom of speech.

Up to the end of December 2011, people hardly respond to mercenaries brutal attacks by throwing them with stones and rocks and blocking streets to prevent them from raiding the village. But the mercenaries crossed all lines. They attacked women, children and girls. They sexually harassed people, including women and young boys - juvenilles. They destroyed private properties. They deployed thugs to attack civilians. They attacked funerals. BICI report proved that many women were subject to humiliation through forcing them to stand in their sleeping clothes and preventing them from covering their bodies, during night, illegal arrests. Other women were raped, sexually harassed, tortured and insulted during their detention. That’s something big. Being Muslims, it’s even bigger.

Mohammed Ibrahim, while trying to distract the mercenaries attention away from the women, was chased by the mercenaries and run over then arrested. The next days, he was dead! He was tortured to death

This led the Shia cleric, Shaikh Isa Ahmed Qassim, to respond. He sent a clear message to the GoB and the people. “If you see them (mercenaries) attacking women, then smash them”, said Shaikh Isa Qassim in a Friday prayer speech.

Shaikh Isa Qassim speech

That exploded the situation. Mercenaries never stopped their human violations nor have they met their professional obligations, which in turn led the people to respond. People don’t have weapons. They used Molotov cocktails to defend themselves and protect their families.

Daily scenes. Peaceful protests. Brutal attack. People respond. Injuries. Hospital treatment rejected. Detention abuses. Human rights violations. Torture. Tires burning. Toxic gases all over the country.

Then, what?

If F1 Administration decides to hold the race on time in Bahrain, it’ll be approving the brutality and dictatorship of the regime in Bahrain. It’ll sign a partnership agreement with the regime. It’ll be in a very bad shape, especially in front of human rights organizations and international bodies.

If F1 Administration decides to cancel the race in Bahrain, the majority of the opposition members will be happy. Why? Because they managed, successfully, and with minimal effort, to tell the world that Bahrain is not a safe place, as long as the regime is the same brutal regime; hence, the voice of Bahraini people can easily be heard due to the increased attention that that international media will furnish.

Personally, I’m indifferent. Frankly, I would prefer that the Grand Prix takes place in Bahrain. You would ask why...

Many of the reporters are banned from entering the country. GoB is afraid that unbiased reporters will shift back the international media attention to its brutality. Wouldn’t it be great to have ALL those reporters back in Bahrain, and with the consent of the regime? GoB officials are claiming that Bahrain is safe, opposition is lying, opposition “external” plots have been exposed, the so-called “14^th of February Movement” has been killed and that the bunch of terrorists and vandals have been taken care of. The opposition, on the other hand, is claiming that the regime is brutal, atrocious, rejects reforms, violates basic human rights, tortures people, violent, burns people alive and deploys apartheid.

Daily scenes from Bahrain

Seeing is believing. We’re relying now on YouTube and other cyber means to show the world the ugly face of the regime. Why not make the world see it live? Let them come. Let them witness it all.

I’m a volunteer. I’m willing to arrange for tours inside our villages. To be fair, I won’t even suggest the destination. Let the visitors, randomly, select a destination. And I’m sure they’ll be shocked by the amount and number of human rights violations that they’ll witness. The regime’s face is ugly. It can been seen in most of the populated places in Bahrain. And that's what we'll do. Let them stay in Sofitel and the Ritz-Carlton. They'll see it. They'll smell it. They'll feel it. They'll ask for it. Let the world witness the regime's craziness.

Yet, and that goes unsaid, canceling the race in Bahrain remains a slap that will burn the regime's Ace.

Cancel the race; regime is disgraced. Make it happen; regime is busted.

Nabeel Al-Sayyed, 15:00, 1 February 2012