Opinion ‘Bahrain is not a part of the democratic domino effect in the Middle East’

There is a transformation going through the Arab world,this is nothing bad. But Bahrain is not a part of this revolution. What we see in Egypt and Tunisia is a real transformation of a society vying for a better life,vying for freedom and change. They suffer the most terrible type of stagnation,but Bahrain is not a part of this revolution. Bahrain is a minority in the Arab world,it is a small country,yet it enjoys greater freedoms. Those (Egypt and Tunisia) are bigger countries with bigger troubles. Bahrain is not a part of the democratic domino effect that is sweeping the Middle East. Our challenges are different.

What about the Shia (the protestors) calls for greater political inclusion and freedoms?

These people on the streets did get inspiration from the Egyptian and the Tunisian revolutions — we will address their demands through dialogue. But whether the revolution has continued on the right track (in Bahrain) is questionable. The people of Bahrain are not united in calling for change. The Shia opposition — Wefaq — is the only legitimate party,and they have failed their constituents by walking out of parliament. The opposition does not speak with one voice. The Shia uprising is a result of sectarianism,an age-old problem. We have tried to rid ourselves of this sectarianism but two events have polarised our attempts: the Iranian Revolution and the jihad in Afghanistan have wreaked havoc,made our young fight against the infidels. In this uprising,again,we see the role of Iran and its agents.

This is the first time in the Peninsula Shield Force’s history that it has intervened on GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) soil. Why now?

We feel that the revolution has been hijacked in an ugly way by people who want to cause serious upheavals. One outsider wants to declare it (Bahrain) an Islamic republic and the other wants a complete change of regime. We felt a real threat to the stability of the people. This threat is not just towards the Sunnis or the Sunni royals but also towards the Shia. The Shia are not united,they do not speak with one voice. Hence there is meddling from other powers. But we,like the protestors,want reform,constitutional reform but we still see dialogue as the only way forward. The invitation to the Peninsula Shield Forces is simply a move to restore law and order and remember,we invited the GCC forces — the Peninsula Shield Force.”

This invitation has been viewed with great scepticism — to ensure that the protests do not spread to the Gulf. The Saudi role has caused alarm.

We are paranoid in the GCC,but this is not solely because of internal change. Every country has its own timetable. Nobody can stop change but the people should themselves be ready for the change. The Saudis saw a real threat,what they saw is possible upheaval to come. There is an urgency,there is a threat. The issue is bigger than Bahrain,there is a real threat to the region. This is an issue that impacts the defence of Gulf — the Peninsula Shield Force is there to act in such instances. Their role is to defend vital installations,this has allowed and freed the Bahraini defence force to focus on the protests. If we didn’t care about our people,the police force would have been enough. But to make sure no lives were lost,to bring the situation under control,we needed to the Peninsula Shield Force into effect. But they have no internal role. They have simply freed the Bahraini defence force who are now monitoring the protests.”

What are these threats?

We see a new picture emerging in the region. The threats we are facing are not internal,there are threats of terror from all sides: from Al Qaeda,the Shia who are encouraged to cause upheaval,Hezbollah. This tempo picked up pace between Iran and Bahrain. Iran immediately denounced the GCC intervention,calling them occupation forces. But we called them in,they came in on our request.

How has Iran’s condemnation of the GCC intervention impacted the Gulf states?

We have seen from Iran,by way of clear threats,meddling and media wars. This sort of aggression was getting increasingly uncomfortable for us. It is Iran that incites sectarianism,whether directly on indirectly through its proxies in Lebanon or Hezbollah. This is not something we can live with in Bahrain. The intervention has nothing to do with the protests. We want reform but we needed to neutralise the situation,to bring in law and order. This is an issue bigger than Bahrain. This is issue that impacts the defence of the Gulf and beyond. This is why I am in India. Pakistan,India,Turkey,these are serious stakeholders in the stability of the Gulf. Look at our joint history — our modern history goes 200 years back. We need to ensure the region is safe from extremist elements.