Rights activists rap licences ban
Published: 8th July 2007
HUMAN rights activists have criticised a ban on issuing driving licences to some expatriates in Bahrain.
The General Directorate of Traffic (GDT) confirmed to the GDN on Wednesday that the policy had come into force with the aim of helping limit congestion.
It sparked anger among the foreign community in Bahrain, with some describing it as discrimination.
A GDT spokesman said those affected included foreign students and expatriate workers employed in ‘menial’ jobs such as labourers, gardeners and cooks.
He said Bahrain was already congested and those in such professions did not need driving licences.
Rights activists rap licences ban
Published: 8th July 2007
HUMAN rights activists have criticised a ban on issuing driving licences to some expatriates in Bahrain.
The General Directorate of Traffic (GDT) confirmed to the GDN on Wednesday that the policy had come into force with the aim of helping limit congestion.
It sparked anger among the foreign community in Bahrain, with some describing it as discrimination.
A GDT spokesman said those affected included foreign students and expatriate workers employed in ‘menial’ jobs such as labourers, gardeners and cooks.
He said Bahrain was already congested and those in such professions did not need driving licences.
The Bahrain Centre for Human Rights (BCHR) yesterday expressed concern about the policy.
“Instead of taking practical measures to ease congestion such as investigating a public transport system and encouraging better road practices such as car pooling, we are extremely disappointed to see that our government has chosen once again to target the most vulnerable communities of people in Bahrain,” said BCHR vice-president Nabeel Rajab.
“Practising and promoting discrimination through legislation and policies should not be the behaviour of a country which sits on the United Nations Human Rights Council.
“This measure is an easy way out of a problem which the government needs to give serious consideration to, especially because of the high number of development and construction projects in the country.
“We have seen time and again that the government takes a free hand in violating the rights of expatriate workers because they are the most vulnerable and least able to defend their rights.”
Mr Rajab said the licence policy followed the passing of parliament legislation in April this year, which proposed removing expatriate bachelor labourers from Bahraini communities and housing them in segregated industrial areas.
He called for the government to revoke the policy as well as the law banning expatriate bachelors from residential areas.
The BCHR was dissolved by the government in September 2004 for allegedly breaching the societies law, but has continued to operate unofficially.
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