By NOOR TOORANI , Posted on » Thursday, July 08, 2010
THOUSANDS of people are expected to attend a rally highlighting Bahrain’s changing demographics allegedly caused by “political naturalisation” tomorrow.
The Al Wafa Islamic Movement, Haq Movement for Liberties and Democracy, and Bahrain Islamic Freedom Activists has organised the demonstration, which will start opposite the Bahrain Mall in Sanabis at 5pm.
By NOOR TOORANI , Posted on » Thursday, July 08, 2010
THOUSANDS of people are expected to attend a rally highlighting Bahrain’s changing demographics allegedly caused by “political naturalisation” tomorrow.
The Al Wafa Islamic Movement, Haq Movement for Liberties and Democracy, and Bahrain Islamic Freedom Activists has organised the demonstration, which will start opposite the Bahrain Mall in Sanabis at 5pm.
It is part of a campaign aimed at creating a national movement against what opposition groups say is naturalisation that intends to change the country’s political landscape.
The rally will be held under the theme Together against Imported People and the Marginalisation of the Native People.
A similar protest in May drew a crowd of around 5,000 people.
“We are protesting against political naturalisation because it goes against the law and is changing the demographics of the country,” said Al Wafa Islamic Movement member Sheikh Saeed Al Noori.
“The demographic change is a very serious crime aimed at changing the political scene in Bahrain and everyone in the country needs to stand up against it.
“We will also highlight the importance of public pressure on the government in order to stop it from naturalising further people for political reasons.”
The event is being spearheaded under the opposition’s National Campaign against Demographic Change in Bahrain.
It will be headed by the three societies in addition to various community and religious leaders, along with other opposition groups.
Organisers have submitted official letters to the Interior Ministry requesting permission to conduct the rally.
Sheikh Al Noori dismissed claims that recent protests against the conviction of seven Bahrainis jailed for life for the murder of Pakistani Shaikh Mohammed Riaz would interfere in the rally.
“This rally is aimed at targeting issues relating to political naturalisation and its affects on the public,” he told the GDN.
“There are two separate files in Bahrain, one is the legal and humanitarian movement and the other is the political movement.
“We try to cover issues in both movements but the problem is that the authorities are prosecuting detainees under political cases so that opposition groups will be busy with them and forget about the political file of the country.
“This tactic is obvious and we say that we will never forget the political file, which includes political naturalisation and corruption, especially with the elections on the horizon.”
Meanwhile, Al Haq Movement for Liberties and Democracy has called on Bahrainis, both Sunni and Shi’ite, to stand against the government’s “crazy” plan of creating a wedge between people.
It also aims to focus on issues such as corruption, unemployment, demographic change and other political issues in Bahrain.
A statement sent to the GDN said internal and international pressure would yield the results the public was looking for – but asked for patience as the process would take time.
“The most important thing in the campaign is to exert external and internal popular and political pressure because it’s the only way to halt designs aimed at changing Bahrain’s demographic stratum,” it said.
“This requires a lot of patience, determination and popular awareness in addition to participation on a wide scale.”