21st/ 22nd April 2013

BAHRAIN MEDIA ROUNDUP

Between Bahrain's villages and F1 circuit, a stark contrast
Young men hurl rocks and petrol bombs at police. Police re tear gas and stun grenades. Thousands gather to demand an end to a Formula One car race they see as a public relations stunt to gloss over chronic human rights abuses. But except for the odd plume of black smoke, hardly any sign of Bahrain's two-year-old political crisis reaches the Grand Prix race site at the Sakhir circuit in the desert about 30 km (19 miles) southwest of the capital Manama. "When they talk about human rights, I don't know what the human rights are or what it's all about," Formula One's commercial supremo Bernie Ecclestone told Reuters when asked about the political situation in Bahrain. Read More The Grand Prix was overshadowed by sometimes bloody clashes away from the circuit which dragged Formula One bosses into controversy for a second year in a row. Police have red birdshot and tear gas to contain simmering resentment at a deadly crackdown by the Sunni royal family on Arab Spring-inspired protests that erupted in 2011 led by the kingdom's Shiite Muslim majority. Read More year and, just as in 2012, the race took place against the backdrop of arguments about whether Formula 1 should be in the troubled Gulf kingdom at all. It was not a complete carbon-copy weekend one year on, however. Read More The protesters accuse the government of using the race to gain international recognition and cover up rights abuses.

Analysis: Bahrain's rulers evade F1 fiasco but crisis endures

Bahrain's rulers can breathe a sigh of relief after a prized Formula One race went off largely unhindered by unrest, but in villages beyond the well-protected Grand Prix bubble simmering communal tensions still pose a stubborn challenge to stability.

Last year's race was seen as a public relations owngoal for the tiny but strategically vital country's ruling Al Khalifa family, as security forces battled protesters and black smoke rose on the skyline across the U.S.-allied country. This year the opposition, which draws support from the island's Shi'ite Muslim majority, again staged rallies hoping to grab the media spotlight to press for reforms of the Sunnidominated government. Read More out against an annual backdrop of anti-government protests. The 2011 race was cancelled; this year's was largely trouble-free Felipe Massa was the winner in Bahrain in 2007 and 2008, but struggled with wing and tyre damage, nishing out of the points after starting the weekend brightly with the best time in rst practice Read More

Bahrain F1 ends without disruption despite protests

Police clashed with Shiite demonstrators on Sunday only hours ahead of Bahrain's Formula One, but a massive security presence prevented any disruption to the race itself as Sebastian Vettel took the chequered ag.

Bahrain Grand Prix: Palm trees, petrol and protesters

After the humidity of Shanghai, the hotter, drier desert air of Bahrain provided a different test for the cars and drivers - not to mention the chance of a sandstorm or two Bahrain is F1's most contentious race, played

Protests in Bahrain as McLaren's Sergio Perez lights the fuse

The sense of deja vu was inescapable at the Bahrain Grand Prix on Sunday. The same drivers lled the podium in the same positions as they had last

Bahrain protests over Grand Prix

Bahrain anti-government activists have clashed with police and blocked roads into the capital, in a bid to disrupt the Formula 1 Grand Prix.

Bahrain's Crown Prince Salman says a reform process is under way, and denies using Formula 1 for political gain. Witnesses said access to the Formula 1 event had been largely unaffected by the demonstrations. Read More

Protesters, police in Bahrain clash ahead of Vettel's F1 victory

A heavy police presence in Bahrain on Sunday limited marches by protesters organized to coincide with the controversial Formula One race in the kingdom, won by world champion Sebastian Vettel.

Tensions in Bahrain remain high following the 2011 uprising, in which the majority Shiite population protested against the ruling Sunni minority. Some of the marches called for by anti-government protest leaders took place, but others were thwarted as police stormed the areas where protesters were gathering. Read More Some protesters blocked roads around the capital Manama on Sunday morning and police red teargas at a secondary school in the city where students had been demonstrating, Sayed Yousif al-Muhafda of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights said. Scores of police cars and a couple of armored vehicles stood along the highway from the capital to the race circuit. Read More set alight tyres on roads in villages populated by Shi'ite Muslims just outside Manama. But access was still open to the Sakhir circuit, south of the Bahraini capital. Bahrain's public security chief, Major General Tariq Hassan, says police are out in force to beef up security measures at the Bahrain International Circuit. Read More

Bahrain Grand Prix motors on as Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone says: 'What human rights? I don't know what they are'
A heavy police presence on the streets of Bahrain ensured that prodemocracy protests did not disrupt the countrys controversial Grand Prix today which activists had argued should not have taken place due to widespread human rights abuses by the ruling monarchy.

On Grand Prix day, clashes continue in Bahrain

Bahraini pro-democracy activists reported sporadic clashes between police and protesters on Sunday, hours before a Formula One race promoted by the government as a nonpolitical festival of sport but seen by the opposition as a public relations stunt.

Protesters burnt tyres to block several roads on the outskirts of the capital city of Manama today while scores of police cars and armoured vehicles protected the Sakhir circuit, where the world champion Sebastian Vettel took victory. The Bahrain Centre for Human Rights said several small protests were broken up by security forces throughout the day in the villages of Sanabis, alDaih and Jidhafs, where police arrested 13 protesters. The group said police had red tear gas at a secondary school where students were demonstrating. Read More

Bahrain ambitious after pro-democracy campaigners kept away from track

Next year it may not be protesters burning tyres who light up the night sky it could be the Formula One race itself. Bahrain's Grand Prix chairman, Zayed Alzayani, is anxious to mark the race's 10th anniversary at the Sakhir track and a night event is one of the options. Alzayani said: "We are looking at many options. A night race could

be one of them, but it is not the only one. There are pros and cons to doing it." Sunday's race went ahead against a background of violent clashes between pro-democracy demonstrators and police. But race organisers, encouraged by their success in keeping the trouble away from the track itself, are ambitious for the event and keen that the season should begin with a Bahrain race. Read More

Clashes ahead of Bahrain F1 race

Bahraini protesters have blocked roads and clashed with police, only hours ahead of the Gulf state's Formula One Grand Prix, but the authorities say the race will go ahead without incident. Masked youths demonstrating against the staging of Sunday's race

Clashes as Bahrain Grand Prix goes ahead

The Formula One race has gone ahead despite ongoing clashes betweenBahraini police and anti-government demonstrators in the capital, Manama. Police red birdshot and tear gas on Sunday to

contain simmering resentment at a deadly crackdown by the Sunni royal family on Arab Springinspired protests that erupted two years ago led by the kingdom's Shia Muslim majority. Al Jazeera's special correspondent, reporting from Manama,said that Sunday'sclashes had broken out at Al Jabrya secondary school,one kilometre from the centre of the capital. Read More

Formula One's return to Bahrain meets mixed response

Formula One has returned to Bahrain amid conicting views about the sport's place in a country where political tensions are running high.

The head of the sport's governing body the FIA, Jean Todt, insists the sport coming to Bahrain can be a force for good. But that view is not shared by anti-government protesters, who recently staged a drum march in the village outside Bahrain's capital Manama to urge F1 not to come under the current circumstances. Read More race set alight tyres on roads in villages populated by Shia Muslims just outside Manama, according to witnesses. But access was still open to the Sakhir circuit, south of the Bahraini capital. Overnight, police red teargas to disperse demonstrators protesting in several Shia-populated villages, Read More (subscription needed) blocked roads with burning tires. They also used hot-air balloons in a bid to disrupt civil aviation, according to reports. While Bahrains rulers can breathe a sigh of relief that the race took place largely unhindered by antigovernment protests, villages beyond the wellprotected Grand Prix bubble pose a stubborn challenge to stability. Read More

Bahrain F1: What happens when the cameras are gone?

Should sports and human rights be interlinked? In February 2011, hundreds of thousands of people in Bahrain took to the streets to demand selfdetermination, rights, and dignity. Their basic demands were met by the regimes horrically violent crackdown, backed by its Gulf Cooperation Council

(GCC) and international allies. Two years later, the most prominent human rights defenders in the country remain behind bars, some of them denied family, lawyer, and hospital visits for over a month. Today, jails contain hundreds of political prisoners, excessive use of force takes place against protesters on a daily basis, reports of torture persist, hospitals are still militarized, and the culture of impunity continues. But why is any of this relevant to the Grand Prix race? Read More Al-Jabrya Secondary School.

Protesters make presence felt before Bahrain GP

Bahrain is adamant that the island kingdoms Grand Prix will go ahead safely even though protesters blocked roads and clashed with police in the build-up to the race this morning. Masked youths demonstrating against the

Bahrain Grand Prix 2013: stench of burning tyres will leave an indelible mark on the world of Formula One
Armed police red tear gas and birdshot at demonstrators in the Shia districts of Manama yesterday, amid reports of students burning tyres and barricading themselves at

At the track, cars queued for up to two hours to pass through a series of extra security checks and bombdetection devices. It marked the culmination of another tense grand prix week in Bahrain, as prodemocracy activists held up banners yesterday describing the event as the race of blood. Read More demonstrators staged marches and protests in their quest for reform given the country's miserable human rights record. The more violent element, primarily the radical February 14 Youth Revolution, expressed their concerns and objections with the daily burning of tyres and clashes with police who responded with teargas. Read More

Clashes erupt in Bahrain during Formula 1 Grand Prix

Anti-government protesters in Bahrain clashed with security forces as the Formula 1 Grand Prix was underway on Sunday. Rioters threw rocks and Molotov cocktails, used re extinguishers to blast nails at security forces, and

Five more years: Ecclestone ready to sign new Bahrain deal despite unrest
Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone is ready to hand a new ve-year contract to the organisers of the controversial Bahrain Grand Prix. This year's race again went ahead against a troubled backdrop as pro-democracy

As protests flare up across Bahrain, rulers try and highlight the economic benefit
The Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix has brought with it full hotel bookings, increased restaurant trafc, and spike in business throughout the taxi, rental car and retail sectors, said a top ofcial. "The platform that the race produces presents a fabulous shop window for

Bahrain," said Sportique88 managing director Martin Whitaker at the 'Business in Formula 1' event at the Paddock Club of the Bahrain International Circuit, according to a report in the Gulf Daily News, our sister publication. He was taking part in discussions on the 'Value of Formula One to the host nation', which was also attended by Transportation Minister Kamal Ahmed. Read More Masked youths clashed with police, piling tires on to roads and setting them alight in Shiite villages surrounding the capital city, Manama, a witness told AFP news agency. During the night riot ofcers red teargas into crowds of enraged protesters chanting against the race. However, in spite of protesters efforts, access to the Sakhir circuit to the south of the capital remains open. Read More repeatedly refused requests to send him to hospital.

F1 and History of Western Complicity in Bahrain Torture

As Formula I begins in Bahrain, in an attempt to normalise the al-Khalifa regime, it is worth remembering that Western, and particularly British complicity in torture and repression in Bahrain goes back a long way.

Ian Henderson, the 'Butcher of Bahrain," died on Sunday 14th April 2013 having escaped justice, never having been questioned. He headed the security division of Bahrain's Interior Ministry for several decades. He personally involved himself in the torture process according to countless accounts. Read More

Manama ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix.

Race for blood: Police clash with protesters ahead of Bahrain Grand Prix
Bahrain's F1 Grand Prix starts amid tensions, as police scufed with local activists who blocked roads protesting against the race they brand a race for blood. Mass protests have been calling for democracy and an end to the monarchys autocratic rule.

Bahrain: protesters clash with police on the eve of Grand Prix

One day before the eyes of the world are on Bahrain, protesters there are using the opportunity to draw attention to their demands for political reform. Police clashed with demonstrators on the streets of the capital

There was also violence in nearly 20 other villages across the small island Gulf state, according to the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights. Pro-democracy protests began in February 2011, with the unrest causing that year's Grand Prix to be cancelled. Read More group calling for the Bahraini representative to be expelled. Ceartas accused Bahrains attorney general Dr Ali bin Fadhel Al-Buainain, a member of the IAPs 30strong executive committee, of overseeing unlawful prosecutions and unfair trials in the wake of antigovernment protests in 2011. Ceartas also said Dr Al-Buainain failed to properly investigate or prosecute for cases involving torture. Read More

Bahrain activist Nabeel Rajab 'denied medical treatment'

The wife of jailed Bahraini human rights activist Nabeel Rajab says he is being denied medical treatment for a back injury. Sumaya Rajab told the BBC that prison ofcials had

Mr Rajab has served 11 months of a two-year sentence for encouraging "illegal gatherings". The 48-year-old has been a leader of the prodemocracy protests which have rocked the kingdom since February 2011. Read More

International prosecutors group to meet over Bahraini membership

Bahrains continuing membership of the International Association of Prosecutors (IAP) will be discussed when the organisations executive committee meets in Paris later this week. IAP president James Hamilton conrmed the association had received a complaint from an Irish lawyers human rights

Bahrain dialogue arguments persist

A new round of talks has failed to break a ten-week impasse on setting a much anticipated agenda for the national dialogue in Bahrain. With neither of the two coalitions of political societies offering a compromise, sharp disagreements over major issues remained unsettled after 14 rounds of talks

amid a growing frustration by the public at the agrant inability to break the deadlock. The arguments aired at the previous sessions persisted at the latest round, Dalal Al Zayed, a parliamentarian from the upper chamber, said on Sunday evening as she left the Shaikh Eisa Cultural Centre where the talks were held. The main difference this time is about what to do with the results of the dialogue. Read More

Bahrain Prince to join talks: Salman Bin Hamad Al Khalifato wait for time to step in
Bahrains Crown Prince Salman Bin Hamad Al Khalifa said that he would attend the ongoing national talks at the right time and place. If I attend talks and they fail as they did in 2011, the

costs are extremely high, he told the media as he toured the Bahrain International Circuit on the eve of the Bahrain Grand Prix. I cannot speak for different political groups or different political views that are present at the table. So there is a time and a place for me to step in. It is not yet there. Read More

Abdulrahman announced today.

UN Special Rapporteur Postpones Visit To Bahrain

The UN Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading Treatment or Punishment Professor Juan Mendez has put off his visit to Bahrain, initially scheduled on May 8-15, till further notice, Human Rights Affairs Minister Dr. Salah bin Ali

The postponement followed a meeting held between the minister, the UN Rapporteur and ofcials representing the ofce of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Washington D.C. The minister delivered an ofcial letter from the Government to the UN Special Rapporteur outlining reasons for the request to postpone the visit. Read More