Unsurprisingly, the protestors’ key demands soon evolved from simple demands for political reform to full blown regime change, with chants of ‘Down with Hamad’—referring to the king[861]—becoming commonplace. Moreover, Bahrain’s aforementioned long-serving prime minister[862]—a member of the ruling family and an uncle of the king — was being publicly accused of leading the crackdown and inviting the Saudi, UAE, and other foreign troops into the kingdom. Over the summer of 2011 the protests continued unabated with frequent reports of killings, arson, and the seizing of activists. Many of these crackdowns were recorded by onlookers on their smart phones and uploaded onto You-Tube or other video-sharing websites. These have been viewed by thousands of other Gulf nationals and heavily discussed on social media platforms. Facing criticism that Al-Jazeera was not covering the various Arab Spring revolutions in a uniform manner, the Qatar-based network even produced a documentary on the Bahraini protests. Entitled Shouting in the Dark it was watched by more than 200,000 YouTube users in the first week that it was broadcast. Depicting police brutality and various other human rights violations, it led to a diplomatic rift between Qatar and Bahrain, with the latter’s minister for foreign affairs[863] tweeting ‘It’s clear that in Qatar there are those who don’t want anything good for Bahrain. And this film on Al-Jazeera English is the best example of this inexplicable hostility’.[864]
Since then the government has hastily tried to create more public sector jobs and raise salaries — following a $10 billion emergency package from the GCC — and has sought to convene a ‘National Consensus Dialogue’ with the various opposition groups and political parties in order to ‘re-launch the political reform processes’ and ‘write a new chapter in the country’s history’.[865] But the leading Shia political society — Al-Wefaq National Islamic Society — boycotted the discussions and in many ways the other societies involved in the dialogue now no longer really represent the substantial popular protests on Bahrain’s streets. The king also initiated the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry to investigate and report on the crackdown. By appointing several world renowned human rights lawyers above reproach, including former UN lawyer Cherif Bassiouni, the king’s intention was likely to buy some breathing space when dealing with the international community. Indeed, the commission was described by some Bahraini opposition members as being the ‘king’s perfect defence shield’ as it allowed him to continue suppressing protests for several months while appeasing concerned western diplomats and other observers by convincing them that something was being done.
Although the commission’s findings, published in November 2011 and broadcast to the nation, were suitably damning, describing how prisoners were tortured to death, threatened with rape, and often hooded, whipped, beaten, and subjected to electric-shock treatment,[866] little significant action has since been taken by the authorities. Most individuals and departments blamed by the commission have not been punished, with only ten junior police officers having stood trial,[867] and only a few of the hundreds of political prisoners have been released. Moreover, crackdowns on protests have continued and appear to be no less brutal than before with reports of deaths and torture remaining frequent. These accelerated after the lengthy hunger strike of a key opposition figure[868] and the reinstatement of the Bahrain Formula One Grand Prix in March 2012—deemed by The Independent newspaper to be the ‘most controversial race’ in F1 history.[869] With F1’s governing body seemingly oblivious to the situation, over 100,000 protestors reportedly took to the streets, with security forces firing teargas and stun grenades into the crowds.[870] One demonstrator was even found ‘peppered with birdshot… after having been beaten and partially burned’.[871] Opposition sources now claim that over eighty Bahrainis have died since the uprisings began,[872] with nearly 5000 Shia having been fired from their jobs,[873] with hundreds of homes having recently been raided, and with over $10 million having been looted by security personnel from Shia communities.[874]
Oman: protests and promises
As another relatively poor Gulf monarchy, Oman also faced serious protests and riots in 2011. Much like in Bahrain, the protestors were not initially calling for the overthrow of the regime, but were rather expressing their grievances over poor economic opportunities, the lack of political reform, and widespread corruption in the government. Unsurprisingly the most serious protests occurred in Oman’s more indigent areas, notably the northern city of Sohar where a number of protestors — most of whom had congregated around the Globe Roundabout as part of the ‘Green March’—died in clashes with the police in February 2011. But several hundred protestors were also reported to have rallied in the capital city of Muscat where they had translated their banner slogans into English and French for the benefit of the international media. Following swift promises of increased subsidies, pay rises for the public sector, social security benefits for the unemployed, and other benefits estimated to have cost the government $2.6 billion,[875] Oman’s ruler[876] went on to dismiss twelve ministers in a further effort to appease the opposition.[877] But in early April 2011 Omani newspapers ran headlines that makeshift weapons had been discovered in the houses of protestors, including members of a group called ‘Gang of the Dragon’. Photographs were displayed indicating that knives and swords were being manufactured.[878] And by the end of the month fresh protests had erupted elsewhere in the country, with hundreds spilling onto the streets of Oman’s southern city of Salalah and with smaller protests taking place in Haima, a key oil-producing region, and in Ibri. The demands again focused on economic concerns and greater government accountability, but this time the authorities found it harder to disperse the protestors, many of whom remained encamped in Salalah’s central square for weeks.[879]
874
78. Al-Wefaq Society press release, 30 July 2012. Quoting the ‘Gangs of Darkness’ awareness campaign.