Buying British Silence and Support for One Billion Pounds, From Our Money

2023-07-10 - 5:19 p

Bahrain Mirror: The outcome of the secret visit of Crown Prince and Prime Minister Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa to Britain was revealed in one day; a memorandum of Understanding on strategic partnership and investment, the most important of which is the investment of a huge amount of one billion pounds (one billion and 300 million dollars), which Bahrain will inject as an investment in the exhausted British market.

The agreement and this amount of money have a clear goal and price: securing governance and the chair as well as political, security and military support in the face of the aspirations of a peaceful people.

This is a new deal over which Bahrainis worry about the future of their country, after the regime received new support from one of the major countries, especially that the deal was a subject of political and human rights criticism.

British Lord Paul Scriven addressed UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, asking if this deal comes in exchange for the UK's silence on human rights violations in Bahrain. He said: "While you are busy signing [the memorandum], Bahraini prisoner Dr. Al-Singace completes two years of his strike on solid food in protest against the confiscation of his research. Did you raise his case?"

"The UK government must not allow itself to remain complicit in human rights violations in Bahrain," said BIRD. "Instead of continuing to deepen ties with the Al Khalifa regime, Rishi Sunak's government should urge Bahrain to release all political prisoners, including those arrested since 2011."

Ibrahim Sharif, former secretary-general of Wa'ad, said that the weirdest thing is the dealing with Mumtalakat state's funds as an investment by the Bahraini private sector, even though Mumtalakat is a government company and not a private one.

The official news issued by BNA agency said that Bahrain will invest one billion pounds in Britain through the private sector, and mentioned four investing companies from the sector, including Mumtalakat Company, which is in fact the sovereign fund of Bahrain.

"We lend money from neighbors and ask for their help, and we skimp on paying small increases to citizens, but we invest our money in the British McLaren company, where we lost hundreds of millions," Sharif continued.

He added "The strangest thing is dealing with the funds of the Mumtalakat state company, which achieve profits at home and employ Bahrainis, and lose abroad to employ foreigners, as an investment from the Bahraini private sector."

Addressing the Parliament, he said, "As for the House of Representatives, it has deaf ears and blind eyes."

This deal can only be called one name in politics, "political bribery" to buy British silence, and the victim will be the Bahraini people whose money is spent to bring in the experiences of repression and to purchase various kinds of weapons to stand in the facr of the unarmed and peaceful people of Bahrain.

Arabic Version