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The people's revolution is on its track, calling for
the removal of the regime and performing various activities on the road
to victory. In the past week, several remarkable activities were
undertaken with resounding success. First came the picketing of the
financial harbor owned by the regime's Prime Minister Khalifa bin Salman
Al Khalifa. It was conducted at night when hundreds of protesters moved
from their base at Pearl Square and took position near the main
financial center. Then came the massive demonstration and picketing of
the main torture headquarters at Bahrain's Fort, where a human wave
flooded to highlight the role that place had been playing in torturing
Bahrainis over the years. It stands as a reminder of the most brutal
periods of the Al Khalifa reign of terror. The revolutionaries then
organized another qualitative demonstration outside the main TV station,
which is the mouthpiece of the repressive Al Khalifa regime. In
addition to these, there have been massive demonstrations nearer to
Pearl Square where hundreds of thousands took part chanting anti-regime
slogans and calling for a regime change. Sunday, one of the
demonstrations was held outside the government offices in Qudhaibiya
where participants called for the downfall of the regime.
Meanwhile, the mothers of the martyrs have appealed
to political parties not to engage in dialogue with the regime. The
mother of Ali Abdul Hadi Mushaime, the first of the martyrs of the
revolution, has vowed to spend her life to oppose the Al Khalifas until
their downfall. Sunday, the mother of the martyr Mahmood Abu Taki
confirmed that the family had received calls from the Al Khalifa who had
killed their son, offering to buy off their silence with money, but
they refused and insisted that we only accept the demands of the 14th
February revolutionaries. Also, Nidhal, the son of Karzakkan martyr Isa
Abdul Hassan, confirmed a similar move by the killers. He told them he
has nothing to add to what the people want, the downfall of the regime,
and that the blood of the martyrs cannot be bought with money or
promises. Similar statements have been attributed to the son of martyr
Ali Khudhair, who said that there is only one demand, the downfall of
the regime. In light of these developments, it is now expected that the
coming activities will be more serious and the regime could use violence
to suppress the people, in which case, that will be the needed fuel for
the final push to oust this hereditary dictatorship.
While the revolutionary activities continue unabated,
the Americans have entered the political arena forcefully. In the past
week, Jeffrey Feltman, the assistant secretary of state for the Near
East, has been lobbying the political societies to lure them to engage
in what he calls "dialogue" in line with what the Al Khalifa crown
prince had suggested. When these societies presented some conditions, he
said that dialogue must be without conditions. There has been negative
reaction to the American proposals, which clearly aim at safeguarding
the ruling family in the face of the collective popular decision calling
for its downfall. The US is better advised not to stand again on the
wrong side of history by supporting this dictatorial regime. The Al
Khalifa system of government is unsustainable as has been proven by the
events of the recent history. Bahrain has not been stable, and the
apparent stability was only achieved with the use of violence against
Bahrainis, torture, intimidation and dictatorship. If they are granted
more time, the Al Khalifas will resort to the same style of
dictatorship, repression and human rights violations. The US needs to
fundamentally revise their strategy that has only led to regime changes
at their expense.
Truthout