ABU DHABI — Bahrain's Shi'ite opposition charged the
regime has recruited the military and security forces in the forthcoming
parliamentary elections.
Bahrain hosts the
U.S. Fifth Fleet as well as the British Royal Navy presence in the Gulf.
Ali Salman, leader of the Shi'ite-aligned Al Wefaq Society, said the
opposition could win 25 out of the 40 seats in parliament. Salman, one of
207 candidates for parliament, said the opposition would seek to reform
Bahrain's political system, Middle East Newsline reported.
Five Al Wefaq candidates have been identified as
Iranian-trained Shi'ite clerics.
Opposition sources said soldiers and police would be ordered to vote for
pro-government Sunni candidates in parliamentary elections on Nov. 25. The
sources said the government has been concerned that the Shi'ite opposition
would capture a majority of the 40 seats in parliament.
Ibrahim Sharif, secretary-general of the National Democratic Action
Society, said the Defense Ministry and Interior Ministry have sought to
force security personnel to vote for the government. Sharif said the
ministries have taken away the identity cards and passports of soldiers
and police and handed them to the prosecutor's office.
"It may be a ploy by both ministries to give the impression to the staff
that they are monitoring their votes and compel them to vote for
pro-government candidates," Sharif said.
The Interior Ministry has denied the allegation. Earlier, the opposition
reported that the ministry, in an attempt to defeat a Shi'ite electoral
challenge, has provided voting rights to tens of thousands of Sunni foreign
nationals who recently acquired citizenship.
"If we find the necessary cooperation, we will be highly positive,"
Salman told a rally of thousands of people on Nov. 21. "But if we find that
the government or one of its ministers is stalling people's interests, then
we will hold them responsible."
Al Wefaq and other opposition groups have called on the government to
prevent police and soldiers from voting. The groups said these people could
not be trusted to independently select candidates. A former military officer
and member of the royal family has also joined the race for parliament.
Sunni parties, including those aligned with the Egyptian-based Muslim
Brotherhood, have sought to form an alliance to defeat the Shi'ite
challenge. The Sunnis, led by the Al Assalah party, have warned that a
Shi'ite-dominated parliament would undermine religion in Bahrain.
"Whenever religious candidates speak to the people, they always resort
to strong warnings that they would be punished by God for allowing
non-religious people to reach the parliament," Huda Al Mutawa, a liberal
candidate, said.