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Special section to collect and disseminate information on the ongoing massacre and oppression in Bahrain
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By abuali
#15619
While researching on how local Tanzanian media has dealt with Bahrain, I found an article on the Citizen website:
Bahrain media play role in tension after violent protests Send to a friend
Monday, 09 May 2011 11:08
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Bahraini media have played a central role in a crackdown on Shi'ite Muslims following the suppression of pro-democracy protests that threatened the Sunni monarchy's grip on power, analysts say.

Since the crackdown began in March, the pro-government media have depicted the protesters as violent, driven by Shi'ite sectarian designs to disenfranchise Sunni Muslims and encouraged by Shi'ite power Iran, the bete noire of Gulf Arab rulers.

Mohamed Abdel Dayem of the Committee to Protect Journalists said the media coverage had been "inflammatory", though it did not go as far as open incitement to violence.

"The rhetorical and editorial lines of state and pro-government media has certainly been inflammatory, no doubt about it," he said, pointing to editorials, cartoons and news reports in print, radio and television.

A prominent Bahraini journalist who declined to be named for fear of arrest said pro-government newspapers had engaged in a witchhunt against Shi'ites working for major firms.

"They write commentaries that hatemonger openly or between the lines. They are going sector by sector, company by company, ministry by ministry and removing people," he said.

One columnist in al-Watan -- the leading pro-government daily, owned by a royal family member -- turned his attention in a recent article to state-owned Bahrain Petroleum Co. (BAPCO).

"The main seat of sectarianism in BAPCO is a certain official who refuses to employ the people of Bahrain in order to take over the firm and turn it into something like an Iranian firm," wrote Hesham al-Zayani on April 22, in language that appeared to suggest Shi'ites are not true Bahrainis.

"There must be a fundamental strong change today that reaches all symbols of sectarianism and cleanses BAPCO," Zayani wrote, phraseology that Shi'ites said was a cue for action.

Turki Al-Rasheed, a Saudi columnist who once organised monitoring of Bahraini elections, said the authorities were using the media to cast a mass movement for legitimate democratic rights in sectarian clothing.

"It's a policy of diverting attention. It will only work for a weeks or months. Sooner or later they (activists) will march again and there will be wider civil disobedience," he said.

The country's Shi'ite majority complain of discrimination in housing and jobs as well as a demographic war, with authorities granting Bahraini nationality to Sunni Muslims from other Arab countries and Pakistan.

But the media discussion has presented the Sunnis as victims of "traitors" who are not true Bahrainis. Some Shi'ite groups called openly for replacing the monarchy with a republic and some of the youth protesters supported that demand. A pro-government Facebook group on Bahrain called "Together we will expose the traitors" posted pictures last week of demonstrations, enlarging their faces to ease identification.

"We cannot live among these traitors," the tagline for some of the pictures said. "Please try to find their names so they can be punished."

The protest movement denied being steered by any Iran or any exterior power. They called mainly for greater political freedom, a constitutional monarchy and an end to sectarian bias.

The government denies having discriminatory policies. State television has enlarged images of protesters to highlight the participation of some people who turned out to be famous athletes or other public figures.

The government has begun to investigate Nabeel Rajab, head of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights, for posting a link on social media site Twitter to an image of one of four people who died in police custody showing marks from apparent torture. An interior ministry official said the image had been doctored.

The government removed the editor of the main opposition newspaper al-Wasat earlier this month after accusing the paper of falsifying news about the protest movement and crackdown.

Its previous editor, Mansour al-Jamri, son of a prominent Shi'ite opposition figure, has said staff were threatened and attacked by government loyalists during the unrest. Its founder, Karim Fakhrawi, died in custody this month.
The writer filed this analysis from Dubai
How can we encourage and spread more awareness using local media?
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By Insaan
#15654
(salam) .
PLEASE CLICK ON THE LINK AND SIGN THE BELOW PETITION URGENTLY.
We need to reach 300,000 signatures by tomorrow (Friday).

Red Bull has built a reputation as a sporty, fun drink -- but by this Friday, it and other leading F1 teams may become better known for endorsing government torture and murder. Formula One has 24 hours to decide whether to hold its already-delayed race in Bahrain, site of one of the most brutal crackdowns in the Middle East.

If Red Bull refuses to race in Bahrain, other teams will pull back as well -- and the Formula One race could be taken off the schedule, sending shock waves through Bahrain's brutal government and sending an unmistakeable message that the world will not ignore state brutality. Sports boycotts have piled pressure on other regimes such as apartheid South Africa -- we can do it again.

We need to make a stand and one of the easiest way to help the Bahraini people is to sign petitions and get our voice heard.

The petition can be signed here:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/no_f1_in_brutal ... b5a93d39e6

Please fwd it to as many people as you can, whether Muslims or Non-Muslims. This is about Basic Human Rights and Human Dignity.

SPREAD, SPREAD, SPREAD THE WORD...this is the LEAST we can do to help our brothers and sisters in Bahrain. May Allah (SWT) bless you for standing against oppression.

Jazakallah

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