Ryan Smith Blog No. 10 - In Crackdown, Bahrain Revokes Citizenship of 31 Men

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/08/world/middleeast/bahrain-revokes-citizenship-of-31-men-in-bid-to-quell-dissidents.html?ref=world

The Bahraini government systematically revoked the citizenship of 31 men on Wednesday, leaving many citizens at home and abroad wondering how much further this crackdown on government dissidence will go.  The decision was made following Monday's bombings of the capital city of Manama and the ensuing deaths of two foreigners.  Hezbollah, the Lebanese-based militant Shiite extremist group, is suspected of involvement in the attacks, and if proved true would be a significant setback for peaceful relations between the monarchy and its outspoken Shiite activists. Since opposition has escalated recently the government has banned all demonstrations and been conducting large-scale arrests of political activists.  Wednesday's denationalization list was comprised of men ranging from those with no prior criminal record or political involvement like one university professor to members of Bahrain's largest opposition group, Wefaq.  Amnesty International has called the decision an "arbitrary deprivation of nationality" and many are calling for appeals of all 31 of the newly stateless men.

The Sunni monarchy has received a lot of protest and calls for reform or dismantlement from the Shiite majority population, especially following last year's Arab springs.  I mentioned in my previous blog entry the significance of Bahrain as one of the few remaining Islamic nations with a Shiite majority.  It is a crucial ally for the US in the region as its geographic proximity to Iran provide a much needed buffer and launching pad for US forces.  Hesitancy from the US State Department to condemn the lawless actions of the Bahraini government or call upon the international community for punitive measures reveal just how valuable an ally it is to the US.  This sort of tentative handling of popular unrest by the US is indicative of a larger policy of non-involvement in the region, but when it comes to cases of unlawful discrimination and human rights violations the US and its allies should realize their inaction is only emboldening the oppressive leadership in nation's like Bahrain.