Bahrain Mirror (Exclusive): Al-Wefaq Deputy Secretary General Sheikh Hussein Al-Daihi officially announced boycotting the upcoming Parliamentary and municipal elections.

During a press conference held on Tuesday (October 9, 2018) accompanied with former MP Ali Al-Aswad in the British capital, London, Al-Daihi listed 25 reasons that urge Bahrainis to boycott the parliamentary elections, stressing that the "majority of Bahraini people didn't have any choice but to boycott the elections".

The following are 25 reasons that Al-Wefaq sees are enough to boycott the parliamentary and municipal elections to be held in November.

Al-Daihi said that the Society's political stance is based on multiple constitutional, legal, political, human rights, economic and social reasons, including:

1. Absence of contractual Constitution in Bahrain

2. The electoral system is unjust, does not achieve equality between citizens and does not provide any justice. It also does not apply the universal principle in the elections: "a vote for every citizen", and there is discrimination in the districts. There is no benefit from taking part in the elections under the current electoral system, which subjects the remaining political societies to the power of the State, away from freedom of opinion and expression.

3. An electoral process organized by the authorities in a unilateral fashion. The authorities reject allowing any independent party to manage or supervise the elections, in accordance with international requirements.

4. A legislative authority that lacks powers and is subjected to the influence of the executive authority, and the regime's appointment of a number of members equal to the number of those elected, who they take part in legislation.

5. Laws and some legislations that prohibit and undermine fundamental rights and freedoms such as: the anti-terrorism law, political associations law, military judiciary law, nationality law, penal code, retirement law, law on exercising political rights, decree law no. (56), etc., with a wide package of files including:

6. Allowing military courts to try civilians in contravention of international laws.

7. The judicial authority and its broad discretionary powers, its partiality to the executive authority, as well as its politicization and lack of independence

8. Lack of popular will in forming the government.

9. Invalid calls for dialogue due to lack of political will for a serious negotiation.

10. Authorities' undermining of national sovereignty on both regional and international levels.

11. Brutality of the state of security.

12. Silencing of the political opposition and closing democratic space in the face of organized party work.

13. Gradual dismantling of the national identity through political naturalization of tens of thousands of military personnel and regime loyalists, which caused a significant demographic change; as Bahrainis will become a minority in the country.

14. Aggravated discrimination, as the state was built on basis of tribal and sectarian discrimination.

15. Deepening of trust crisis between the authorities and the people due to unilateralization in the country's governance.

16. The political problem- still unresolved since February 2011- due to which the Al-Wefaq Parliamentary bloc withdrew, following the legitimate national demands of the majority of Bahrainis which were disregarded, especially that the aggravation of political crisis gave birth to crises in different areas.

17. Absence of free media and monopoly of television, radio and paper media by the regime, as well as the ongoing media incitement campaigns and hate speech.

18. Ongoing financial and administrative corruption and imposition of legislations that protect corruptors.

19. Lack of transparency in making fateful state decisions.

20. Accumulation of public debt in a manner that is alarming to citizens and future generations due to absenting of popular will in making sound economic decisions.

21. Drowning the country in continuous debts due to unilateral decisions taken by the executive authority.

22. Continuing with the tax policy and its negative effects.

23. Lack of seriousness in combating corruption and wasting public money.

24. Lack of serious, genuine and faithful implementation of the recommendations of the Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI), and failing to comply with the recommendations of the Universal Periodic Review of the Bahrain Human Rights file in Geneva (2012) and (2017), as serious human rights violations continue to occur, the human rights crisis deepens, and the policy of impunity spreads.

25. The authorities' evasion of international control mechanisms, not allowing UN rapporteurs, including the UN Special Rapporteur on torture, to visit Bahrain and monitor the human rights conditions, and adopting a hostile attitude towards United Nations mechanisms.

Arabic Version