Bahrain Mirror (Exclusive): Trying to avoid angering the Shaikhs of the ruling family in Bahrain has become as difficult as walking in a minefield; every time you take a step, you may trigger a mine that would blow up in your face leading to the punishment that you'll get for irritating a Shaikh.

Few days after sending an official letter which mentioned that violations of the Minister of Industry and Commerce Zayed Al-Zayani, the tourism authority employees found that they have irritated the crown prince, who ordered on Monday (July 1, 2019) the formation of a commission to investigate defamation suspicions.

The signatories of the letter are now living in fear, reports said. One of them says that they regretted doing so. They stepped on the "Super" Minister's toes, and everybody knows that upsetting him means upsetting the crown prince.

What' s funny amid this fear is the disappearance of the voices of 25 MPs who threatened and promised to investigate Al-Zayani. They are now as silent as the grave, while the ones who complained about him are being harassed.

In the same context, Bahrainis were surprised by the anger of the king's spoiled son, Nasser bin Hamad, for his henchman Minister Ayman Al-Moayed, after Al-Ayyam newspaper, run by his father's counselor Nabeel Al-Hamr, published a poll recording a drop in the national clubs' content with the performance of the Ministry of Youth.

Publishing certain news or complaining has become a punishable act, even with regard to the circle of those close to the Shaikhs, whether senior officials or newspaper owners, so it would be even worse when it comes to ordinary citizens, whether loyalists or dissidents.

The space for freedom of expression in Bahrain has become narrower than ever. The security agencies have summoned figures who served the authorities for a long time and supported them in their most heinous actions against opponents of the government, only because they wrote opinions that weren't welcomed by people in power.

Prime Minister Khalifa bin Salman has already done this when loyal MPs tried to look into the properties of his undersecretary Ibrahim Al-Dosari.

The Interior Ministry also intimidated Bahrainis. A large number of citizens received on May 31 short text message on their mobile phones saying that anyone who follows accounts that spread sedition or criticize the government on social media, mainly Twitter, will be held accountable. On the following day, the Interior Ministry announced that anyone retweeting what inflammatory and seditious accounts post or supporting them through comments will be subject to legal accountability.

Bahrainis discovered that the ruling family doesn't tolerate any criticism even against an event under the sponsorship of any of them. Their projects, events, horses and dogs have become a red line that cannot be crossed.

Bahrainis now find themselves whispering as they did before, expressing their fear of criticizing anything. They say that now, "the dog of the shaikh, is a shaikh too."

Arabic Version