Press TV has conducted an interview with Syed Ali Wasif, the president of Society for International Reforms and Research from Washington, about how the international community should prevent bloodshed in Bahrain.
What follows is an approximate transcription of the interview.
Press TV: Three years have passed since the revolution in Bahrain. How much progress have we seen with regards to the power of the people – in their ability to get their demands met?
Wasif: Well, it’s obvious. Day in and say out, we see protest demonstrations by the people of Bahrain, both by men and women, and even at times children. So, this is basically going on and they are commendable for going along with that policy of their leadership- the Al-Wefaq.
Bahrain should not be seen separately. It should be seen in the context of the entire Middle East. The events taking place in the Middle East currently, that is, the events taking place in Saudi Arabia, the events taking place in Syria and the events taking place in Egypt and of course inside Bahrain, they are interconnected. They should not be seen separately. The problem is, I think, in order to prevent that bloodshed, the international community should allow the Bahrainis, you know, a right to self-rule, you know, and the abolition of the affluent monarchy in Bahrain.
If the international community can support the Eastern Timorese people, which is a tiny island in Indonesia, if the international community can support the South Sudanese people for the right of self-determination, why can’t they go for an independent pro-democratic government in Bahrain, removing the Al-Khalifah family there?
So, we see double standards by the international community and same is the case with Saudi Arabia. The Eastern province of Saudi Arabia should also be given sovereignty just like South Sudan. So, we see double standards by the international community, on the one hand, in some parts of Muslim countries they allow some kind of Christian sovereign entities seeking self-determination, whereas when it comes to their satellite states in the Middle East like Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, we see a double standard.
I think that there should be a trade-off and this is my advice to the international community that there should be a trade-off in order to prevent bloodshed from spreading further. I think there should be a trade-off between Bahrain and the Bahraini regime and the Eastern province of Saudi Arabia and Syria.
I think if the international community is ready, the Syrian president could step down but with a precondition that the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia will be given the right to self-determination as well as the Bahraini people will be given independence, that is, freedom from monarchy on a condition that there will be no bloodshed no genocide in all these three countries by the opposing figures, by the opposition parties as well as sanctity of the religious institutions and shrines must be taken care of.
I think in this manner by trading-off the Syrian government of Hafez [Bashar] al-Assad with the majority there, we can so that trade-off in terms of Bahraini, removing the Bahraini Al-Khalifah family and bringing in the majority opposition forces, the pro-democracy forces in Bahrain and also giving the right to self-determination to the Eastern province of Saudi Arabia as what’s done in the case of South Sudan.
So, in this manner we can get along with this in an amicable manner.
GHK/PR