Bahrain has reached point of no return: Activist

Press TV has interviewed Saeed Shehabi, a member of the Bahrain Freedom Movement in London, to discuss the ongoing protests against the citizenship revocation of senior Shia cleric Sheikh Isa Qassim in Bahrain.

A rough transcription of the interview appears below.

Press TV: When we look at these protests at this point against what has been done to Sheikh Isa Qassim, I am curious as to whether you think there should be more done abroad, outside of Bahrain like in the UK whether there should be more protest perhaps held in various countries that support what is going on in Bahrain?

Shehabi: I think the situation is spiraling and I think it has reached a point of no return. Of course the regime is emboldened by the British support mainly not the Saudis. The Saudis are hopeless and useless and their support is meaningless apart from causing more havoc and more destruction and more terrorism but this does not last long. This kind of support by the Saudis does not last long because the Saudis themselves are under threat, for the Al Khalifah dependence on the West is vital. Now why the West is still continuing to support it is because of the hypocrisy, hypocritical nature of the Western politics. There are demonstrations in UK every day, every week at least outside the Downing Street; there are protests also in Berlin and in other places, in Washington.

The Western politicians are aware that there is a need for the regime to adapt to the modern day standards but they are also aware that tribalism cannot really tally with the modern way of life. So they are in the middle of a crisis even the West, they are facing moral crisis because they do not want to be on the right side of history but however the Bahraini people have shown once and again that they are there to stay and that their revolution will ultimately defeat dictators and despots.   

Press TV: Well what is the thinking that is going on within the regime? I mean are they thinking that at this point there is not going to be any chances? Obviously actions speak louder than words that they do not want to give a chance for any type of resolve on this, they do not want to negotiate, they do not want to have talks, do they want to continue with this because it has been a number of years now, about five years now, and it does hurt their business aspirations from various for example entities that want to invest in Bahrain? Shouldn’t they take a look at that and say well maybe it is time that we sit down and talk?  

Shehabi: Well they exhibit exactly the features and attributes and thinking of tyrannies that often end in downfall. Of course if they had started dialogue for example five years ago, at the beginning of the revolution, probably the situation would have taken a different course but they have failed to do so and they thought that the Saudi support, the troops from Saudi Arabia, from Emirates, from Jordan, from Pakistan, from America, from UK is enough to keep them in power and this is still unfortunately their thinking which means that the situation has now reached as I said earlier a point of no return.  

I do not think that Bahrainis are in a position to negotiate with the regime, simply they do not want to repeat their bad experiences and the regime itself knows that it is facing what they believe as existential threat, that their existence as a ruling tribe is under threat because the people will not tolerate it. So I think we are at a deadlock now.

So what is going to happen, either the Bahraini people will perish because of the genocidal policies of the regime or the regime will fall down. It will take time. How the events will unfold is unclear. What is clear is that the supporters of the Al Khalifah are themselves weakening. The Saudis are losing in Yemen, they are losing in everywhere and internally the Saudi people will eventually wake up to the fact that they are being ruled by tyranny, by dictatorship, by tribal mentality and that change is inevitable in Saudi Arabia.

So I think those regimes will have no other path but to go. They must give way to the people. It is the era of the people despite the unfortunate support from London and Washington.

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