Measures to counter terror proposed
Manama : The House of Representatives discussed several urgent proposals to counter terrorism at its regular session yesterday, besides passing a proposal that bans Bahrainis, especially the youth, from travelling to countries considered “exporters of terrorism”. Without mentioning the names of the countries in the proposal, it indirectly referred to Iran and Iraq, where many Bahraini terror convicts said they received military training in the past few years.
Submitted by the council’s Foreign Affairs, Defence and National Security Committee Chairman Abdulla Binhowail, the proposal aims at protecting the youth from being misguided to join terrorist organisations in some countries, mainly regional ones. The MP had earlier submitted a proposal to ban Bahrainis from travelling to conflict zones for similar reasons.
Checkpoints
The MPs also reviewed another urgent proposal that calls for setting up checkpoints at crowded areas, such as commercial malls, cinemas, theatres and parks.
The proposal was submitted by MP Jamal Buhassan, who’s also a member of the same committee.
Justifying his proposal, Buhassan told his fellow MPs, “Terrorism has hit major countries in the world, using innovative techniques every time. This proposal comes to protect the society and the Kingdom of Bahrain’s citizens, residents and visitors, especially in areas that attract large numbers of them, such as malls. Their protection is our responsibility in both the Legislative and Executive Authorities.”
(The Legislative Authority is House of Representatives and Shura Council while the Executive Authority is the Government.)
“What we see today at these places is that anyone could enter them unchecked. There’s hardly any inspection at the entrances of many of them. Even if there is, it’s only limited to checking ladies purses and men without inspection. As if only women would smuggle explosives into these places,” Buhassan sarcastically said, while demanding to tighten supervision at malls and other public places.
Disagreement
In his reply, Shura Council and Representatives Council Affairs Minister Ghanem Al Buainain stressed that the Government, represented by Interior Ministry, is fulfilling its duties in protecting the Kingdom from any terror threats.
He disagreed to the proposal considering it “an exaggeration”, especially that it mentioned installing detectors and X-Ray scanners at public areas.
“This would reflect that Bahrain is on security alert. Many regional tourist attractions haven’t implemented such methods. Extensive security presence may drive tourists away,” Al Buainain added.
MPs’ opinions to the proposal were not united, as many voted for it, then withdrew their votes.
This pushed the council’s Speaker Ahmed Al Mulla to postpone the voting process.
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