Tuesday, Jun 24, 2008
Gulf News
Manama: Bahrain's prime minister has pledged a zero tolerance policy towards "abuses from mosques, newspapers or internet sites against national values, the king, the crown prince, national unity, sectarianism and Bahrain's Arab identity".
A watchdog committee has been set up to monitor the commitment of the print and electronic media and religious leaders to national cohesion and solidarity.
"The media, particularly newspapers, should refrain from publishing any material that could threaten national unity and should always verify the genuineness and authenticity of their information. Imams should focus on providing religious guidance and spreading compassion and consideration and should avoid engaging in divisive and controversial issues.
"We also need to ensure that websites are not used to fan sedition or fuel sectarianism and that they respect religious scholars and opinion leaders," Shaikh Khalifa Bin Salman Al Khalifa said at the government's weekly session on Sunday.
The decision to set up the monitoring panel is seen as the latest move by the authorities to act against the spread of sectarianism through newspapers, religious sites and the internet and which last week reached ominous levels.
The watchdog panel will be headed by officials from the interior ministry and will include representatives from the justice and Islamic affairs and the information ministries.
Bitter standoff
"The panel can request assistance from experts to monitor mosques, newspapers and internet sites on their commitment to national values and principles," the cabinet said in the statement carried by the Bahrain News Agency.
Bahrain last week witnessed a bitter standoff between supporters of Shaikh Eisa Qassem, Shiite leader and spiritual leader of Al Wefaq, the largest Shiite society, and Jassem Al Saeedi, a controversial Sunni MP and imam.
The public row, sparked by an abusive attack by Al Saeedi on Qassem after he claimed in a Friday sermon that detainees suspected of acts of sabotage during riots in some villages had been tortured, was fanned by openly partisan coverage and columns in some of the local newspapers, vitriolic trade of insults between MPs and venomous postings on internet websites.
The situation calmed down on Friday following an intervention by King Hamad who called for appeasement and requested the media to act more responsibly.
Gulf News 2008. All rights reserved.
