Editorial: Where's the Muslim Brotherhood? Where's Muharraq?

2020-09-23 - 8:39 p

Bahrain Mirror (Exclusive): It is not about the majority of Bahrain's people who reject normalization, but rather all about those who say without flattery that they reject normalization, who raise their voices loudly, who consider the government's peace difficult and deem abandoning Palestine costly. It is about those who see that reconciliation with the occupiers has no horizon and future. This is what the Muslim Brotherhood has not done in Bahrain.

We shed light on the Muslim Brotherhood alone, and not other Islamic Sunni political parties, because it is the organization which gives Palestine an important part in its memory and literature the most. We have heard a lot from the Muslim Brotherhood, however, it showed no action on the ground as it remained silent after the government normalization of diplomatic ties with Israel. Neither the organization nor its supporters expressed a stance that rejects the humiliating peace agreement and the regime's rush towards normalization with Israel. On the contrary, they issued a statement giving excuses for the regime.

If Bahrain officially stood with Palestine in previous times, as we were told by the quartet Brotherhood statement, it is also true that it, itself, sold it, now. There are only two clear stances now, either loyalty or betrayal. The real stand should be made now, during our time and on our land, not in the past.

The Muslim Brotherhood of Bahrain have made it clear that they only support what is right outside Bahrain, where they are not punished, imprisoned or killed. Those who resist until their last breath are always different; those who end up either victorious or martyrs. The Muslim Brotherhood are not ready to play this role, even when it comes to their noblest and most sacred causes.

Over the past few days, all factions of the Bahraini people, including their parties, women's associations, youth organizations, professionals, Islamists, liberals, leftists, Shiites and Sunnis, have expressed and declared with one voice their rejection of normalization. They formed a broad rejection front through which they were able to formulate and direct public opinion accurately, contrary to what the official media wanted.

The Bahrain front could have taken a different path like that of the UAE, if all of them remained silent and only drafted statements justifying the regime's act, such as that of the Muslim Brotherhood of Bahrain. We could have then seen children singing the Israeli anthem, or wearing the white and blue flag, and holding live broadcast sessions between Bahraini and Israeli youth to discuss future opportunities.

But that didn't happen because there are free people who dared to say "no" out loud, and instigated (yes they instigated!) until they were able to form a vast rejection front, to the extent that those who didn't support it were cornered, made to shut up or even apologize!

The Muslim Brotherhood's "hidden" courage only appeared when they saw a group of youths burning tires in the streets, even though the majority of demonstrations opposing the peace agreement were staged and ended peacefully. After these demonstrations, their courage appeared on Twitter, where they started fabricating scenarios and agendas against these youths. We have seen a clear, strict stance taken by the Muslim Brotherhood, warning against the burning of tires more than we have seen on the normalization agreement.

The Muslim Brotherhood of Bahrain, along with the rest of the Islamic Sunni political parties, has abolished a role that a large a city like Muharraq could have played in rejecting and rising against normalization. This ancient city, which embraced the Arab nationalist Party and took to the streets on the morning of May 2, 1955, when it learned that former Egyptian President Jamal Abdulnaser's plane landed in Bahrain for refueling, is completely silent now. Today, Muhharaq seems as if Palestine does not mean anything to it. Neither its public councils, which were held throughout the year, nor its senior officials, clerics, associations and youth committees have done anything significant in the current campaign. We are talking about the actual active forces, formations, organized connections and symbolic and spiritual events and we do not mean individuals expressing their personal opinions.

Many honorable people of Muharraq have personally expressed their rejection, but these alone cannot form the character of the city, unless its [Muharraq's] active and organized forces take action, as it is still far from participating in the formation of a true, unified popular position that makes normalization difficult. The Muslim brotherhood, which is based in the city, are largely responsible.

Arabic version