Bahrain absolute monarchy’s tear gas Grand Prix

This video says about itself:

Why boycott F1 in Bahrain? Watch what is used against children and people of Bahrain every day. By going to F1 you are giving the government more money to buy these. Don’t be responsible for the death of children and youth, boycott F1.

From daily The Independent in Britain:

F1: Tear gas used to quell Bahrain Grand Prix protests

Government accused of rounding up troublemakers ahead of lucrative Grand Prix

Loveday Morris

Wednesday 17 April 2013

Security forces fired tear gas to disperse protesters at a secondary school in Bahrain as calls grew for this weekend’s Formula One race to be called off due to escalating violence.

The skirmishes came after the arrest of a student at the boys’ school, amid accusations that the government is arbitrarily arresting potential troublemakers ahead of the Grand Prix. …

Authorities have doubled efforts in recent weeks to quell unrest that has blighted the country for the past two years, since protesters, largely from the country’s Shia majority, took to the streets complaining of widespread discrimination under the country’s Sunni monarchy.

Bernie Ecclestone, the head of Formula One – the coffers of which are boosted by $40m (£26m) in hosting fees from Bahrain – has so far resisted calls to call off the race. He likened the demonstrators to those protesting Baroness Thatcher’s funeral, saying “people use these things when there is an opportunity”. …

… The hacktivist group Anonymous also issued a threat to wreck Mr Ecclestone’s “little party”, calling on him to “cancel your blood race now”.

… On Monday, police arrested a 17-year-old student, Hassan Humidan, at the school.

Human Rights Watch earlier this week accused the government of arresting scores of young men in a series of dawn raids since the beginning of the month. Amnesty International also condemned the decision by the Bahraini government to amend the penal code to enable it to jail for up to five years anyone found guilty of insulting King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifah or other national symbols. “Increasing the punishment for criticism of Bahrain’s King is a further attempt to muzzle activists ahead of the upcoming Grand Prix,” said Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui, deputy Middle East and North Africa programme director at Amnesty.

A group of 20 British MPs have joined the opposition in calling for the race to be cancelled. “I think most democratic-minded people would be appalled if you allowed the Bahrain leg of the Formula One championship to go ahead amidst the most atrocious human rights violations,” the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Democracy in Bahrain wrote in a letter to the F1 boss.

…

“They don’t reflect the street,” said Sayed Ahmed a Bahraini activist now residing in the UK after being injured at protests during the Formula One last year and imprisoned and tortured in 2011. “The street are clear, they don’t want a race on their blood. The security being used is enormous – it’s simply martial law which has not been announced.”

A SCOTTISH MP is leading calls for a boycott of Sunday’s Bahrain Grand Prix: here.

Tensions are resurfacing in the prelude to Sunday’s Bahrain Grand Prix amid accusations that government authorities are attempting to round up activists near the Sakhir circuit in an attempt to silence dissent around the race: here.

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• Bahrain dictatorship and F1 fat cat Ecclestone (dearkitty1.wordpress.com)
• Bahrain dictatorship’s tear gas Grand Prix (dearkitty1.wordpress.com)
• Anonymous: Operation Bahrain F1 – Grand Prix Formula 1 To Be Shut Down (leaksource.wordpress.com)
• Human rights controversy ahead of Bahrain Grand Prix (3news.co.nz)
• Bahrain Grand Prix lowdown: Why the controversy? (metro.co.uk)
• Bahrain Is Becoming Even More Repressive Because of the F1 Race (theatlantic.com)