THE Bahrain branch of a multi-national bank has apologised to its staff for an email sent to all employees urging them to show support for Pride Month.
A post that went viral on social media yesterday showed the internal memo which, under the title “Join the Rainbow Challenge today”, called on employees to “Show your support” by posting their pledge on the bank’s Pride Wall, “Wear the Rainbow” by choosing their most colourful outfit and “Take a photo” of their rainbow outfit and share on the Pride Wall.
In a statement in Arabic posted in Instagram, the bank said that it immediately apologised to its Bahrain employees, adding that the forwarding of the email was an “unintentional mistake”.
“We renew our deep commitment to the local customs and traditions of Bahrain, our commitment to valuing of its position as an Arab Muslim country, as well as our commitment to its respected people and their high morals,” it said.
“We would like clarify to our employees, customers and everyone else that our employees did receive an LGBT-related email sent from the bank’s Singapore branch. It was an unintentional mistake and we had immediately apologised to all our employees.
“The bank’s Bahrain administration has taken all the measures needed to ensure that such an incident is not repeated. We are an international company operating in different countries with different cultures, and we understand the principles of diversity, but at the same time respect Bahrain’s customs that reject some ideas and movements that are incompatible with the beliefs of its society.
“We also will not allow such unintentional errors to affect our reputation as the oldest bank in Bahrain, which has witnessed the societal, cultural and economic evolution of this land over the course of more than 100 years, and have continuously contributed to country’s banking sector as a whole.”
Every year, during June, the LGBTQI+ community tries to raise political awareness of its ideology.
However, Bahrain’s Islamic, social and charity societies have expressed outrage at the “ideological brainwashing attempts aimed at seducing the younger generation”.
Billboards, banners and signs have been erected across the kingdom to raise awareness about the agenda surrounding Pride Month promotions.
MPs have also condemned the US Embassy in Bahrain for posting on its social media accounts support materials on Pride Month.
This followed a similar stand in June last year when flags were displayed on desks at the embassy.
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