A FORMER opposition MP has been accused of “political terrorism”, after calling for a boycott of elections in Bahrain next month.
The accusation has been levelled by Nazaha Elections Monitoring 2018, a group set up to observe the polls affiliated with the Bahrain Human Rights Watch Society (BHRWS).
It follows tweets by ex-MP Ali Al Aswad, of the now-dissolved Al Wefaq National Islamic Society, urging voters to boycott both parliament and municipal council elections on November 24.
He is currently in London, but is one of three senior Al Wefaq members accused by Bahraini prosecutors of conspiring against the country with Qatar.
BHRWS secretary general Faisal Fulad said Nazaha could seek legal action over the tweets, if they are found to incite violence or intimidate potential candidates.
“We respect Mr Al Aswad’s decision to boycott the election, as it is his personal choice,” Mr Fulad told the GDN.
“But his volatile tweets instigate people in Bahrain against the government and he is trying to influence voters and candidates alike, which is a serious violation.
“We as Nazaha, the independent observer under the BHRWS, register this as a violation and will keep track of this.
“If we find evidence of people reacting to his tweets and causing violence on the streets during elections, we will take it up legally against him on international platforms.”
Mr Al Aswad, Al Wefaq’s secretary general Shaikh Ali Salman and fellow member Hassan Ali Sultan, all former MPs, were cleared of conspiring with Qatar by a Bahraini court in June.
However, the Public Prosecution has appealed against that decision and the next hearing is scheduled for October 15.
The charges brought against them were conspiracy, spying on behalf of a foreign state, revealing defence secrets to a foreign country and disseminating information harmful to Bahrain.
“He (Mr Al Aswad) is living comfortably in London and doing damage to the country he claims to be highly patriotic towards,” said Mr Fulad.
“Let him look at the UK system of polls. Does he see such instigation or street violence in that country?
“We demand the UK government acts on this. It is nothing but political terrorism.”
Mr Fulad said calls for boycotts could be interpreted as a threat to those who do take part in the election, particularly in light of the violence directed towards candidates who defied a boycott of the last polls in 2014.
“This is a disruptive opposition which is trying hard to bring down the number of voters and candidates, to float their own agenda internationally for their benefit,” argued Mr Fulad.
“This year, as we hear and see, there are a number of new faces announcing their decision to contest - mainly young people and women - from all walks of society.
“This is a good sign and this is why people like Mr Al Aswad are not happy. Hence the attempt to undermine this.
“We urge all entities, especially international and regional observers, to take note of this and keep track of these boycott calls, especially from members of dissolved opposition societies.”
raji@gdn.com.bh
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