US embassy cable - 05MANAMA544

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 MANAMA 000544 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/11/2015 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, PHUM, ETRD, PTER, ASEC, BA 
SUBJECT: CROWN PRINCE DISCUSSES DEMOCRACY, TRADE, SECURITY 
WITH AMBASSADOR 
 
REF: A. MANAMA 531 
 
     B. MANAMA 501 
     C. MANAMA 471 
 
Classified by Ambassador William T. Monroe for reasons 1.4 
(b) and (d). 
 
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Summary 
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1.  (S) The Ambassador met with Crown Prince Salman April 11 
to review the CP's upcoming trip to Washington.  While noting 
that the CP's primary focus was ratification of the free 
trade agreement (FTA), the Ambassador told him that American 
officials will also want to discuss the political situation 
in Bahrain, particularly reform and democratization.  The CP 
said that the government is suspicious of the role Iran plays 
within Bahrain's Shia community and fears growing 
sectarianism in society.  Many Bahraini Sunnis perceived a 
planned series of Shia demonstrations as a threat and 
complained to the government.  He noted that Shia opposition 
society Al Wifaq agreed to abide by the law with respect to 
future marches.  The government wants to promote unity within 
society by creating an environment supportive to all, and a 
strong justice system would give people confidence that they 
are protected.  The CP said that he will ask the 
Administration and Congress to move ahead with ratification 
of the U.S.-Bahrain Free Trade Agreement (FTA).  In response 
to the Ambassador's comments, the CP said that the government 
continues to monitor closely the terrorism suspects, and is 
working to penetrate the extremists to deal with the 
long-term threat they represent.  End Summary. 
 
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Avoiding Sectarian Conflict 
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2.  (C) The Ambassador met with Crown Prince Salman April 11 
to discuss the CP's upcoming April 19-22 visit to Washington. 
 While an important focus of the trip will be to encourage 
rapid ratification of the FTA, the Ambassador stated he 
anticipated that Administration officials will also want to 
discuss the political situation in Bahrain, in particular 
continued reform and democratization.  While the President 
and others have praised Bahrain and King Hamad, people notice 
and get concerned when the GOB takes actions such as closing 
the Bahrain Center for Human Rights, detaining the website 
administrators of an on-line opposition forum, and refusing 
an application to hold a demonstration.  The Crown Prince 
said that he welcomed the opportunity to address these 
issues.  He stated that Bahrain is suspicious of Iran and the 
role it plays inside Bahrain's Shia community.  There were 
fears that the large Shia demonstration held March 25 in 
Sitra (Ref C) could have ignited sectarian conflict. 
Bahrain's Sunnis perceived the demonstrations as a threat and 
complained to the government.  When threatened, the CP 
commented, people can lash out. 
 
3.  (C) The Ambassador responded that the March 25 
demonstration was peaceful, and asked why the GOB was so 
concerned.  The CP said that the organizers, Shia opposition 
society Al Wifaq, had planned to hold additional 
demonstrations in other areas of the country.  Al Wifaq broke 
the law by holding the Sitra march without a permit, and 
Minister of Social Affairs Al Belooshi, in her meeting with 
Al Wifaq officials, told them they must respect the law (Ref 
B).  If they want to change the law, they should participate 
in the political system.  In the meeting, Al Wifaq agreed to 
abide by the law. 
 
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Creating an Environment Supportive to All 
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4.  (C) The Crown Prince stated that currently in Bahrain 
almost all social and political organizations are sectarian 
in nature.  When people are fighting for their identity, they 
form into associations familiar to them.  The CP said that 
"we don't want to see what happened in Lebanon occur here." 
The Shia, the Crown Prince said, have the numbers, but the 
Sunnis have the guns.  The government had to manage the 
situation carefully to ensure it did not explode. 
 
5.  (C) Sectarian conflict can be avoided, he continued, by 
creating an environment supportive to all.  The government 
should not consistently support the agenda of one group over 
another.  In this regard, the CP said that the government is 
aware of Shia calls for members of the community to be 
integrated into the Bahrain Defense Force (BDF) and the 
Ministry of Interior (MOI).  However, the BDF and MOI 
leaderships react negatively when they see senior Shia 
religious cleric Shaikh Issa Qassem speaking in front of a 
photograph of Khomeini, who they consider to be a foreign 
political leader.  A message of national unity must get out. 
He said, "Bahrain has worked hard not to become a vassal of 
Saudi Arabia, and we're certainly not going to let ourselves 
become a vassal of Iran." 
 
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Ongoing Process of Democratization 
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6.  (C) The Ambassador stated that the region must go through 
a process of democratization.  This can sometimes be messy, 
but in the end society becomes more dynamic politically and 
economically.  The CP said that the citizens have to buy into 
the system, and this process can come in fits and starts. 
Societies need a strong justice system so the people feel 
confident they will be protected.  Elections are not enough. 
He said that Bahrain is moving forward and finding its way, 
but the process can be tough at times. 
 
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Forging Ahead on FTA Ratification 
--------------------------------- 
 
7.  (C) The Crown Prince said that he will ask the 
Administration and Congress to move ahead on ratification of 
the U.S.-Bahrain FTA during his visit.  Bahrain is under 
pressure from the EU to delay ratification and 
implementation, claiming the bilateral FTA with the U.S. 
would harm the GCC customs union and its relationship with 
the EU (Ref A).  He rejected this claim, and said he would 
also discuss the political benefits to the U.S. of 
demonstrating enhanced economic cooperation with the 
countries of the region.  He pointed out that FTA 
negotiations with the UAE and Oman came as a result of the 
agreement with Bahrain.  The Ambassador noted that the Saudi 
Ambassador to Bahrain was quoted in the press April 1 saying 
that the U.S.-Bahrain FTA "is positive and stimulated many 
Gulf countries to revise their authoritarian (commercial) 
regimes."  The CP replied that Saudi Arabia is now 
negotiating a bilateral FTA with Singapore. 
 
8.  (C) The CP told the Ambassador that he and his staff were 
reaching out to the political blocs in parliament to explain 
the upcoming draft legislation on labor.  He noted that 
reactions to the labor reform initiative do not break out in 
any predictable manner and it is not being viewed in 
sectarian terms. 
 
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Dealing with Long-Term Extremist Threat 
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9.  (S) The Ambassador said that we continue to remain 
focused on the security situation in Bahrain.  We have 
noticed an improvement in cooperation with the GOB over the 
past few months, and appreciate that the government continues 
its tight surveillance of the terrorism suspects.  We hope 
that the suspects will be vigorously prosecuted, but in any 
event it is critical that the close surveillance on them be 
maintained.  The Crown Prince responded that the government 
is watching the suspects closely and is also monitoring a 
mosque in East Riffa.  The threat is long-term, and the GOB 
is working to penetrate the extremists.  He attributed the 
stronger bilateral security cooperation to the presence of 
former Bahraini Ambassador to the U.S. Shaikh Khalifa's 
presence at the Bahrain National Security Agency.  The CP 
noted that the government had passed the draft 
counter-terrorism law to parliament but, due to public 
opposition from some parliamentarians, he indicated he was 
unsure whether it would pass in its current form. 
 
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Commitment to Bahrain School 
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10.  (C) The CP thanked the U.S. for its support for the DOD 
Bahrain School and said that the GOB is similarly committed. 
He recognized that the school will have to develop a strategy 
for the future and pledged that the Bahraini government will 
play a role in ensuring the school's continued viability and 
high standards. 
 
MONROE