Abstract
This chapter examines the cycle of contention that began with Bahrain’s decade of political liberalisation prior to the 2011 Arab Spring uprising and ended with measures to dissolve the country’s last remaining legal political societies in 2017. In seeking to explain why Bahrain has abandoned its ‘National Action Charter’ reform process in favour of a return to full authoritarianism, this chapter analyses the fate of the al-Wefaq Society, Bahrain’s largest opposition group and the most popular political organisation within the country’s Shi’a community. In examining the government's post-2011 crackdown on moderate, ‘tolerated’ opposition groups such as al-Wefaq, this chapter asserts that Bahrain’s liberalising reforms were never intended to situate the country on a path to democratisation and rather should be viewed as an attempt to secure the Al Khalifa’s grip on power. This chapter argues that the National Action Charter’s failure to inoculate the regime against Arab Spring-inspired unrest led to its abandonment in favour of tried-and-tested authoritarian strategies such as repression and military intervention.
Keywords
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsNotes
- 1.
Nebil Husayn, Mechanisms of Authoritarian Rule in Bahrain,’ Arab Studies Quarterly 37:1 (2015): 33.
- 2.
Toby Matthiesen, Sectarian Gulf: Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and the Arab Spring That Wasn’t (Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2013), 51.
- 3.
Kylie Moore-Gilbert, ‘Putting the Genie Back in the Bottle: New Media and Authoritarian Reassertion in Post-Arab Spring Bahrain,’ in From Sit-ins to #Revolutions: The Changing Nature of Protests, ed. Olivia Guntarik and Victoria Grieves (London: Bloomsbury, 2019).
- 4.
Charles Tilly and Sidney Tarrow, Contentious Politics, second edition (New York: Oxford University Press, 2015), 75.
- 5.
Justin Gengler, Group Conflict and Political Mobilization in Bahrain and the Arab Gulf (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2015), 131.
- 6.
Ibid., 43.
- 7.
Anoushiravan Ehteshami and Steven Wright, ‘Political Change in the Arab Oil Monarchies: From Liberalization to Enfranchisement,’ International Affairs 83:5 (2007): 919.
- 8.
Larbi Sadiki, Rethinking Arab Democratization: Elections without Democracy (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009), ix.
- 9.
Sadiki, Rethinking Arab Democratization, 92.
- 10.
Ehteshami and Wright, ‘Political Change,’ 919.
- 11.
Tilly and Tarrow, Contentious Politics, 75.
- 12.
Mary Ann Tetreault, Gwenn Okruhlik and Andrzej Kapiszewski, ‘Twenty-First-Century Politics in the Arab Gulf States,’ in Political Change in the Arab Gulf States: Stuck in Transition, ed. Mary Ann Tetreault et al. (Boulder: Lynne Rienner, 2011), 6.
- 13.
Daniel Brumberg, ‘Transforming the Arab World’s Protection-Racket Politics,’ Journal of Democracy 24:2 (2013): 90.
- 14.
Marc Valeri, ‘Contentious Politics in Bahrain: Opposition Cooperation between Regime Manipulation and Youth Radicalisation,’ in The Dynamics of Opposition Cooperation in the Arab World: Contentious Politics in Times of Change, ed. Hendrik Kraetzschmar (London: Routledge, 2012), 139.
- 15.
Frederic M. Wehrey, Sectarian Politics in the Gulf: From the Iraq War to the Arab Uprisings (New York: Columbia University Press, 2014), 43.
- 16.
Laurence Louër, ‘Activism in Bahrain: Between Sectarianism and Issue Politics,’ in Taking to the Streets: The Transformation of Arab Activism, ed. Lina Khatib and Ellen Lust (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2014), 175.
- 17.
Elisheva Machlis, ‘Al-Wefaq and the February 14 Uprising: Islam, Nationalism and Democracy- The Shiʿi-Bahraini Discourse,’ Middle Eastern Studies 52:6 (2016): 991.
- 18.
Bahrain’s political parties are referred to as ‘societies’ however the difference is little more than semantic.
- 19.
Ehteshami and Wright, ‘Political Change,’ 920.
- 20.
Valeri, ‘Contentious Politics,’ 140.
- 21.
Tetreault et al., ‘Twenty-First-Century Politics,’ 6.
- 22.
Tilly and Tarrow, Contentious Politics, 75.
- 23.
Ibid., 62.
- 24.
This chapter incorporates material from interviews with al-Wefaq members conducted in Bahrain and Australia from 2015 to 2017. The names of all interview respondents have been withheld to protect their identities and personal safety.
- 25.
Interview 21 December 2015.
- 26.
Roel Meijer and Maarten Danckaert, ‘Bahrain: The Dynamics of a Conflict,’ in Arab Spring: Negotiating in the Shadow of the Intifadat, ed. William Zartman (Athens: University of Georgia Press, 2015), 217.
- 27.
Interview 20 December 2015.
- 28.
Wehrey, Sectarian Politics, 208.
- 29.
Gengler, Group Conflict, 77.
- 30.
Valeri, ‘Contentious Politics,’ 142.
- 31.
Gengler, Group Conflict, 77.
- 32.
Ibid., 23.
- 33.
Interview 15 December 2015.
- 34.
Interview 17 December 2015.
- 35.
Interview 21 December 2015.
- 36.
Interview 20 December 2015.
- 37.
Interview 21 December 2015.
- 38.
Interview 16 May 2016.
- 39.
Holger Albrecht, Raging Against the Machine: Political Opposition under Authoritarianism in Egypt (New York: Syracuse University Press, 2013), xxiii.
- 40.
Ibid., xxiv.
- 41.
Tilly and Tarrow, Contentious Politics, 16.
- 42.
Interview 25 December 2015.
- 43.
14 February 2011 was a highly symbolic day in Bahrain, as it marked the ten year anniversary of King Hamad’s National Action Charter (NAC) reforms.
- 44.
Wehrey, Sectarian Politics, 76.
- 45.
Louër, ‘Activism in Bahrain,’ 183.
- 46.
Husayn, ‘Mechanisms of Authoritarian Rule,’ 41.
- 47.
Matthiesen, Sectarian Gulf, 16.
- 48.
Interview 17 December 2015.
- 49.
Wehrey, Sectarian Politics, 77.
- 50.
Zainab Abdul-Nabi, ‘Al-Jazeera’s Relationship with Qatar Before and after the Arab Spring: Effective Public Diplomacy or Blatant Propaganda?’ Arab Media & Society, 24 (2017): 8.
- 51.
Matthiesen, Sectarian Gulf, 48.
- 52.
Interview 12 December 2015.
- 53.
Interview 16 December 2015.
- 54.
Matthiesen, Sectarian Gulf, 48.
- 55.
Wehrey, Sectarian Politics, 78.
- 56.
Tilly and Tarrow, Contentious Politics, 184.
- 57.
Gengler, Group Conflict, 142.
- 58.
Wehrey, Sectarian Politics, 79.
- 59.
Interview 12 July 2017.
- 60.
Wehrey, Sectarian Politics, 79.
- 61.
Kylie Moore-Gilbert, ‘From Protected State to Protection Racket: Contextualising Divide and Rule in Bahrain,’ Journal of Arabian Studies 6:2 (2016): 179.
- 62.
Gengler, Group Conflict, 142.
- 63.
Louër, ‘Activism in Bahrain,’ 192.
- 64.
Gengler, Group Conflict, 142.
- 65.
Joel Beinin, ‘Arms Sales to Bahrain under the Scanner,’ Al Jazeera, November 6, 2011, www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2011/11/2011111101357837629.html
- 66.
Wehrey, Sectarian Politics, 89.
- 67.
Matthiesen, Sectarian Gulf, 68.
- 68.
Kristian Coates Ulrichsen, ‘Bahrain’s Uprising: Regional Dimensions and International Consequences,’ Stability: International Journal of Security & Development, 2:1 (2013): 5.
- 69.
Matthiesen, Sectarian Gulf, 69.
- 70.
Interview 16 May 2016.
- 71.
Wehrey, Sectarian Politics, 91.
- 72.
Meijer and Danckaert, ‘Bahrain,’ 228.
- 73.
BBC News, ‘UK Builds First Permanent Middle East Base for 40 Years,’ 1 November 2015, www.bbc.com/news/uk-34690895
- 74.
Gengler, Group Conflict, 23.
- 75.
Interview 21 December 2015.
- 76.
Meijer and Danckaert, ‘Bahrain,’ 233.
- 77.
Husayn, ‘Mechanisms of Authoritarian Rule,’ 41.
- 78.
Moore-Gilbert, ‘Putting the Genie Back in the Bottle.’
- 79.
Michael R. Gordon and Kareem Fahim, ‘US Official Ordered Out of Bahrain After Meeting,’ The New York Times, 7 July 2014, www.nytimes.com/2014/07/08/world/middleeast/us-official-ordered-out-of-bahrain-after-meeting.html
- 80.
Meijer and Danckaert, ‘Bahrain,’ 217.
- 81.
Gengler, Group Conflict, 138.
- 82.
Louër, ‘Activism in Bahrain,’ 173.
- 83.
BBC News, ‘Bahrain Opposition Leader Sheikh Ali Salman Jailed,’ 16 June 2015, www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-33147198
- 84.
Bahrain Center for Human Rights, ‘Bahrain Court of Appeal Increases the Sentence of Al-Wefaq’s Sheikh Ali Salman to Nine Years in Prison,’ 30 May 2016, www.bahrainrights.org/en/node/7849
- 85.
Reuters, ‘Bahrain Launches Criminal Investigation against Main Opposition Group,’ 18 February 2015, www.reuters.com/article/us-bahrain-politics-idUSKBN0LL13F20150217
- 86.
Gulf News, ‘Bahrain Opposition Loses Appeal against Dissolution,’ 6 February 2017, http://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/bahrain/bahrain-opposition-loses-appeal-against-dissolution-1.1973970
- 87.
Reuters, ‘Bahrain’s Top Shi’ite Cleric Gets One Year Suspended Jail Sentence,’ 21 May 2017, www.reuters.com/article/us-bahrain-security-trial-idUSKBN18H07C
- 88.
Obaid Al-Suhaymi, ‘Dissolution of Bahraini Waad Association, Liquidation of Its Funds,’ Asharq Al-Awsat, 1 June 2017, https://english.aawsat.com/obaid-alsuhaymi/news-middle-east/dissolution-bahraini-waad-association-liquidation-funds
- 89.
Interview 14 December 2015.
- 90.
Tilly and Tarrow, Contentious Politics, 19.
- 91.
Ibid., 72.
- 92.
Albrecht, Raging Against the Machine, 17.
- 93.
Tilly and Tarrow, Contentious Politics, 20.
- 94.
Brumberg, ‘Protection-Racket Politics,’ 91.
Bibliography
Abdul-Nabi, Zainab. “Al-Jazeera’s Relationship with Qatar Before and after the Arab Spring: Effective Public Diplomacy or Blatant Propaganda?” Arab Media & Society, 24 (2017): 1–21.
Albrecht, Holger. Raging Against the Machine: Political Opposition under Authoritarianism in Egypt. New York: Syracuse University Press, 2013.
Al-Suhaymi, Obaid. “Dissolution of Bahraini Waad Association, Liquidation of Its Funds.” Asharq Al-Awsat, June 1, 2017, https://english.aawsat.com/obaid-alsuhaymi/news-middle-east/dissolution-bahraini-waad-association-liquidation-funds
Bahrain Center for Human Rights. “Bahrain Court of Appeal Increases the Sentence of Al-Wefaq’s Sheikh Ali Salman to Nine Years in Prison,” May 30, 2016, www.bahrainrights.org/en/node/7849
BBC News. “Bahrain Opposition Leader Sheikh Ali Salman Jailed,” June 16, 2015a, www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-33147198
BBC News. “UK Builds First Permanent Middle East Base for 40 Years,” November 1, 2015b, www.bbc.com/news/uk-34690895
Beinin, Joel. “Arms Sales to Bahrain under the Scanner,” Al Jazeera, November 6, 2011, www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2011/11/2011111101357837629.html
Brumberg, Daniel. “Transforming the Arab World’s Protection-Racket Politics.” Journal of Democracy 24, no. 2 (2013): 88–103.
Coates Ulrichsen, Kristian. “Bahrain’s Uprising: Regional Dimensions and International Consequences.” Stability: International Journal of Security & Development 2, no. 1 (2013): 1–12.
Ehteshami, Anoushiravan and Wright, Steven. “Political Change in the Arab Oil Monarchies: From Liberalization to Enfranchisement.” International Affairs 83, no. 5 (2007): 913–932.
Gengler, Justin. Group Conflict and Political Mobilization in Bahrain and the Arab Gulf. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2015.
Gordon, Michael R. and Fahim, Kareem. “US Official Ordered Out of Bahrain After Meeting,” The New York Times, July 7, 2014, www.nytimes.com/2014/07/08/world/middleeast/us-official-ordered-out-of-bahrain-after-meeting.html
Gulf News. “Bahrain Opposition Loses Appeal against Dissolution,” February 6, 2017, http://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/bahrain/bahrain-opposition-loses-appeal-against-dissolution-1.1973970
Husayn, Nebil. “Mechanisms of Authoritarian Rule in Bahrain.” Arab Studies Quarterly 37, no. 1 (2015): 33–53.
Louër, Laurence. “Activism in Bahrain: Between Sectarianism and Issue Politics.” In Taking to the Streets: The Transformation of Arab Activism, edited by Lina Khatib and Ellen Lust, 172–198. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2014.
Machlis, Elisheva. “Al-Wefaq and the February 14 Uprising: Islam, Nationalism and Democracy- The Shiʿi-Bahraini Discourse.” Middle Eastern Studies 52, no. 6 (2016): 978–995.
Matthiesen, Toby. Sectarian Gulf: Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and the Arab Spring That Wasn’t. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2013.
Meijer, Roel and Danckaert, Maarten. “Bahrain: The Dynamics of a Conflict.” In Arab Spring: Negotiating in the Shadow of the Intifadat, edited by William Zartman, 209–248. Athens: University of Georgia Press, 2015.
Moore-Gilbert, Kylie. “From Protected State to Protection Racket: Contextualising Divide and Rule in Bahrain.” Journal of Arabian Studies 6, no. 2 (2016): 163–181.
Moore-Gilbert, Kylie. “Putting the Genie Back in the Bottle: New Media and Authoritarian Reassertion in Post-Arab Spring Bahrain.” In From Sit-ins to #Revolutions: The Changing Nature of Protests, edited by Olivia Guntarik and Victoria Grieves. London: Bloomsbury, 2019–forthcoming.
Reuters. “Bahrain Launches Criminal Investigation against Main Opposition Group.” February 18, 2015, www.reuters.com/article/us-bahrain-politics-idUSKBN0LL13F20150217
Reuters. “Bahrain’s Top Shi’ite Cleric Gets One Year Suspended Jail Sentence.” May 21, 2017, www.reuters.com/article/us-bahrain-security-trial-idUSKBN18H07C
Sadiki, Larbi. Rethinking Arab Democratization: Elections without Democracy. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009.
Tetreault, Mary Ann; Okruhlik, Gwenn and Kapiszewski, Andrzej. “Twenty-First-Century Politics in the Arab Gulf States.” In Political Change in the Arab Gulf States: Stuck in Transition, edited by Mary Ann Tetreault et al., 1–18. Boulder: Lynne Rienner, 2011.
Tilly, Charles and Tarrow, Sidney. Contentious Politics. Second edition. New York: Oxford University Press, 2015.
Valeri, Marc. “Contentious Politics in Bahrain: Opposition Cooperation between Regime Manipulation and Youth Radicalisation.” In The Dynamics of Opposition Cooperation in the Arab World: Contentious Politics in Times of Change, edited by Hendrik Kraetzschmar, 129–149. London: Routledge, 2012.
Wehrey, Frederic M. Sectarian Politics in the Gulf: From the Iraq War to the Arab Uprisings. New York: Columbia University Press, 2014.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2018 The Author(s)
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Moore-Gilbert, K. (2018). The Rise and Fall of Bahrain’s Al-Wefaq Society: De-democratisation and Crackdown in a Troubled Gulf State. In: Conduit, D., Akbarzadeh, S. (eds) New Opposition in the Middle East. Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-8821-6_5
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-8821-6_5
Published:
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore
Print ISBN: 978-981-10-8820-9
Online ISBN: 978-981-10-8821-6
eBook Packages: Political Science and International StudiesPolitical Science and International Studies (R0)