14 – 20 May
Much of the 19 May weekly parliamentary session was taken up with an open discussion about the state of Bahrain’s fishing industry. However, a bill proposing that within five years all public sector employees would be Bahraini proved controversial.
Meanwhile, the Financial Committee continues to study the 2015-16 State Budget and various Government departments have already received requests for a large number of clarifications.
Protecting the fishing industry
During the 19 May open parliamentary debate on the fishing industry, Ibrahim al-Hammadi said “We have discussed this issue for four years without seeing any result… the saying that ‘the eye sees, but the hand is small’ is applicable to the administration of our fishing resources, because its capabilities are weak”. Al-Hammadi called for a new law regulating the fishing industry, particularly with regard to the issuing of permits. He cited numerous violations and abuses of the system.
Jamal Dawoud, another MP who has acted as a passionate advocate for the fishing industry, said that there was a lack of qualified officials for regulating the industry and criticized various harmful fishing methods which hadn’t been outlawed.
Many MPs called for compensation for fishermen who had been hit by the six month ban on shrimp fishing, while others noted the ecological damage incurred by harmful fishing methods. MP Adel al-Asoumi exclaimed that Bahrainis were destroying the marine ecology “as if we wanted to punish ourselves”.
MPs like Jamal Buhassan stressed the importance of the fishing industry for Bahrain’s food security. He added: “This industry supports the economy and we should preserve the industry of our fathers and grandfathers”.
Several MPs emphasized the need for better regulation and the many abuses being committed. Ghazi Al Rahmah said “there is corruption and decisions adopted years ago but not implemented. Some fishermen don’t do any fishing, they just smuggle shrimp”. Al Rahmah called for a committee of investigation to “close the legislative vacuum and increase punishments for violators”.
Bahrainiization controversy
During the weekly parliamentary session, a proposed bill for making the public sector fully Bahraini within five years had to be withdrawn by Legal Committee Chairman Majid al-Majid for further discussion, after many objections from MPs.
Al-Majid tried to reassure his colleagues, saying that the proposal set out a general vision and didn’t seek to target specific roles. He added that the expenditure for implementing the law “would not be extortionate”.
There was a broad range of views expressed among MPs, between those who were ready to see drastic action taken to make the public sector entirely Bahraini; and those who saw a need for foreign specialists:
Jamal Buhassan said that it would be “impossible” to implement the proposal because “Bahrainis aren’t suited to certain roles, however much we train them”.
Adel Bin-Hamid noted that foreigners only made up 14% of the public sector, but said that this was a significant proportion. “Even if the expense of training Bahrainis is high, this must be done”.
Dr. Jamila al-Sammak argued that Bahrainis should be prioritized, as set out in the Constitution. She acknowledged that certain roles required foreign skills, but questioned what the strategy was for gradually replacing all foreigners with Bahrainis.
Abdulhalim Murad commented that employing Bahrainis was one of the Govt’s top priorities. However, certain roles benefitted from foreign skills. He said that consideration must be given to developing skills and the proposal should be reviewed.
Construction dispute
During the 19 May parliamentary session, the Housing Minister responded to an “urgent” bill submitted by a number of MPs, including Isa al-Kooheji calling for a halt to a construction project in Muharraq, because it was causing congestion around the nearby mosque.
Al-Kooheji said that he agreed in principle with the Minister and the need for large housing projects, but there was a need to check whether certain projects were viable and this project was causing upset for local people. The proposal to halt the project was criticized by Adel al-Asoumi who accused the MPs of trying to prevent Bahrainis from getting new homes.
Two MPs, Khalid al-Shaer and Dhiyab al-Noaimi withdrew their co-sponsorship of the proposal after listening to what the Minister had to say about the importance of the project. Al-Shaer accused another unnamed MP of threatening to “expose” him through Twitter after withdrawing his name.
Meat subsidies
It is being reported this week that the Government is planning to reform the system of subsidies on meat. Meat prices would increase, but Bahraini citizens would receive cash payments to help offset this.
Meanwhile, Parliament voted in favour of a private bill emphasizing the inviolability of the benefits due to citizens and stating that citizens should not be made to incur any further costs as a result of the removal of meat subsidies.
Regarding the proposed changes to the meat subsidy system, Mohammed al-Ammadi said: “The Finance Minister confirmed to us in the Government-parliamentary meetings that support to citizens would not be infringed. However, the very next decision taken throws this promise out the window”.