Manama: A Bahraini husband took out an ad in a local paper to appeal to his wife to forgive him and return home.
"Dearest Om (Mother of) Saleh…I beg you to come back home and I hope to please you and make up for the past days…Your loving husband," Abu Saleh wrote, ending the message with red roses to express his love. The ad was published in Al Waqt newspaper.
The ad is unprecedented in Bahrain's history and a rare occurrence in conservative societies where family matters are kept strictly private.
"We were initially shocked by this unprecedented request from a husband to his wife and the pledge to compensate for past mistakes that have seemingly caused a family rift," Radhi Al Mousawi, Al Wqat deputy editor, said.
"However, we salute the man's courage and bravery to declare his love and admit his mistakes publicly even though we live in a male-dominated society that is prone to accuse women and to forgive men for their mistakes."
Al Mousawi said that a man with such noble emotions and deep love deserves a new chance and pleaded with Om Saleh to go back to her husband.
Social activists in Bahrain last week called for prompt action to help tackle alarming divorce rates that reached 30% of all marriages in 2008.
