Manama: Bahrain’s lower chamber has not endorsed an amendment of a draft law that would ban the sale of alcohol in the island state.
The upper chamber on Monday supported the enactment of a law that would allow only non-Muslims to consume alcohol in public places. Currently, alcohol is sold in designated areas, restaurants and hotels.
The Islamist-dominated lower chamber this year moved to impose a blanket ban on the sale and consumption of alcohol and has recently succeeded to agree on a draft that was then passed on to the upper chamber. The MPs then launched a massive public relations campaign to exert pressure on the 40-member upper chamber to support the draft, citing religious and social values.
On Monday, 28 of the 35 upper chamber members present at the session voted in favour of the draft, while four opposed it. Three other members abstained from voting.
Jamal Fakhroo, one of the most vociferous opponents of the draft, said that it would spell the end of the tolerance and pluralism that has characterised Bahrain for centuries. “I believe that the MPs by this draft in the lower chamber issued a religious edict and not legislation,” he said.
“They have simply overlooked the security, cultural, social, health and economic consequences of their decision to ban alcohol in the country. Do they really believe that by imposing a ban, they would make Bahrain free of crime, bootlegging, smuggling, drugs and other similar activities? Obviously, this is a decision by religious political societies for self-serving interests,” he said.
Member Shaikh Khalid Al Khalifa said that applying the new law on Muslims would be an unconstitutional form of discrimination.
However, lawmakers from the lower chamber have rejected the amendments to their draft, insisting that the ban should be complete and without exceptions.
“The amendment defeats the purpose of the law draft because we want to make sure that Bahrain is alcohol-free,” MP Abdul Halim Murad said.
“The religious text about alcohol is very clear and there should be no other reading or exceptional amendments. As lawmakers, we cannot and should not tolerate alcohol,” he said.
