HIS

MAJESTY THE KING OF BAHRAINS SPEECH

Information Affairs Authority, Bahrain, August 28 2011: In a speech marking the final days of the Holy Islamic Month of Ramadan, His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa of Bahrain has said that his Governments aspiration is for tolerance and for shunning violence, and not for excessive punishment that affects our unity, cohesion and national co-existence. In a television address broadcast on Sunday evening on Bahrain Television, and relayed on other television and radio stations, King Hamad spoke of reconciliation. When we see workers at their places of work and students at their learning institutions, while some other workers are not working and some other students are not studying, we are prompted, he said, to look into their situation in order to help them join their colleagues and classmates. Such an accomplishment will benefit the workers, the students, their families and the whole nation, said King Hamad. These are our orders to the concerned institutions and they should implement them more quickly. The Kings remarks come as more than 400 Bahraini students, who were suspended during the unrest earlier this year, were this week reinstated. Referring to those who were charged with crimes in the past, King Hamad said even though we do not wish to interfere in the process of justice and the application of the law, we stress that all civil cases will have their final ruling issued in civil courts. King Hamad noted that the past months of this year have been painful for all Bahrainis, but he said that the Holy Month of Ramadan has contributed to the restoration of cohesion and made us all recall our traditional interactions, compassion and fraternity. Referring to the international commission of inquiry that he set up to look into the unrest of earlier this year, King Hamad said the decision to set up the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI) was the best indication of our full commitments to knowing the whole truth and to giving people their rights. He also commended the outcome of the National Dialogue. Your agreements on further reforms are highly appreciated, deeply welcomed and greatly supported, said King Hamad.

PRESS RELEASE

Congratulating Bahrainis on Eid Al-Fitr, marking the end of Ramadan, King Hamad said he hoped Bahrain now will witness a new stage of outstanding productivity, cohesion and stability as our reforms move forward. ends

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HIS MAJESTY KING HAMAD BIN ISA AL KHALIFA, THE KING OF BAHRAIN SPEECH MARKING THE OCCASION OF THE LAST DAYS OF THE HOLY MONTH OF RAMADAN 28 AUGUST 2011 In the name of God, the Most Merciful, the Most compassionate: Praise be to God and prayers and peace upon His messenger, his family, companions and allies. Fellow citizens, Peace and God's mercy and blessings be upon you. It is with great pleasure that we talk to you as we are blessed with the auspicious days and nights of the holy month of Ramadhan, especially that we are now in its last ten days that are filled with forgiveness and blessings. We offer you sincere congratulations on this season of goodness and we are proud of your Ramadhan majlises and your exceptional meetings. Regular meetings and shunning division within the same nation are good traditions that must be perpetuated. We would like also to commend your convergence on the visions of the National Dialogue. Such an accord augurs well for a prosperous future for our beloved nation. Your agreements on further reforms are highly appreciated, deeply welcomed and greatly supported. We also want to congratulate you on the auspicious occasion of Eid Al Fitr. We pray to God the Almighty for happy returns for our country, people and for all Muslims, filled with security, faith, peace, health and well-being. We do hope that our beloved nation will witness a new stage of outstanding productivity, cohesion and stability as our reforms move forward. Whoever contemplates the recent developments appreciates that the only way out and the ideal manner to resume progress is to achieve unity and shun divisions, as ordered by God who said: "And hold firmly to the rope of Allah all together and do not become divided" (Al Imran - 103). Today the Muslim nation has the duty to move past its differences towards unity in a world that recognizes only power. Power can be achieved, after reliance on God, only through alliances built upon unity and cohesion. The nation is endowed with a rich civilization of common traits that can reinforce its unity built upon robust pillars. The nation has one Qibla (prayer direction), one Book, one Messenger and one God who has no partner. The unity of the nation is a dream that its loyal people seek and its wise men call for. God said: "We made you into nations and tribes that you may know one another." (Al Hujurat - 13) Fellow citizens,

 The last few months were painful for all of us, and even though we all live in the same country, some have forgotten about the inevitability of co-existence. We must not swerve from our trust and faith in our common future, regardless of the diversity of our sects. Otherwise, we lose our trust in one another as brothers, colleagues and citizens in this beloved country. We all grew up on this good land that brings all of us together. Our history testifies that our co-existence has placed our nation among the World's most civilized, open and developed countries. None of us wants to live alone with his sect and to exclude the others. Our success is in our cordial co-existence with its various cultures but with its definite patriotism and civilization. The holy month of Ramadhan has contributed to the restoration of the cohesion and pure hearts of our people and made us recall our traditional interactions, compassion and fraternity that were an integral part of our growing up. This is the best indication of the genuine nature of our people, as well as of the strength of their faith and the depth of their allegiance. Dear brothers, Our responsibility is to launch initiatives that achieve what we would like to see in our people. We are, thank God, strong in our faith and in the unity of our people. This strength, however, does not hinder us from confronting mistakes when they are made. Despite our full commitment to achieving security, safety and tranquility for our people, we do not want any prejudice to any of our citizens in their security, freedom, source of income or education, in a way that results in bitterness and that affects their contributions to the nation. Our aspiration is for tolerance and for shunning violence, and not for excessive punishment that affects our unity, cohesion and national co-existence. Such a wish requires that we build bridges of cordiality and friendship so that our hearts converge for the sake of everybody's interests. When we see workers at their places of work and students at their learning institutions, while some other workers are not working and some other students are not studying, we are prompted to look into their situation in order to help them join their colleagues and classmates. Such an accomplishment will benefit the workers, the students, their families and the whole nation. These are our orders to the concerned institutions and they should implement them more quickly. As for those who were charged with crimes in the past weeks, and even though we do not wish to interfere in the process of justice and the application of the law, we stress that all civil cases will have their final ruling issued in civil courts. We would like to emphasize that we do not anticipate putting everyone on trial. There are those who were charged with abusing us and senior officials in Bahrain, and we today announce that we forgive them as we hope that they understand that abusing us and others in fact offends everyone and achieves nothing.

There are some citizens who were victims of injuries, ill-treatment or death, and which were caused by several parties. There are security men who were martyred while they were on duty for the nation and we are responsible for them and for their families. There are those who got arrested and investigations proved that they were the victims of individual behavior and were ill-treated in custody. This is not tolerated by God and we do not condone it. The state has the responsibility to provide them with the necessary protection so that the law takes its course. Everybody should know that in Bahrain we have a law that allows victims of ill-treatment to ask for compensation. Some people may not understand such laws or believe that they will not be applied fairly, so we will request the Supreme Judicial Council to monitor what has been achieved. The decision to set up the independent fact-finding commission is the best indication of our full commitment to knowing the whole truth and to giving people their rights. We thank the members and we appreciate their patience and fortitude as they carry out their noble work. In conclusion, we pray to God the Almighty to improve our conditions and those of all Arabs and Muslims everywhere, to unite our ranks and to reconcile our hearts. We pray that He accept our fasts, prayers and good deeds during this Holy month and help us in the service of His religion. May God protect our Kingdom and sustain on us the blessings of security, safety, stability and peace. He is the One who hears and responds to supplications. May God bless you this year and well beyond. God pray for Mohammed, our Prophet, his family and companions. We bear witness that there is only one God. We seek His forgiveness and we repent to Him. Peace and God's mercy and blessings be upon you. ENDS