In My Opinion

Pitfalls of a borrowed lifestyle...

2006-03-27T18:55:00+03:07

Vol XXIX

NO. 7

Monday

27th March 2006

By Amira Al Hussaini

News that demand for personal loans has fallen from BD681.3 million in 2004 to BD656.2m last year must have been welcomed with relief in many quarters - except banks of course!

Who would want to see his profits drop, even if it was an indicator of a number of things, including perhaps that people have started to realise the dangers of the vicious circle of being in debt, the futility of trying to keep up with the richer Johns, or have become so poor that no bank will risk giving them loans.

A number of banks have actually expressed their disappointment, blaming the Bahrain Monetary Agency for the fall.

While it doesn't take a genius to figure out the reason for their dismay, I find myself thinking how long will the Bahraini society continue to survive on loans, with many living way beyond their means to sustain false appearances.

Many youngsters, myself included, took the bait and reaped the short-term benefits of loans early on in their lives, only to regret it later as the repayments became a burden and one loan led to another, spanning a few decades to pay off.

I personally had to take a loan to buy myself a car at the beginning of my career, since every job demands transportation. As I climbed the ladder, I thought I needed a better car, to reflect my new status, if not my salary!

This called for another loan, even though I hadn't completed the first loan and you would assume that once bitten, I would be twice shy.

Since I had already borrowed money and was in debt, there was no harm in adding insult to injury and treating my mother to a new car too.

Well to say the truth, she deserved it and I shouldn't be bragging about it years later.

As I was already up to my eyeballs in loans, there would really be no chance for me to see the world and enjoy myself without having to borrow more money.

So a third loan sealed the deal and booked me holidays to Europe and the US, which I still boast about today - without mentioning that my travels and expenses were made possible thanks to bank loans and not my ingenuity in saving money.

Needless to say, I never enjoyed the thrill of a full salary as it was distributed as soon as it was deposited in my account, while the banks doubled, tripled and quadrupled their profit at the expense of fools like me who always think they have made a great deal, when in reality they have been taken for a ride!

* Amira Al Hussaini currently lives in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada

A giant leap forward for Bahraini women...

2006-03-12T04:28:46+03:07

Vol XXVIII

NO. 357

Sunday

12th March 2006

BY AMIRA AL HUSSAINI

I have already circled September in my calendar! I know exactly where I will be and what I will be doing.

It is a date which every Bahraini should be proud of as a Bahraini and Arab woman will for the first time assume the role of president of the United Nations General Assembly.

Shaikha Haya bint Rashid Al Khalifa will be the second woman to hold the post in its 61-year-old history, after Angie Brooks of Liberia, who was president in 1969.

Congratulations Shaikha Haya on this great achievement, which is truly a huge leap in terms of showing the rest of the world the high calibre of Bahraini women and the heights they have reached.

We have indeed come a long way.

I hope this will answer all the questions people ask me about women in my country.

For if the picture is not all that perfect, there is great hope in the future with two female ministers and finally a woman president of the UN General Assembly.

It is a gain of such a great magnitude it is sure to generate interest from around the world about Bahrain in general and the status of its women in particular.

The responsibility placed on Shaikha Haya's shoulders is indeed huge, as the world's eyes will be focused on her during her tenure.

She will be responsible for running the General Assembly, attending endless meetings and facing the questions of some of the world's most seasoned journalists in one Press conference after another, to name but a few of the challenges ahead!

While I wouldn't want to be in Shaikha Haya's shoes, as I am more comfortable covering events from the sidelines, the post of General Assembly president is an unenviable one which I am sure she has already been briefed about and ready to deal with its realities, come September.

This takes me back to days when I was a cub reporter and won a scholarship to the UN to cover the proceedings of the 49th General Assembly meeting almost 10 years ago!

Being in the General Assembly hall was daunting to say the least. But heading the meeting is another story altogether.

Thank you Bahrain for placing your trust in a woman and showing the rest of the world our civilised face, which I am more than sure Shaikha Haya would be able to project, given her earlier performance as our ambassador to France.

It is indeed a bright page in Bahrain's modern history.

* Amira Al Hussaini currently lives in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.

Family law opponents living in the dark ages

2006-03-11T04:00:42+03:07

Vol XXVIII

NO. 356 Saturday 11 March 2006

By AMIRA AL HUSSAINI

Bahrain is once again making the headlines for hosting the biggest event in racing history - and it is the number one race on the Grand Prix calendar.

While thousands of people are working behind the scenes to make the event a success, a smaller number of locals are openly rallying support for a demonstration to coincide with the race - to call for banning the newly drafted Family Law, which seems to be getting closer to reality by the day.

What is it they are calling for exactly? A race against time and a trip back to the dark ages?

Have we gone totally mad in Bahrain or it is just me getting negative vibes from everything happening back home?

What are the turbaned clerics against exactly? A written codified personal law which guarantees the rights, responsibilities and duties of every member of the family?

Or the fact that the carpet will be swept from under their feet and they will lose the unchallenged control they have over people's life and destinies?

The fact that we are in the year 2006 and there isn't a written law to safeguard family rights is a joke, especially when legislators are busy calling for covering up mannequins and segregating institutes of higher education.

They could have better used their time and our public funds on discussing more worthwhile issues.

Why is a family law such a threat to the clergy and men in general? What are the side effects they are so worried about? How will it upset the family unit in Bahrain?

What will outlining what the duties and rights of the husband, wife and children in line with Islamic Sharia upset the clergymen so much?

And what baffles me is why have so many women gone out on the streets to demonstrate against a law which will finally give them recognition as wives and mothers - and some standing in a court of law, which will have a written code of conduct and not depend entirely on the whims of one man?

Sigh! The future looks bleak indeed if we have reached crossroads where our people are actually rallying behind oppressing women and not giving mothers and children their legal rights, as ordained by the Holy Quran and Islamic Sharia.

*Amira Al Hussaini now lives in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada

How women footballers are scoring over men

2006-03-10T16:43:06+03:07

Vol XXVIII

NO. 355 Friday 10 March 2006

By AMIRA AL HUSSAINI

Bahraini women have once again shown the rest of the world their resolve, dedication and ability to score even better points than men!

Although I am anything but a football fan, I can't deny how excited I was with the news that my countrywomen have brought pride to the kingdom by winning the first Arab Sevens Football Championship in Abu Dhabi, UAE.

How I wish I was with the spectators on the stands, cheering and rallying behind them!

To think that Bahraini women are enjoying a popular team game such as football - practising, running, sweating, beating teams from other countries and clinching a trophy is laudable to say the least. You rock, girls!

Winning a regional tournament and being named the first Arab ladies in football, of all games, is a great achievement.

The challenge is now to remain on top, continue to bring in more trophies and encourage more women to get involved in sports, for life should include recreational activities and fun - as all work and no play makes Jill a dull girl!

My only hope is that women athletes would be able to share the limelight with their male counterparts and benefit from the spoils allocated for developing sports activities in Bahrain.

I completely understand the sensitivities among the local community of seeing women dressed in sportswear and exercising en masse in public and have no objection against it, as it is part of a code of traditions and behaviour that we should respect.

What would be fitting is to see women-only clubs and recreational facilities opening up, which include football pitches, tennis courts and squash and badminton areas - to name a few - to encourage more women to have a life and get involved in sports and other activities.

Sport will not only boost their morale, but also help fight off extra pounds, which many of us have amassed over the years simply because sports and outdoor activities have been exclusive to men in a society which has for long frowned upon women who run, jump and toss balls.

Our aspiring women politicians too can learn something from our budding women's football team and make the headlines, come the October parliamentary elections - for it is with hard work and sincere effort that many of us can achieve their dreams.

*Amira Al Hussaini currently lives in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada

Sales ban on Doulos senseless

2006-03-06T04:27:51+03:07

Vol XXVIII

NO. 351

Monday

6 March 2006

By Amira Al Hussaini

It is great to see common sense prevailing at last and the Doulos being allowed to sell books!

But I still cannot bring myself to understand the rationale behind the decision to allow the world's largest floating bookshop to dock at Mina Salman, but ban it from selling its books!

It was like chopping someone's hand off and giving him a pen!

What have we got against the written word? Wasn't it the Holy Quran that ordered the believers to read? Wasn't it Prophet Mohammed who instructed his people to seek knowledge?

Why was the Doulos allowed to call on us, if we were to snub it and show the rest of the world our fangs and our "great sensitivity" towards books as if they were the plague?

Why were people who read in Bahrain herded like horses to water, but denied to drink from it? It's not like we are spoilt for choice when it comes to books in Bahrain so that the floating bookshop posed a threat to local businesses.

The sad fact is that if anything, we need more cultural activities and books to encourage people to learn, expand their horizons and fight intolerance and backwardness.

Revising the decision will not eradicate it overnight, but is a step in the right direction.

A quick search on the web exposes a sad reality, not only in Bahrain, but in the rest of the Arab world.

According to the 2002 Arab Human Development Report, Arab countries produced 6,500 books compared to 102,000 in North America and 42,000 in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Citing Unesco figures, the report says that book production in Arab countries is only 1.1 per cent of world production, although Arabs make up 5pc of the world's population.

To add insult to injury, Arabs produced no more than 1,945 literary and artistic books, making up 0.8pc of international production.

This is less than a country such as Turkey produces - with a population about a quarter of that of Arab countries, according to the report.

What a shame!

I will never forget how, after every holiday abroad, my bags were searched at Bahrain International Airport - not because they contained contraband items, but because they were full of books that made custom officers jump up and down with excitement!

The fact that the books were in English and contained very little graphics made them ponder on them longer than they would with other items, until I intervened and told them they were for my studies.

And I wasn't lying, for it was from books that I have learned more than I have at school, university and my working experience - all put together.

*Amira Al Hussaini currently lives in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada

Allowance a massive relief for homeless families

2006-03-05T04:20:00+03:07

Vol XXVIII

NO. 350

Sunday

5 March 2006

By AMIRA AL HUSSAINI

For the 40,000 families on waiting lists for government housing, there can't possibly be better news than the BD100 monthly windfall promised by the Premier.

While the amount will go a long way towards helping them meet increasing rent and possibly even afford better accommodation, I can't bring myself to imagine the costs the government would have to shoulder to meet this gesture, considering housing projects are coming up at snail's pace and the waiting lists and periods are, if anything, just increasing.

But it is a gesture, which once again reinforces the government's commitment to ensuring a decent dwelling for every Bahraini family, as stipulated in the Constitution.

Because of a lack of lands, haphazard planning, poverty, unemployment and the sad reality that there are so many dilapidated homes - which I will not bring myself to call slums - in many areas of Bahrain, it brings hope to many impoverished families which would otherwise have to continue stomaching appalling living conditions.

It is a remedial measure, which will at least help many families make ends meet and move to better accommodation.

It will be particularly helpful for the swarming families, who live like sardines in one room in an ancient family house that is too shocking, but accepted as reality in many villages and even towns in Bahrain.

BD100 a month will help them rent another shanty dwelling, which they will finally be able to call home, as they continue to wait for their promised home.

I really wouldn't want to be in the shoes of housing officials in Bahrain, for the issue is really a sticky one.

Most lands are privately owned, land prices are escalating at breakneck speed, the harsh arid desert climate is taking its toll on existing homes faster than government homes are actually being built and people are getting more and more frustrated with the long wait for a refuge, which will elevate their status from sardines to people who can at last aspire to dream of a better tomorrow.

For all the pessimists out there, who think that this gesture is another cosmetic fixture to appease the disgruntled, I say that something is surely better than nothing.

It is a laudable move that will enable the poor to breathe a sigh of relief at last.

My only hope is that the government itself deals with paying the deserving citizens their housing allowances in a transparent and systematic manner as soon as possible and not leave it to parliament or the municipal councils to fight over.

*Amira Al Hussaini currently lives in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.

Caught in the web of Internet rip-off...

2006-03-02T03:00:00+03:07

Vol XXVIII

NO. 347

Thursday

2nd March 2006

BY Amira Al Hussaini

Batelco is doubling its authorised capital from BD100 million to BD200m! Hurray! What does this mean to me and you and all the other consumers under their mercy?

Will it mean lower phone and Internet bills?

I doubt it, not as long as their profits are climbing steadily - despite the "increasingly competitive telecommunications environment" if I am to use the words of its chairman Hassan Ali Juma.

But let's face it, telecom companies are the same the world over and as a lucrative business, their primary concern isn't to bring you closer to your dear loved ones as much as to bring them closer to your dwindling purse.

When we first arrived in Canada, we shopped for a few weeks for the best telephone deal.

With all the promotions and competing companies that was possible, even encouraged by companies, which actually give you the chance to compare their rates with the competition.

I opted for the $25-a-month unlimited local calls mobile phone - one for me and another for my better half.

I was cursing and swearing for the first month about how much I have been ripped off for years when I now have a better deal for a much lower price. That was until the first bill came. It was a whopping $200!

Angered at being taken for a ride again, I picked up the phone and called the company, explaining in as many words as I could put in a sentence how enraged I was.

What on earth was I thinking? Did I really think I would get a deal from a telecom company?

They said there were installation charges, connection fees, a fixed amount for caller ID, charges for receiving overseas incoming calls, another few dollars for ability to access the emergency number and other miscellaneous charges I would rather not draw the attention of telecom providers in Bahrain to - and all this multiplied by two! Oops!

And before I forget, there is of course the 15 per cent tax on almost everything here, including your phone bill.

But like it or not it is necessary and without it, I frankly feel naked, lonely, insecure and vulnerable to almost everything.

It is my guardian angel and the only means in which I can get access to my family and friends with the click of a button until I get home and make myself comfortable on my sofa and log on to the Internet!

This is where a new world opens, hugs me with its open arms and throws me into the heart of my Isa Town home - where my family huddles around the PC listening to me and seeing me live, doing monkey faces and relating to them how good or bad my day went.

My one-year-old nephew Ali thinks I actually live inside the computer, which I really do, waiting for the minute my loved ones come online - when Batelco's servers are having a good day!

* Amira Al Hussaini currently lives in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada

Silence over abuse of women is shameful

2006-02-27T07:42:34+03:07

Vol XXVIII

NO. 344

Monday

27 February 2006

By Amira Al Hussaini

Once again, a newspaper report draws our attention to some of the injustices women in Bahrain - and much of the Arab and Islamic world - suffer when their rights and dignity are stripped away, for no other reason than that they are women.

I realise I keep repeating myself and I sometimes wonder whether my comments serve a purpose, or whether they all fall on deaf ears.

No woman deserves to suffer the indignity brought to our attention of a 38-year-old Muharraq widow, who is being threatened with becoming homeless overnight.

Whatever the reasons for the feud with her in-laws, she is a mother with children, whose destiny was to lose a husband at such a young age and face the dilemma of not having a roof over her head, where she can live in peace or do whatever she chooses to do with the rest of her life.

Instead of rallying behind her, for her circumstances are cruel, her in-laws are making her life a living hell, with beatings and abuse, not only for her but her daughter as well.

So what if she brought men to fix the pump at home?

Instead of attacking her, the incensed brother-in-law, who happens to live in the same house, should be asking himself why he had not been the one responsible for fixing the broken pump.

For him and his wife to gang up against the helpless family is unacceptable and for the police to turn the grieving widow away, without as much as investigating the case and showing the attackers that there still is some law and order, is appalling.

I am happy a lawyer has intervened in this particular case, but my heart bleeds for all the other women, whose voices and cries don't reach us because they suffer in silence in a society which is adamant in treating women as second or even third-class citizens.

Law-makers, the government and parliament should take a closer look at atrocities being committed against women every day and should ask themselves whether they are doing their jobs properly, when half the country's populated is wronged.

Ownership laws should change in Bahrain if we are to aspire to empower women and give them their rightful place in society.

A home should be jointly owned by the husband and wife, for it is paramount for the stability and security of the family as a whole.

For society to wash its hands of such atrocities being committed against helpless women and girls is ridiculous and for us all to watch injustice committed and keep our lips sealed is shameful.

*Amira Al Hussaini currently lives in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.

That magic oasis of peace has disappeared!

2006-02-20T16:05:34+03:07

Vol XXVIII

NO. 337

Monday

20 February 2006

By AMIRA AL HUSSAINI

Nothing warms the heart this winter more than meeting former Bahrain residents and reminiscing about the Bahrain they knew until they left - the land of peace, calm and tranquillity and where the hospitality and friendliness of Bahrainis smothers you to death.

It fills me with pride and joy to know that Bahrain has carved a niche for itself in the hearts of all those who have passed by the Land of Dilmun and experienced life as it was in that magical oasis of peace.

"But what is happening in Bahrain now?" asked a man, who left Bahrain in 1995.

"What do you mean?" I answered, trying to sound as naïve as I possibly could without laughing.

"All the attacks on foreigners," he ventured to explain.

"It isn't that bad, just isolated incidents," I replied, trying to steer the conversation to another topic.

"And all the stabbings and armed robberies," he pressed.

"What stabbings?" I interrupted.

"You know. Locals stabbing expats!" he said.

"No, I don't. And no society is immune to crime."

All of a sudden the friendly Bahrainis have become knife-wielding vandals going about stabbing and attacking expatriates, as a part-time job or a form of recreation, I presume.

As much as such generalisations annoy me, what annoys me more is the fact that workers are being attacked and the incidents are brushed aside as if nothing had happened.

The perpetrators aren't punished simply because those victimised do not have the protection necessary to make them equal in front of the law.

Over the previous two weeks, two attacks were reported in the GDN. One involved a Nepali employee attacked by a Bahraini at Al Muntazah Supermarket in Hoora, for no reason.

The other was about an Indian driver dragged out of his minibus and punched by a local, following an accident in Salmaniya.

Would those two have been attacked had they been locals? Would the man involved in the accident punched the driver had he been a Bahraini, wearing a thobe and driving a Mercedes?

They would have thought twice, just as they should have done if they had any respect for themselves and understood the gravity of their actions and how they are interpreted by people around the world.

Violence is an unacceptable form of dialogue and as such should not be tolerated, if we are to protect the reputation of our country.

Whatever happened to reasoning, in a civilised manner?

* Amira Al Hussaini currently lives in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.

Why do men in uniform think they are above the law?

2006-02-18T02:42:19+03:07

Vol XXVIII

NO. 335

Saturday

18 February 2006

By AMIRA AL HUSSAINI

The sheer arrogance of some people baffles me. It really gets to me, especially when it comes from people wearing a uniform.

Wearing a uniform should be a declaration of loyalty to a code of ethics and conduct, be it the white coat worn by doctors, school uniforms enforced upon students, the khaki worn by policemen or the fatigues donned by soldiers.

Each represents the duties and the code of ethics and conduct the person wearing them has sworn to adhere to and which they should live up to, in or out of uniform.

For instance, a doctor is still committed to saving life, with or without his white coat and a policeman is still responsible for upholding the law, in or out of uniform.

This is exactly why I find myself outraged at a Yemeni soldier in Bahrain, who stabbed a Moroccan woman after a scuffle at a hotel, then arrogantly boasted that since he was working at the BDF, he was above the law.

He reportedly stabbed the Moroccan woman several times, after a dispute over money, in a Manama hotel.

"The man was saying how proud he was for being Yemeni and working for the BDF and continued to say how he is not scared for doing what he did because he knows that he will be set free for being a soldier," the hotel's security manager told the GDN.

I am in shock over his remarks and also hurt to see an immigrant worker, who has come to my country to earn a decent living, utter such nonsense and flaunt all the things we really believe in like justice and right and wrong, just because he is wearing a uniform.

Is he really above the law for being a soldier? Will he be set free as he arrogantly boasts?

I certainly hope not and I really do hope that the ministries of Defence and Interior take those allegations seriously, to bring back some respect to the police and army.

Bringing back respect to men in uniform is a national duty and can only come about by more openness and a serious effort to punish those who think they are above the law.

This is imperative, if we are to put our trust in men and women in uniform.

Otherwise, all is lost in a country which upholds the doctrines of democracy and human rights and wants to show its sons and daughters that the law is applied equally to everyone.

* Amira Al Hussaini currently lives in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.