Bahraini Crown Prince Sheikh Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifah interacts with mediapersons at a press meet in Manama, in this file picture. The latest attempt at a national dialogue, launched last month, is seen as largely due to his efforts.
Reuters/Abu Dhabi
Bahrain appointed Crown Prince Sheikh Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifah as first deputy prime minister yesterday, a sign the government could be softening its stance as it holds talks with the opposition to end two years of political unrest.
The country has been in turmoil since pro-democracy protests erupted in 2011.
The appointment would allow the crown prince “to develop the performance of the apparatus of the executive branch,” the state news agency BNA reported, citing a royal decree.
“This is the beginning of change in the executive authority to implement Bahrain’s commitments on the political and legal front,” said Abdul Jaleel Khalil Ebrahim, a leader of the opposition bloc Al-Wefaq.
He was referring to recommendations made by an international inquiry that investigated the government’s handling of protests in 2011, and to demands by the opposition for a government chosen by an elected parliament.
Crown Prince Salman was instrumental in pushing for a first round of talks between the government and the opposition after pro-democracy protests erupted in Bahrain in February 2011, at the height of the Arab Spring that ended in failure.
This latest attempt at a national dialogue, launched just last month, was also seen as largely due to his efforts.
“This is pushing new blood into the cabinet, the new generation. I am very happy with the appointment.
“I think it is good for strong progress and change in Bahrain,” said Sameera Rajab, Bahrain’s information minister.
The government says 35 people died during the unrest in 2011 and two months of martial law that followed, although the opposition puts the toll at more than 80.
At least two protesters and one policeman have died in the past few weeks as the unrest has taken a more violent turn.
