In These New Times

PressTV

12th August, 2011

Thousands of Bahraini anti-government protesters have poured into the streets near the capital, Manama, to demand equality and liberty in the country.

Demonstrators have also called for an elected government and an end to regime discrimination against the opposition’s overwhelming majority.

The mass rally in Abu Quwa, a village west of Manama, is reported to be organized by Bahrain’s influential opposition bloc, al-Wefaq.

Recently released former opposition lawmakers also attended the rally. Jawad Fairooz and Matar Matar, who were detained in May after resigning from parliament in protest at the brutal crackdown on protests, said they had been tortured in prison.

Bahraini protesters have vowed to continue their protests until they achieve their “legal demands.”

Since mid-February, Bahraini protesters have been holding anti-government protests demanding an end to the rule of Al Khalifa dynasty, which they say has instituted despotic governance, discrimination, and the suppression of all dissent.

Manama, backed by Saudi troops, has met the popular protests with a brutal crackdown, killing scores and arresting hundreds.

Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have harshly criticized Bahrain for its violence against protesters as well as doctors, nurses, lawyers and journalists that expressed support for the protest movement.