Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Car Race or Propaganda?




The Royal al-Khalifa family has ruled Bahrain for the past 200 years. Like many other countries in the Middle East and North Africa, Bahrain joined the Arab Spring. Protests began at the countries landmark Pearl Roundabout on February 14, 2011. The Shia majority wanted reforms and democracy. As most know, the authoritative regime shut down the mass protest with violence and oppression. For the past two years the country has continued to see violence and civil unrest.

            An important event in Bahrain is the F1 Bahrain Grand Prix car race. It was brought to the country in 2004 by Crown Prince Salmon Bin Hamad al-Khalifa. This international event brought a lot of global attention to this small country. Then, in 2011 the event was cancelled due to the protests and violence taking that the country was experiencing.

The event is set to return this year but there is a lot of controversy over the issue.  “For the government and its supporters, holding an F1 race demonstrates that the kingdom is stable and back on track. For the opposition, the race is little more than an attempt to conceal what they say is the ugly truth of daily life in the country” (BBC News) The government feels as though the media is wrongly portraying the current situation in Bahrain, saying it is more violent and unstable than it really is. The opposition sees this event as an act of propaganda. It would portray stability in a country that is far from it.
                            



“For ordinary Bahrainis and members of the large expat community, F1 is a way of putting aside, at least for a few days, the road blocked b y burning tires, the police checkpoints and the whiff of tear gas in the air” (BBC News). In other words ordinary citizens see this event as a brief escape from the harsh realities of their life.

So is the Grand Prix an act of government propaganda, or is it simple a car race that the citizens can enjoy?


Sources:

"Bahrain: Police 'fire Tear Gas' at Boys' School." BBC News. BBC, 16 Apr. 2013. Web. 16 Apr. 2013.
 Law, Bill. "Bahrain GP: The BBC Explains the Background to the Protests." BBC News. BBC, 16 Apr. 2013. Web. 16 Apr. 2013.



6 comments:

  1. I think there are several important factors that we need to take into consideration. Even if the al-Khalifa regime does succeed in hosting this proposed race, the majority of Bahraini citizens will not afford the expensive costs of attending such a race. This elite racing event costs much more than most can afford. Like you mentioned, the Bahraini government could certainly use this event as a way to show the international community that the situation in Bahrain has calmed. I also agree that this event doesn't help the opposition in Bahrain. However, this event is not a "simple car race" and many Bahrainis (particularly Shi'ites) will be excluded.

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    1. I agree with this comment because al-Khalifa obviously uses large event including inviting American celebrities over as a form of propaganda to the rest of the international community. Like you said, many Bahraini citizens cannot afford the costs of attending such a race, but people do not see that when there is such a big even going on in the mean time. So long as al-Khalifa can create a sense of community amongst his country, regardless of how or who he uses, this ensures many people across the world that they have conquered mass protests from erupting. Instead of the citizens mobilizing against the government, coming together to a government held event fools many to believe that they have found stability and are not as corrupt as they are perceived to be.

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  2. I think the F1 Bahrain Grand Prix car race is an act of government propaganda. The situation in Bahrain is no where near peaceful enough to incorporate the majority of citizens. Also like mentioned above the race is unfair in that not all citizens can equally attend. The price to attend the car race definitely costs more than what the average citizen could afford, therefore this race is only a celebration for the elite. The government is using this race to try and rebuild their reputation to the international community - as it does act to deceive the international community. I think this race creates more animosity toward the elites from oppressed groups.

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  3. Certainly this is more a propaganda/government legitimizing event than a "simple car race" to be enjoyed by the Bahraini masses. Beyond the reasons mentioned above about cost of access, etc. this event is important as it focuses global attention on Bahrain, which besides the protests and continued repression, is not often gracing world headlines. By putting Bahrain in the spotlight with an event like this, the government has a weekend to show the world how "well" it is doing, hiding the deep, systemic problems and repression. I hope that this weekend's race will not be marred by violence, but I do hope that protestors are able to get their voices broadcasted globally and focus attention on the fact that the "Arab Spring" in Bahrain is not over.

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    1. Protestor's voices were able to reach a global audience through this weekend's race, and much of the coverage focused on the 10,000 strong protest:

      http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2013/04/201341919248304805.html

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  4. The race seems like a facade to the international community of Bahraini stability, economic standing, and western similarities, none of which really exist.

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