The Kingdom of Bahrain is holding parliamentary elections on Saturday against a backdrop, according to Amnesty International, of «political repression» after the authorities embarked on a post-Arab Spring drive to disband the country’s main opposition groups.
Amnesty recalls that at least 12 prisoners of conscience, including the leaders of the 2011 protests as well as Ali Salman, head of the country’s main opposition party, Wefaq, «are currently languishing in prison».
Between 2012 and 2017, the authorities also outlawed Amal, an opposition party that had competed with Wefaq for the Shiite vote, and the non-sectarian opposition party Wad.
Some 500 candidates are running for 40 parliamentary and 30 municipal seats, including 94 women, more than double the 2018 figure, according to authorities in the country, home to the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet.
The Bahraini parliament consists of the elected Council of Representatives and the Shura Council, whose 40 members are appointed by the monarch.
