Nonviolent Action Strategy: Lessons from Bahrain's Demonstration

Spring 2012 Nonviolent Action Strategy: Lessons from Bahrain’s Demonstration Movement Loghman Fattahi From February 14 to March 16, 2011, a These three pillars are equally vital in demonstration movement swept Bahrain maximizing and managing participation in a employing nonviolent action strategy to effect nonviolent action movement. The balancing of political and economic change in country. The these pillars is key to chipping away at the state's success of a nonviolent action strategy rests on the pillars of support and achieving the aims of the ability of organizers to maximize the participation movement. of individual and collective actors in the Despite major achievements, the nonviolent demonstration process. Participation increases the action movement in Bahrain did not induce true probability of overcoming the state's pillars of democratic reform. Although most Shiite citizens power, chiefly its security forces. Maximizing and participated in the demonstration process, this managing participation is best achieved by religiously homogenous group was not sufficient building upon and sustaining the three pillars of a to compel king al-Khalifa to adopt democratic nonviolent action strategy: nonviolent unity, reforms. Had a large number of Sunni citizens planning, and discipline. participated in the movement, it would have The unity pillar demands building and increased its probability of success because sustaining a multilateral coalition representing the Sunnis, unlike Shiites, are a pillar of support of diverse socio-political interests of a state. The the al-Khalifa dynasty. nonviolent coalition must then secure Analyzing the relationship between overwhelming consensus on a concrete set of maximum participation and pillars of support for socio-political objectives to maximize the number the regime, this paper argues that the nonviolent of participants involved and guide the political action movement’s failure to unite Bahrain's 1 objectives of the demonstration movement. Sunni and Shiite sects inhibited its ability to fully The planning pillar comes into play because maximize individual and collective participation strategists must identify and exploit the state's in demonstrations against the rule of the al- institutional vulnerabilities as it reacts to and Khalifa dynasty. This failure to unite the two 2 represses a nonviolent action movement. main religious sects ultimately undercut the The discipline pillar is critical for preparing ability of activists to strategically plan and to participants for the likely violent reaction of the preserve the nonviolent discipline of state and accepting the probable risks, including demonstrators. As a result, the regime retained its loss of life. A disciplined commitment to pillar of support among Sunnis and managed to nonviolence is more likely to persuade regime contain the nonviolent movement in the short- supporters, notably soldiers, to defect to the term. nonviolent action movement because its nonviolence reduces their perception of insecurity POLITICAL OBJECTIVE in a future system that does not include the An anonymous Facebook group, the 3 incumbent regime. "February 14th Revolution in Bahrain," initiated the demonstration movement in Bahrain on February 14, 2011. The group justified the Loghman Fattahi is a first-year Master's candidate at demonstrations with a set of political positions the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, that were considered vital to achieving democracy concentrating in International Negotiation and in the kingdom of Bahrain. These political Conflict Resolution. He received his BSFS from the positions were as follows: School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University in May 2011. © The Fletcher School – al Nakhlah – Tufts University 160 Packard Avenue – Medford, MA 02155-7082 USA – Tel: +1.617.627.3700 2 al Nakhlah 1. Disband the National Assembly daunting challenge for the movement from the 2. Abrogate the current Constitution and form a start. This would have negative implications for Constituent Assembly to draft a new constitution, the numbers of those participating and even the which should stipulate the following: degree of unity of the movement’s political a. Legislative authority is vested in a objectives. Nonetheless, the demonstrations went parliament all the members of which forward. must be elected; b. Executive authority is exercised by an elected Prime Minister; and Bahrain is a FUNERAL PROCESSIONS constitutional monarchy ruled by the Al On February 14, 2011, Shiites began to Khalifa family. However, members of the demonstrate en masse in Bahrain with over 6,000 royal family are barred from holding top 7 positions in the three branches of demonstrators marching throughout the day. The 4 demonstrators' destination was Pearl Square, a government. national monument in Manama, the capital of Bahrain. At 8:00 p.m., police fatally shot a For a nonviolent demonstration movement to demonstrator, Ali Abdulhadi succeed it needs to have a unified Almeshaima, whom doctors at the political objective. These preset The killing of Salmaniya Medical Complex objectives were part of the Almeshaima and others (SMC) pronounced dead at 8:20 movement's strategy to give 8 demonstrators a clear and would inflame the p.m. The killing of Almeshaima and others would inflame the concise political goal with which passions of fellow to unite its diverse participants. passions of fellow demonstrators In particular, it aimed to unify demonstrators and and expand the number of the various Shiite blocs and to expand the number of participants in the movement. recruit members of the Sunni Early in the morning of sect. participants in the February 15, over one thousand This strategy effectively movement. demonstrators gathered at the garnered the overt support of the SMC to receive Almeshaima’s various Shiite elements. Unlicensed Shiite political body from the morgue. More demonstrators joined his funeral procession on the way to a local blocs such as al-Haq and the Bahrain Islamic 9 Freedom Movement issued statements supporting cemetery. Incidentally, during this first of many demonstrations. The licensed Shiite groups, like funeral processions, riot police shot a bullet in the al-Wifaq, indirectly supported the call for head of another demonstrator, Fadel Salman Ali demonstrations by supporting the principle of Salman Matrouk. The SMC doctors marked his 5 10 peaceful assembly. death at 09:30 a.m. The activists used these two Besides the strategic planning evident in the and other future casualties to dramatically expand demonstrations’ political aims, it is also evident the number of demonstrators marching to Pearl that there was a high degree of strategic planning Square. that went into the choice of date for launching the By the night of February 15, several demonstration movement. The Facebook group thousand demonstrators had occupied Pearl selected February 14 to launch the demonstrations Square. Activists installed a projector screen and because it embodied two symbolic events in raised tents for the night. There was also an SMC recent Bahraini political history: on February 14, medical unit on site to provide medical care. 2001, Bahrainis voted in a referendum for the Meanwhile, demonstrators used text messaging to 11 National Action Charter to usher in political encourage others to join them. The occupation of reforms and exactly one year later the king Pearl Square illustrates that the activists, at least at changed his title from emir to king and declared the early stage, were able to maneuver and 6 Bahrain a constitutional monarchy. sustain a nonviolent demonstration movement The selection of this politically sensitive with an expanding number of participants. date was a part of a strategic plan to appeal to all The movement strategically used Pearl Bahraini citizens, Shiite and Sunni, desiring to Square to communicate its message of political check the political power of the al-Khalifa discontent to the Sunni monarchy and to the dynasty. In general, the subunits of the Shiite sect world. The successful occupation of Pearl Square were more supportive of the movement’s political also persuaded diverse political parties and civil objectives and the selected date for the society actors to unite and directly participate in demonstrations than the Sunnis because they are the demonstration process. For example, while al- a part of the ruling Sunni al-Khalifa dynasty. Wifaq politicians boycotted Parliament, the Including Sunnis in the demonstrations was a General Federation of Bahrain Trade Unions © The Fletcher School – al Nakhlah – Tufts University Spring 2012 3 called for a national strike to begin on February Health allegedly had ordered paramedics to 12 17. remain at SMC until the police had fully cleared 21 The alliance of demonstrators, Pearl Square of demonstrators. This operation parliamentarians, laborers, and others illustrated showed the readiness of the monarchy to use the movement’s ability to unite diverse sectors of violent force to smother the budding nonviolent Bahraini society seeking a common political goal. demonstration movement in Bahrain. The unity expanded the number of participants in This assault on unarmed sleeping the demonstrations, thus rattling the monarchy's demonstrators disgusted political and civil society economic and political pillars of support. In actors in Bahrain – both Shiite and Sunni alike. general, the popular expression of discontent For example, Al-Wifaq, Wa'ad, Islamic Action resoundingly exposed the illegitimacy

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