Despite the visible escalation of unrest, F1 commercial rights holder Bernie
Ecclestone has likened the protesters to “those complaining about Mrs
Thatcher”. The leader of the demonstration in Barbar declared to the crowd:
“Because of this race, people have been killed, and a school raided. People
are being repressed more because of the Formula One.”
One man died yesterday in the village of Samaheej with his family citing the
cause as a heart attack brought on by the additional security presence. A
car exploded in Manama late on Sunday when a gas cylinder was detonated by a
group describing itself as the February 14 Coalition. They promise further
violence ahead of the grand prix and use the slogan, “The volcanos are
coming”.
Shadow justice minister Andy Slaughter claimed yesterday that the grand prix
was likely to “attract as much negative publicity as last year”.
In the letter, he explained: “Since April 2012, many more people, including
children, have lost their lives and the whole country exists in fear.
Leading human rights activists, such as Nabeel Rajab, have been imprisoned
for merely speaking out against a dictatorship of a ruling family.”
“Children, medical staff, men and women languish in jail on the whims of the
Al Khalifa ruling family when no crime has been committed and child deaths
are the norm. Last year’s championship was held under conditions of martial
law. Three hundred protesters were arrested, some spending months in jail.
Salah Abbas Habib was killed during the weekend of the race. He was shot by
the security forces and his body showed marks of torture. I think most
people would be appalled if you allowed the Bahrain leg of the F1
championship to go ahead.”
Slaughter, with nine other MPs, put his name to the motion tabled yesterday,
which called for a boycott of Sunday’s race. It declared that they believed
the race would be “used by the Bahrain government to present a false image
to the world”.
Ecclestone failed to be persuaded by a similar appeal last year by a similar
call from MPs, when even Labour leader Ed Miliband voiced his opposition to
the grand prix, and it is likely his feelings will be the same now after he
claimed he had “no concerns” about the race going ahead.