Most governments get nervous when the Americans announce imminent danger in a certain country, as they recently did in Bahrain, where they issued a travel advisory against all but essential visits and ordering the departure of some diplomatic staff. By doing so they threaten the most important factor in a country’s stability the perception of security.
The latest warning forced the Bahraini Parliament to react. It said the warning was at best exaggerated and nothing warranted telling foreigners to leave.
Bahrain recently arrested a group of Saudis who were taking photographs of “sensitive” installations including a bridge and the US Embassy. They were later released when it turned out that were innocent tourists who wanted a memento of their visit just like any other tourist in the world.
Nevertheless, the incident raised red flags in Washington, which is not surprising since America is living in constant fear of terrorist acts and is continuously on high alert. The US can be forgiven for its oversensitivity because of the insistence by Al-Qaeda to target American citizens and American interests around the world.
Let us then look at the warnings from two angles. From the negative angle, the barrage of warnings about countries in the region has become like crying wolf, and from the positive angle it is the US government’s duty to inform its citizens whenever they have a report of impending danger that may threaten their lives. If it did not ring the alarm bells, it would be blamed if the attack took place.
Bahrain, as well as Egypt and Tunisia, have a right to be annoyed at such warnings as they scare away tourists and foreign investors. But it is a situation we must learn to live with, because it has become clear that the terrorists are targeting foreign workers in the oil industry with the aim of scaring them into leaving, thereby paralyzing the industry. The attacks in Yanbu and Alkhobar, in which scores of innocents were killed, are testimony to that. Naturally some foreign workers have packed their bags and left, but the truth is that the scare tactics didn’t work and the industry’s wheels keep turning.
Countries like Algeria faced even more dangerous security threats and were able to overcome those problems. The secret is to raise insurance premiums and salaries.
As far as our region is concerned, we must learn to live with this cancer and direct our energies toward uprooting it rather than paying the opinions of the US and other countries too much attention.
Bahrain is a country in the middle of a region being swept by waves of terrorism. Even if it is not directly affected by it, its citizens live with an element of fear. But Bahrain is well-known for its tolerant society and will prove itself capable of protecting itself from the threat of terrorism.
