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MANAMA (Reuters) - Bahrain's opposition stood to capture an unprecedented half of the seats on Saturday in parliamentary polls which could also see a female candidate elected for the first time.
Bahrain held the first round of parliamentary...
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MANAMA |
Sat Oct 30, 2010 10:57am EDT
MANAMA (Reuters) - Bahrain's opposition stood to capture an unprecedented half of the seats on Saturday in parliamentary polls which could also see a female candidate elected for the first time.
Bahrain held the first round of parliamentary elections last week, in which the main Shi'ite opposition group Wefaq won all 18 seats it contested in the 40-seat assembly.
The island kingdom, home to the U.S. Fifth Fleet, is ruled by the Sunni al-Khalifa dynasty which is seen as a bulwark against the regional influence of Shi'ite power Iran by Bahrain's main allies Saudi Arabia and the United States.
The government introduced a new constitution and parliament elections a decade ago to quell unrest among majority Shi'ites in the 1990s; but many Shi'ites feel they have not gained a greater say in the country's affairs or better access to state jobs and services. Officials deny discrimination.
Munira Fakhro, from the secular Waad group, is running in one of two key second-round races, held in nine districts in which no candidate obtained a majority in the first round. If Fakhro and another Waad candidate win their seats, the opposition would for the first time hold half of all seats, paving the way for more questioning of the government on alleged corruption and the extent of the ruling family's land ownership.
Wefaq and Waad would also team up in an attempt to expand limited powers of the parliament. Bills need to pass an upper house whose members are appointed by the king.
"(The constitution) gives all power to the king instead of parliament," said Fakhro as she greeted voters who trickled into a school used as a polling station.
She won 33 percent of votes in the first round in her district in the center of Bahrain last week, 10 percent less than her rival, independent Sunni candidate Esa Al Qadhi.
The opposition accuses the government of apportioning voting districts in a way to prevent Wefaq gaining a majority. Waad fielded three candidates, one of whom lost last week.
Fakhro said Waad would propose changing the districts and electoral rules to also increase the chances of female candidates running against Bahrain's main political blocs. Waad is the only group that endorses female candidates.
FEW FEMALE VOICES
Women have hardly any say in politics in the Gulf Arab region and hold few top jobs in government and the private sector. Kuwaitis last year elected the region's first four female members of parliament, and in Bahrain women have been eligible to vote only since 2002.
Mona Fadhel, a supporter of Fakhro and author on Gulf women's political role, said women were quite active in community groups but had gained few official posts.
"Their presence in the official institutions does not reflect the level of activities of women in politics," she said.
Latifa al-Gaoud, a Sunni independent, is the first female member of parliament but she won her district -- a strip of desert in Bahrain's south -- without any voting for the second time this year as she faced no other candidate.
On Thursday, Bahrain began the trial of 25 activists and opposition leaders accused of plotting to topple the Sunni-dominated political system with defendants saying they were tortured, an accusation officials denied.
(Reporting by Frederik Richter)
World
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