Bangladeshi stabbed Kuwaiti man

by Sandeep Singh Grewal
March 11, 2009

http://www.weeklyblitz.net/202/bangladeshi-stabbed-kuwaiti-man

Manama-Bangladeshi nationals may loose job opportunities in Bahrain and might face another visa ban after the authorities arrested a Bangla man as suspect in a murder case.

The Bahrain court remanded on Tuesday [March 10, 2009] a Bangladeshi for seven days in custody on charges of killing a Kuwait man.

According to court case, the body of the 68-year-old man was found with multiple stab wounds in a hotel. The hotel staff informed the police after the accused did not come out of his room for few days.

The murder has once again caused fear among Bangla nationals that the Bahrain government may impose again a visa ban on Bangla community.

Last year, Bahrain authorities slapped a visa ban on Bangladeshi's in May after Bahraini, Mohammed Jassim Dossary was killed following an altercation with a Bangla mechanic. The mechanic allegedly cut Dossary's throat using an electric grinder.

The visa ban was only for Bangladeshi workers while residents and their families were not covered under the decision. Visit visas for businessmen and white collar jobs from Bangladesh were not stopped.

Bangla workers have to undergo checks till they are issued a clearance certificate by Dhaka authorities. Clean police records and conduct certificate issued by the Bangladesh Foreign Ministry is also required for visa process.

There were crucial talks and negotiations between Bangladesh embassy officials here and concerned government bodies that finally resulted in lifting the travel ban after two months.

The controversial move by the Bahrain authorities was condemned by rights group who called it as- a racist attack against the country and its citizens.

Local human rights group such as- now defunct Bahrain Centre for Human Rights (BCHR), Bahrain Human Rights Society, Bahrain Youth Society for Human Rights and the Women Petitions Committee launched a global petition calling on the authorities to lift the visa ban on Bangla workers.

Several NGOs from Bangladesh also stood up for their countrymen against the decision and were signatories of the petition. They were- MA Research Foundation, Ovibashi Karmi Unnayan Program, Refugee and Migratory Movements Research Unit (RMMRU), Shikkha Shatha Unnayan Karzakram, WARBE Development Foundation and Women Solidarity for Human Rights. The petition was also signed by US based- International Justice Network (IJN) and Solidarity Centre.

The National Democratic Action Society, a leftist political group here described the visa ban move as tantamount to problems faced by Arabs And Muslims in Europe and US after a small fanatic Muslim group was behind the 9/11 twin tower attacks in New York and trains and buses explosions in Britain and Spain.

Last year, Bahrain authorities executed Bangladeshi, Mizan Noor Al Rahman Ayoub Miyah for killing a fashion designer of that country. Mizan, a cook, was convicted of murdering Sana Al Jalahama in 2006. During interrogation Mizan admitted killing the Bahraini woman following a row over the quality of food he cooked. The case, pending with court for two years, was put on the 'fast track' by the Bahraini leadership to carry out the sentence.

Two Bangladeshis, Jasmine Anwar Hussain, 23, and Mohammad Hilaluddin, 33, were convicted separately of murders by the High Criminal Court in Bahrain and were executed in 2006. The executions were condemned by human rights groups like Amnesty International.

Bangladeshis are the second largest community in the Kingdom with about 100,000 workers.

To contact the writer: sandy.media@gmail.com

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