DFA eases crisis warning over Bahrain

The Bahrainian flag is waved as Iranian activists set sail on a boat in the Gulf port town of Dayyer to support the Shiite-led protests in Bahrain on May 16. AFP File Photo

MANILA, Philippines —(UPDATE) The Department of Foreign Affairs has lowered its crisis alert status for Bahrain in the wake of the Gulf state’s move to lift the state of emergency, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Saturday.

The Bahraini Royal Palace on Tuesday lifted the state of emergency enacted on March 15 amid a bloody crackdown on Shiite-led protests in the Sunni-ruled, Shiite-majority kingdom, which activists had been holding since February 14.

King Hamad on Tuesday called for a national dialogue and the main Shiite opposition group, the Islamic National Accord Association (Al-Wefaq), welcomed the Sunni royal family’s offer.

The easing tension prompted Manila to downgrade its alert level from 2 to 1 for Filipinos in the oil-rich kingdom.

Under alert level 1, Filipinos are urged to actively monitor developments in their host country. “Returning workers are allowed to go back to the concerned country, but non-essential and non-urgent travels are still not allowed,” the DFA said in a statement.

Amid escalating tension, the DFA on March 15 raised the crisis alert level to 2 for Bahrain, urging Filipinos to relocate or leave the country.

Shiite-majority Bahrain was rocked by a month of street protests from mid-February which the Sunni-dominated authorities crushed with the help of the military intervention of its Arab neighbors in the Gulf.

Under the state of emergency, security forces cracked down on Shiite villages, arresting hundreds of people, many of whom have been referred to special courts.

There are close to 50,000 Filipinos in Bahrain.

With a report from Tina G. Santos, Philippine Daily Inquirer; Agence France-Presse