Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06MANAMA2070
2006-12-26 12:58:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Manama
Cable title:  

MUNICIPAL COUNCIL ELECTION RESULTS SIMILAR TO

Tags:  PGOV KDEM PHUM KWMN BA POL 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXRO3785
OO RUEHDE RUEHDIR
DE RUEHMK #2070/01 3601258
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 261258Z DEC 06
FM AMEMBASSY MANAMA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 6226
INFO RUEHZM/GULF COOPERATION COUNCIL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RHBVAKS/COMUSNAVCENT PRIORITY
RHMFISS/HQ USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 MANAMA 002070 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/04/2016
TAGS: PGOV KDEM PHUM KWMN BA POL
SUBJECT: MUNICIPAL COUNCIL ELECTION RESULTS SIMILAR TO
PARLIAMENTARY OUTCOME

Classified By: Ambassador William T. Monroe for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)
.

-------
Summary
-------

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 MANAMA 002070

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/04/2016
TAGS: PGOV KDEM PHUM KWMN BA POL
SUBJECT: MUNICIPAL COUNCIL ELECTION RESULTS SIMILAR TO
PARLIAMENTARY OUTCOME

Classified By: Ambassador William T. Monroe for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)
.

--------------
Summary
--------------


1. (C) Results in the municipal council elections, held
concurrently with parliamentary elections November 25 and
December 2, mirrored those of the parliamentary elections.
Twenty-six candidates from three Islamic political societies
were elected to the 40 available seats, 17 from Shia society
Al Wifaq and nine from the two Sunni societies Al Asala
(Salafi) and Al Minbar (Muslim Brotherhood). The remaining
newly-elected members ran as independents. Al Wifaq will
dominate two of the municipal councils, Manama and Northern,
and have strong representation on the Central council.
Independent members dominate the other two councils. Under
current municipal legislation, the councils have little real
authority and limited resources. Many candidates ran on the
pledge to push the government to give them greater power to
make improvements at the local level. End Summary.


2. (SBU) Elections for Bahrain's five municipal councils
were held alongside parliamentary elections November 25 and
December 2. There were a total of 170 candidates, including
five women, competing for 40 seats (compared to over 300
candidates, 30 of whom were women, competing for 50 seats in
the 2002 municipal elections). Fewer Sunni Islamists were
elected in the municipal polls than in the parliament, and a
greater number of independent candidates were elected. Of
the 40 municipal seats, leading Shia opposition political
society Al Wifaq took 17 seats, Al Asala (Salafi) won six, Al
Minbar (Muslim Brotherhood) took three, and independent
candidates won the remaining 14 seats. As in several of the
parliamentary races, some of the Al Wifaq candidates received
overwhelming support, with two candidates receiving 95% and
94% of the votes in their districts and three others
receiving over 80% of votes cast. One Al Asala candidate
received over 80% of the vote in his district.


3. (SBU) Two of the five municipal councils will be
dominated by Al Wifaq, which has seven of nine seats on the

Northern council and six of eight seats on the Manama
council. The remaining four Al Wifaq members are on the
nine-member Central Council, whose other members are split
between Al Asala, Al Minbar, and an independent. The
councils in Muharraq and the Southern Governorate are
composed largely of independents. Muharraq's council has six
independents and two members from Al Asala, and the
six-member Southern council has five independents and one
from Al Asala.

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Women Candidates Struggled
--------------


4. (SBU) Only five women registered to run in the municipal
elections this year, down from 30 in 2002. Four of the five
ran in Muharraq and one ran in the Southern Governorate, but
none were competitive in their respective races. Women in
the municipal council elections have faced difficulties due
to a widespread public perception that the work of a
municipal council is not suitable for women.

--------------
Municipal Districts Modified
--------------


5. (SBU) In mid-September, Prime Minister Shaikh Khalifa Bin
Salman Al Khalifa issued an executive order changing the
municipal council election districts. Previously there were
50 municipal councilors, ten for each governorate, but the
PM's order brought the municipal district boundaries into
line with the parliamentary districts, thus decreasing the
number of municipal councilors to 40. There was mild
resistance to this change in the run-up to the elections from
individual council members and from Al Wifaq as they
anticipated that their seats might disappear. Although Al
Wifaq had boycotted the 2002 parliamentary elections, its
members had run in the municipal council races, winning 22 of
the 50 seats. Now, even after losing five seats due to the
contraction of the municipal councils, Al Wifaq's
representation of 17 of 40 members is very close to its
previous percentage of representation.

--------------
Municipal Councils Prioritize, But Lack Power
--------------


MANAMA 00002070 002 OF 003



6. (SBU) Municipal councils are not empowered to make
decisions on the range of issues councilors believe they
should be. Less than two pages of the 10-page municipalities
law of 2001 lists areas in which municipal councils have some
oversight or influence. Only one of the law's 42 articles
describes, through a 25-item list, specific council areas of
authority. Of these 25 items, many have language such as
"may propose" or "may submit an opinion" without authorizing
the political or economic power to carry out the proposals.
The council submits proposals to the Ministry of
Municipalities, but there is no legal requirement that the
ministry act on the proposals. The rest of the law discusses
the formation of the councils, qualifications of municipal
councilors, council administrative issues, and the structure
in which the municipal councils work.


7. (SBU) Municipal councils are given authority in the law
to monitor the implementation of projects related to
lighting, water, and sewage, but personnel from the Ministry
of Housing and Public Works receive their instructions from
supervisors in the ministry. The municipal councils have no
authority to task ministry employees. As a result of the
councils' limited mandate, many candidates pledged during
their campaigns to demand greater powers. Municipal
councilors plan to fight for the authority to direct road
work, water and sewage projects, housing projects, and street
lighting. In addition, newly-elected municipal councilors
speak publicly of environmental projects and development
plans for their districts but lack the resources needed to
bring them about. At present, the most visible evidence of
the councils' authority and limited financial resources is
the establishment of several community parks that usually
include child play areas, walkways, and picnic areas.

--------------
Chairmen Elected
--------------


8. (SBU) Each of the five municipal councils elected a chair
as they met in the weeks following the general election.
Although all of the chairmen are new to their positions,
three were members of their municipal councils during the
previous term. The chairmen are:

Manama Municipal Council: Majeed Milad (Al Wifaq) is an
incumbent from the previous term. Prior to his election in
2002, he was a public school teacher. He holds a bachelor's
degree from the University of Bahrain.

Northern Municipal Council: Yousif Al Bouri (Al Wifaq)
previously worked for a marketing agency coordinating
conference planning. According to his campaign resume, is
currently taking courses toward a bachelor's degree in
political science.

Muharraq Municipal Council: Mohammed Hamada (Independent)
previously worked in the Customs and Ports directorate in the
Office of the Boycott of Israel (which was closed over a year
ago). He was also general director of the Bahraini Olympic
Committee. He has a high school education.

Central Municipal Council: Abdulrahman Al Hassan (Al Minbar)
is an incumbent from the previous term. He worked in the
Ministry of Education prior to being elected to the municipal
council in 2002. He received his bachelor's degree in
Sharia' studies from Riyadh and has been a cleric since 1987.

Southern Municipal Council: Ali Al Muhannadi (Al Asala) is
an incumbent from the previous term. He was an accountant
for over 20 years before being elected to the municipal
council in 2002. He received his master's degree in
accounting and finance from Goa University.

--------------
Non-Bahrainis Eligible to Vote
--------------


9. (SBU) A legal provision allows non-Bahraini property
owners to vote for municipal council candidates (but not for
parliamentary candidates). According to election officials,
there were approximately 5,000 eligible non-Bahraini voters,
99% of whom were GCC nationals. There are no statistics
available on actual turnout among these voters.

--------------
Comment
--------------


10. (C) Although the proximity of the municipal councils to
their constituents could be used to implement real and

MANAMA 00002070 003 OF 003


visible improvements at the local level, the law limits what
can be done. Financial resources and decision-making remain
at the ministry level. Now that the opposition is
participating in the parliament, there may be attempts to
amend the municipal council law to grant the councils more
local authority and resources.


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MONROE