"تقارير إدارية ١٩٣١-١٩٣٥" [و‎‎٧‎١] (٤١٦/١٤١)

Obtaining the sanction of a Court. This last provision was obiected to as
interested persons are usually able to divide up a deceased’s moveables before
he ease comes betore a Qadl„ and this proclamation was specifically desired
to prevent such action. The Hon’ble the Political Resident was in the Stv
^ e erwi T r ta h ? h fV e ^
anyftfngVafhfird ofit^v UIld t “ ? xi ^nc? sVme tfme befo“
Abdullah bin Ca! ^“w^TX^a S - kh
on but took no useful action, and later showed somT^pIfty w?^ ht
agitators The proclamation was misrepresented in every possible wav one
mission. S that 110 dead might be buried without the' Gove™ment%'p°er!
oil, i Th ti tr °, U iu e f bt ; n s P read T t° Manamah and the bazaars were closed from the
9th to the 11 th February. Unfortunately Shaikh Hamad was due to nav his
askld tL t 0 p^iticai r A q pY / 11 eal ' ly settlen ? 1 ent J lad to be made. The Adviser
asked tne Folitical Agent to re-issue a similar Agency proclamation of 1931 to
show Bahrain subjects that the idea was not a new one and that foreigners
were liable to similar regulations. This was done, but it proved to be an
unfortunate step^ Excitement then prevailed amongst the foreign community
Muha aa S The Pol^ 1S , 7’ 77, , b ° dieS ,° f Per?ian o“roS
Munarraq. Hie Political Agent held a prolonged meeting with their leaders
and, after he had succeeded in separating the Persians from the Arabs was •
essentiaf f^a^ire . 6111 ^ Sllghtly m ° dlfying the P r ^amation though not in any
Hi Sll l lk ! 1 Har ? a + ( ? h . d in the me . ant ime exhibited characteristic weakness for
although he met the first deputation that went to meet him at Sakhir with
^d 11 ? e wt 1 h f e i hreW aWay tbe f dv ? nta g e he had gained by asking them at the
nio-ht to fskVX ^ p do ? ’ T J e sen 1 t a confidential messenger in at
m^tit to ask if the Bahrain Government proclamation should not be secretlv
™ l 116 mgh t t0 whi «h the Political Agent objected. On the nTght of
the 10 th February however, unknown persons removed it and the Agency
proclamation and the Shaikh accepted the fait accompli. g ‘
i ^" S a j r S ld i( 0 ^ a 8 '^. a ^ on the friends of the Government harmed them
selves and the Government itself suffered a severe set-back. Fortunately they
fecovereff all their lost prestige in the firm handling of the divers’ riot There
is little doubt that the Sunni Qadhis were in full sympathy with the agitation.
21 . Divers' Riot.—On the 25th May a divers’ agitation for increased salaf
can J ? e t 0 o^ bead } vben some .ringleaders were arrested. The salaf had been fixed
*1 ^ f 3 ° + , for . ^ lve , rs and ^ s - 25 for haulers, an uncomfortably low figure but
all that the industry could afford after three bad years. Certain men’ had
busied themselves m > stirring up their fellow divers to refuse these terms
(although representatives of the divers had been present when the usual meeting
turbulent se^tL^nf ^ ^ ^ ^ & ready res ^ onse fr om the morl
turbulent section of foreign divers, a motley crowd of blacks, Somalis Had-
^ and ^ ld men frora tbe inter i° r of the Arab Coast generally Shaikh
on the 2 Mh ar11 1 916 4 dviser tha t there were signs of trouble at Muharraq and
on the 25th certain ring-leaders were arrested. Next day the trouble com-
menced with dramatic suddenness. Shaikh Abdullah and the Amir had come
over to Manamah to discuss the matter with the Adviser, and were on their
vay back to Muharraq, when the Adviser received news that a very large body
n- k ad l anded on the Manamah-Muharraq causeway and were comina' to
his office Apparently they made for the Police Station, for before th^Advise?
d?v before^ The'poVF 11 and aed a . ring-leader imprisoned the
da> before. The Political Agent proceeded to 30 m the Adviser as earlv ns
possible and met him at_ the Police Station, which was found to have a door
and two windows burst m the .rfass hein s in fragments. On the way to the
Police Station, the Political Agent drove through a section of the mob 7nd had
occasion to notice their ugly temper. u liacl
The Adviser had sent up to the Fort fof the available Indian Police and
he and tlm Political Ae-ent proceeded there to expedite matters. Some thirty
men were has til v armed and a passing lorrv commandeered and the little force
returned to the Police Station to find a rabble of some 1,500 divers armed with
clubs, sticks and crowbars, evidently in a state of considerable excitement
LoSM’-n CIwd of about a thousail<3 l° oked on from the houses and other coigns