ETHNIC DISCRIMINATION IN BAHRAIN

That this House opposes the vast demographic change instigated by the Bahraini government; expresses deep concern that, since the uprising in 2011, the process to expedite the granting of citizenship to individuals with other ethnicities from outside Bahrain solely in order to marginalise and outnumber the majority Shia Muslim population in Bahrain has increased significantly; recalls with concern that documents have suggested that since 2001 on average over 8,000 such individuals have been granted citizenship every year, exhausting a welfare system where Shia Muslims currently wait in excess of 17 years for social housing; further expresses disappointment at the continued failure to cease and reverse this violation; and urges the Government to make strong representations to try and prevent this unlawful ethnically-orientated process, instigated and maintained by the Bahraini government.