Page 292 - Records of Bahrain (7) (i)_Neat

278 Records of Bahrain

wished to obtain gradual constitutional progress or to overthrow
the Bahrain Government. Shomlan replied that ho was quite ready
to overthrow the Government if noceosury and that if only the
British would stand uoidc for twelve hours he could bring this
( about. This had profoundly shocked Fakhroo und Orrayedh, and

they described Shavian's attitude as treasonable.
3. : Another interesting development was that the Committee
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recently appvoqched members of the Persian Shla community
1 ,
rosidoi^t- in Bahrain and asked them for contributions to the
Committee10 funds and for assurances that they would shut their

shops when called upon to do so, The Persians refused further
contributions and said they would only chut their ohops if
evoryone else did. Immediately after this some of these
Persians wont to the Ruler and asked for permission to form a
new and separate Committee of their own to represent their
interests. The Ruler has agreed to this, The people who

sponsored thio application are not in thomseives of great
weight, but the Bahrain Government have heard that if the
ip.VJ JeacJLor. was favourably received by the i<ulor tl.e more*
important members of the Persian Shia community would give
thoir support to the new Committee.

4. Both those developments, coupled with the other evidence
mentioned by Hr. Gault of the Committee'0 failure to gain
support for strikes, suggests that some progress is being
niade in detaching moderate elements front the opposition and
securing more support for the Government. At the same time
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it is clear that the Committee, or at any rate some of the

influential members of it, have moved to a more extreme-
position and are tending to abandon the comparatively
constructive and gradualist approach to constitutional
/development

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