Page 320 - Begrave Thesis_Neat

Belgrave served at the time British imperial interests, as a matter of fact his

presence at the head of the Administration in Bahrain turned into a heavy burden

on Britain. Nor is there any evidence to suggest that Belgrave’s work was dictated

to him by Britain’s FO through the Residency. Moreover, there is no evidence to

suggest that neither he nor the Residency purposely sought sectarian division in

Bahrain.

Though Egyptian influence on the nationalists was apparent as seen through

their press and some of the prominent members of the NUC’s actions. It is hard to

determine whether Egyptian influence affected the Party as a whole since those who

contributed to press publications and spoke in rallies were but a few. Those whose

influence by Egypt’s Nasser seemed apparent, there existed no proof to suggest that

they were controlled by the Egyptians though the influence was reasonably high.

In order to better understand the Party and its driving force it is essential to

dissect the Movement. The NUC consisted of a two-headed complex structure each

driven by its political motives. The first being the Shi’ite element of the Party which

some of it supporters were driven by their traditional sectarian feud with the

Administration’s Sunni ruling family. Though the Movement was not of a religious

nature, it heavily relied on religious platforms and occasions for its political

gatherings, in particular Shi’ite celebrations which were held throughout the year.

Though such gatherings promised to assemble thousands it probably gave a false

impression to some Shi’ites, as they thought the Movement stood in support to their

religious practices. Further, there was noticeable objection from an element within

Bahrain’s Shi’ite community towards the Party’s hardline stance and Egyptian

© Hamad E. Abdulla 299