Page 94 - Bahrain Gov Annual Reports (II)_Neat

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ammunition, according to this regulation it is compulsory on all owners of firearms
and other arms to register them and to obtain a license in order to possess them.
About 2,000 rifles and a quantity of swords and revolvers wero registered. The
registration work was carried out by the police.
The regulation enablos the Government to prevent unsuitable persons from
owning arn s and ammunition and it will also be useful in the case of crimes in which
firearms are used. When the proclamation was first issued there was some appre­
hension on the part of the public that the Government wished to disarm everybody;
but those fears were very soon allayed.
Mounted Section. A section of police mounted on ponies was formed during
the year but up till now only ten suitable ponies have been obtained. The unit is
used for work in nearby villages and for coastal patrol work.
Good Conduct Pay. Good conduct pay, an allowance of Rs. 3 per month,
was instituted during the year as an inducement to the police to re-enlist after four
years’ service. Men are eligible for this allowance only if they complete four years’
service without having any entries on their conduct sheets and provided they obtain
a pass in musketry.
The pay of a policeman is Rs. 25 per month with a clothing allowance of
Rs. 3 per month. In addtition to this they receive rations and quarters.
Crime. The police have had very few important cases to deal with dur­
ing the year with the exception of one murder and several serious motor accidents
involving death and grave injuries There has been an increase in the number of theft
cases sent in by the Bahrain Petroleum Company, where pilfering is carried out on
a large scale, and a great increase in traffic cases. The reason for the apparent dec­
line in serious crimes is the increased prosperity in Bahrain and the fact that many
of the notorious bad characters have found employment with the Bahrain Petroleum
Company.
The murder case was an unusual one. The victim was a child few months old,
son of a minor Khalifah Shaikh in Rafa. The murderer was a woman servant who
had reason to be jealous of the child’s mother. The child was stolen from its bed in
the night and drowned in a water tub in the compound. The servant woman was
tried, convicted and executed.
Traffic Control. During the year the police investigated 456 criminal
cases of which 104 were thefts, 122 various other crimes, 145 petty offences and
59 motor accidents in which six persons lost their lives which is a high percentage
in a country where the total number of motor vehicles on the roads is about 400.
The most frequent causes of accidents are found to be careless driving and use
of cars with inefficient brakes and steering apparatus. The general public have no
motor sense and do not yet appreciate the danger of wandering in the centre of roads
and streets looking neither to left nor right. The Government and municipalities
have instituted various regulations and speed limits which are intended to reduce
motor accidents and during the latter part of the year there was a definite decrease
in the number of accidents.
Liquor. The liquor habit is undoubtedly spreading in Bahrain. There is
a general increase in the drinking of methylated spirits and eau-de-cologne. The
habit is no longer confined to foreigners but has spread to the Arabs, especially
women of the town. A significant hint of the state of things was one of tho figures
in the Muharram procession which represented a young man dressed as an Arab
Shaikh with a bottle and a tumbler in his hand. The older and more conservative
of the Arabs in Bahrain strongly disapprove of the increasing amount of drunkenness.
The Government has imposed restrictions on the sale of eau-de-cologne and
lavender water which are used as liquor. This habit is said to have been introduced
originally from tho Hejaz, and first started among the taxi drivers.
Persian Immigration. In spite of measures which are taken by the police
the nature and passport officials, the number of destitute and undesirable Persians wno
are entering Bahrain illegally, is, in ray opinion, steadily increasing. Parties of from