Page 440 - Bahrain Gov annual reports(V)_Neat

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Illegal Entries. The number of those arrested and repatriated for attempting to enter
Bahrain without passports or travel documents was 72; of these 33 were Persians, 26 Palestinian
refugees, 10 Indian, 11 Pakistanis and 2 Iraqis. Most of these people were brought to Bahrain
by Qatar nakhudas who make a practice of carrying illegal immigrants.

In 1925 a party of Palestinian refugees entered Bahrain with certificates of identity and
travel certificates. They caused trouble in the town and some of them were arrested for theft
and sentenced to imprisonment. Eventually they were sent by steamer to Basra. At Basra
they were refused permission to land ; they returned down the Gulf. In 1956 the same miser­
able party, consisting of 26 persons, came from Abadan by dhow which deposited them on the
shore near Budeya. They were arrested and after a short term of imprisonment they were
shipped back to Abadan in a Persian dhow.
Another party of 41 Iraqis of Kurdish origin came to Bahrain with temporary visas but
remained in Bahrain over the authorised period without applying for residence permits. They
appeared to be professional beggars. After some delay they were repatriated to Iraq.
During the year the Government issued two proclamations regarding foreigners living in
Bahrain. The order required all owners of hotels or khans to supply the Police and Passport
authorities each month with full particulars, nationality, etc., of the persons staying in the
premises. The other proclamation forbade any foreigner to open a shop or place of business
without first obtaining permission to do so from the Government.

Bahrain Nationality. During the year 27 applications were received for Bahrain national­
ity and in 21 cases nationality was granted. In the Bahrain court 25 Persians sought to prove
that they had been born in Bahrain and therefore were entitled to claim Bahrain nationality,
but only 16 of these succeeded. Bahrain nationality is only granted to persons of good char­
acter who have lived not less than ten years in Bahrain and who are in possession of immovable
property registered in their names. Bahrain nationality is greatly sought after, especially by
Persians.

Residence Permits. During the year 2,526 Residence Permits were issued ; these permit the
holder to reside in Bahrain for a year and are renewable.
From September 1st, 1956, half of the work of the Passport Office was transferred to the
newly set-up Immigration Department in charge of one of the police officers. It would be
more satisfactory for all concerned if the Bahrain authorities dealt with all questions about
passports permits and visas instead of this responsibility being shared between the State auth­
orities and the British authorities.