The National Union Committee () was a

nationalist Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the State (polity), state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation,Anthony D. Smith, Smith, A ...

reformist political organization formed in

Bahrain Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...

in 1954 (originally named the ''Higher Executive Committee'', ). The committee was formed by reformists in response to

sectarian Sectarianism is a debated concept. Some scholars and journalists define it as pre-existing fixed communal categories in society, and use it to explain political, cultural, or religious conflicts between groups. Others conceive of sectarianism a ...

clashes between

Sunni Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr () rightfully succeeded him as the caliph of the Mu ...

and

Shia Shia Islam is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib () as both his political successor (caliph) and as the spiritual leader of the Muslim community (imam). However, his right is understood ...

members of the population. Its foundations were laid in the journal, '' Sawt al-Bahrain'', which was founded and published by these reformist figures. The original aims were to push for an elected popular assembly, a codified system of civil and criminal law, the establishment of an

appellate court An appellate court, commonly called a court of appeal(s), appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to hear a case upon appeal from a trial court or other lower tribunal. Appel ...

, the right to form

trade unions A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...

, an end to British colonial influence (through the removal of Charles Belgrave), and an end to sectarianism. The original committee was made up of four Sunni representatives and four Shi'i representatives. The members were: * Abdul Rahman Al Bakir () - Secretary * Abdulaziz Al Shamlan () * Ibrahim Fakhro () * Ibrahim bin Mousa () * Abdali Al Alaiwat () *

Sayyid ''Sayyid'' is an honorific title of Hasanid and Husaynid lineage, recognized as descendants of the Islamic prophet Muhammad through his daughter Fatima and Ali's sons Hasan ibn Ali, Hasan and Husayn ibn Ali, Husayn. The title may also refer ...

Ali Kamaluddin () * Shaikh Abdullah Abudeeb () * Shaikh Mohsin al Tajir () One of the early members of the committee was Ali Sayyar, who joined in 1956 and would become a veteran journalist in Bahrain.

Arrest and deportation

The NUC successfully orchestrated a number of general strikes and demonstrations in the country to push for its demands. In March 1956, British Foreign Secretary

Selwyn Lloyd John Selwyn Brooke Selwyn-Lloyd, Baron Selwyn-Lloyd (28 July 1904 – 17 May 1978), was a British politician who served as Speaker of the House of Commons (United Kingdom), Speaker of the House of Commons from 1971 to 1976, having previously hel ...

was visiting Bahrain. Crowds of protesters lined the streets to shout anti-British slogans and threw sand at stones at the Foreign Secretary's entourage. A number of crew members, including a stewardess, were left injured. Abdulrahman Al Bakir, the secretary of the NUC, was among the leaders of the demonstrations. He was asked to leave the country after the incident for an extended stay abroad, and departed to Egypt. Al Bakir returned to Bahrain September 1956. In October 1956, the NUC called for strikes and demonstrations against the Israeli-Anglo-French attack on

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

in the Suez Campaign. This led to days of violence in Bahrain. In November, the ruler Shaikh Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, ordered the arrest of the NUC leaders, accusing Al Bakir, Al Shamlan and Aliwat of attempting to take his life. A specially set up court in Budaiya made up of three judges (all members of the ruling Al Khalifa family) tried the men and found them guilty. They were sentenced to 14 years at a prison located outside of Bahrain, in

Saint Helena Saint Helena (, ) is one of the three constituent parts of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, a remote British overseas territory. Saint Helena is a volcanic and tropical island, located in the South Atlantic Ocean, some 1,874 km ...

. In June 1961 the three prisoners were released from Saint Helena after a successful

habeas corpus ''Habeas corpus'' (; from Medieval Latin, ) is a legal procedure invoking the jurisdiction of a court to review the unlawful detention or imprisonment of an individual, and request the individual's custodian (usually a prison official) to ...

action, and were later paid financial compensation from the British government.

References

Debates in British House of Commons
* Miriam Joyce. (Autumn 2000).
The Bahraini three on St. Helena, 1956-1961
' ''The Middle East Journal'' 54 (4); p. 613 * Falah al-Mdaires. (Spring 2002).
Shi'ism and Political Protest in Bahrain
' ''Domes'' 11 (1); p. 20 * Abdulhadi Khalaf. (1998).

'. * Fuad Ishaq Khuri. (1980). ''Tribe and state in Bahrain: The transformation of social and political authority in an Arab state''. * Fred H. Lawson. (1989). ''Bahrain: The Modernization of Autocracy''. * Charles Belgrave. (1960). Personal Column, (London: Hutchinson) * Abdul Rahman Al Bakir. (1965)
Mina al-bahrayn ila al-manfaa, 'sant halaneh', [From Prison to Exile 'Saint Helene']
', al-Hayat Library Publications, Beirut. * A. de L. Rush. (1991)
Bahrain: The Ruling Family of Al Khalifah
Archive Editions. * Hussain Al Baharna
Readings in the trial of the National Union Committee leadership
(Arabic) * Abdulnabi Al Ekri. (Feb 2005)
The National Union Committee in foreign writings

Bahrain Nationalist Movement
''Encyclopedia of the Modern Middle East and North Africa''.
National Liberation Front (Bahrain)
''Encyclopedia of the Modern Middle East and North Africa''. {{Bahrain topics Bahraini democracy movements Political history of Bahrain Political parties in Bahrain

Arrest and deportation

See also

References