Manama: George Bush arrives in Manama on Saturday afternoon in the first visit by a US President to Bahrain, home to the Fifth Fleet.
But while the historic visit has been hailed by King Hamad Bin Eisa Al Khalifa and the government as an outstanding opportunity for bilateral relations and a boost for peace and stability in the region, it is being used by MPs and political societies to blast Bush's policies.
"The historic visit reflects the deep relations and robust ties between Bahrain and the US and is an extension of more than one century of friendship between the citizens of both countries. When the US President visits Bahrain, he is honouring these Bahrainis values and traditions," King Hamad on Wednesday told local media.
But on Thursday, 20 of Bahrain's 40 elected MPs and 13 political societies have accused the Bush administration of causing unprecedented chaos throughout the world and of alienating one billion Muslims by making terrible mistakes and promoting unpopular policies.
'Tarnished' image
"Arabs and Muslims have had a wonderful image of the United States as a country that valued justice, equality between people and self-determination. These core US values were invariably promoted by the US presidents. However, the image of the United States as the country of democracy and human rights has been tarnished after the US administration backed Israel's occupation of Palestinian lands," the MPs, mostly from Islamist societies, said in their open letter to the US president.
"The catastrophe was when you Mr President launched what you ostensibly called a war against terrorism, but in fact was a war against Islam and Muslims. The war because of your actions has witnessed more chaos, fighting and wars. Your troops have killed thousands of innocents. You have set up the largest detention camp in modern times where physical, mental and moral torture was a common practice.
"In Iraq, your troops have caused death, destruction and havoc, fuelled sectarianism and allowed savage attacks on its civilisation.
"We ask you Mr President to learn from the teachings of Jesus about love and compassion and put an end to the spree of destruction afflicting the world. We ask you to re-assess your plans that divide the Muslim nation so that your legacy will not be immersed in evil," the MPs said.
