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Monday, 11 November, 2002, 19:23 GMT
Shias claim places in Bahrain cabinet
![]() Sheikh Hamad has changed the cabinet line up
Bahrain has named a new and expanded cabinet, with six new ministers, including a former opposition figure.
King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa has appointed Majid al-Alawi, a member of Bahrain's Shia majority, to the post of Minister of Labour and Social Affairs.
The reshuffle follows Bahrain's landmark legislative elections last month. Majid al-Alawi was an opposition activist in London until he returned home after the king, in 1999, declared an amnesty for opposition figures. Shia boycott The king's uncle, Sheikh Khalifa bin Salman al-Khalifa, was reappointed as prime minister and the ministers for oil, defence, the interior, foreign affairs, finance and information have all remained unchanged. Sheikh Salman al-Khalifa has held the position of prime minister since Bahrain's independence from Britain in 1971. For the first time, two deputy prime ministers were appointed, including foreign minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Mubarak. Abdullah bin Khalid al-Khalifa given the other deputy prime minister post and will remain the Islamic affairs minister.
Shias began a campaign for political reform in 1994 that led to disturbances and a government crackdown. Some Shia political leaders called for a boycott of parliamentary elections, because the parliament's second chamber, appointed by the king, will have as much power as the elected assembly. The cabinet is the second since Sheikh Hamad took office after the death of his father in March 1999. |
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