Report of the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry

Chapter IV — Narrative of Events of February and March 2011
c. The Gathering of National Unity affirms the continued
legitimacy of both the existing political regime and the ruling
Al Khalifa family under the leadership of HM King Hamad.
d. The Gathering rejects calls for the resignation of the cabinet,
which would bring destruction to Bahrain.
e. The Gathering calls for those who have disrupted public
services, particularly teachers who have interfered with work
at schools and prevented temporary teachers from performing
their duties, to be held accountable.
f. HM King Hamad should take the necessary measures to
enforce the laws governing public demonstrations because the
ongoing protests are disrupting the lives of people in Bahrain.
367. The mood at the gathering was festive, with most people carrying
flags of Bahrain and reaffirming their allegiance to the Kingdom. Participants
also expressed their discontent with the coverage by foreign news channels of
the events in the country, which they considered incomplete, biased and
overly focused on protests at the GCC Roundabout. According to MoI and
some media around 450,000 people attended this rally. Other reports,
however, indicated that the number of demonstrators did not exceed 100,000,
some of whom were non-residents of Bahrain and citizens of other GCC
States.
Thursday, 3 March 2011
368. Large numbers of students from schools across the country organised
marches and demonstrations in many neighbourhoods. These protests began
early in the morning when the first classes of the day were scheduled to begin.
The exact number of students participating in these demonstrations is difficult
to determine, but it was certainly in the thousands. Among the districts that
witnessed student demonstrations were Al-Jabriya, Khola, Sitra, Sanabis, Issa
Town, Hamad Town, Jidhafs and Muharraq.
369. Some of the student demonstrations took the form of marches on the
main roads and roundabouts of the neighbourhoods in which the
demonstrators’ schools were situated. Others marched towards the Ministry
of Education (MoE), while yet others proceeded to the GCC Roundabout. In
many cases, these demonstrations passed important government buildings,
such as the premises of the Council of Ministers.
370. At the Ministry of Education, the demonstrating students were joined
by teachers and representatives of the Teachers’ Society who were protesting
what they considered to be the deteriorating standards of education in Bahrain.
Many of those participating in the protest, the size of which exceeded 2,000
individuals, called for the resignation of the Minister of Education and
denounced the policy of hiring temporary teachers to replace those who were
participating in the protests. According to some reports, buses were used to
transport students to the various locations of the demonstrations.
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