The Arab League suspended Syria for its brutal crackdown on protesters, but the author argues this is hypocritical because Bahrain engaged in a similarly murderous crackdown against its Shia majority population who face systemic discrimination. The Arab League is dominated by dictators propped up by the U.S. and Saudia Arabia, so it did not suspend Bahrain due to geopolitical pressures. The Arab League needs reforms to treat all members equally and stay relevant to democratic aspirations of Arab citizens.

1. Sanctions on Syria : Hypocrisy of The Arab
League
So finally the Arab league has suspended Syria
and put restrictions on it. The reason given is
Syrian regime’s brutal crackdown on its own
people, fair enough but doesn’t Bahrain also fit
the bill on the same criteria. The problem with
the Arab league is that the regimes which run
the member states are nothing but dictators
who survive on the support of the Americans.
They enjoy little or no support in the arab
streets, True the Syrian regime’s crackdown
has been particularly brutal but the scene is no
different in Bahrain where a Sunni monarchy
has been lording over the majority Shias for
over 200 hundred years. The Shias have faced
discrimination in jobs, healthcare etc in a
country where they are in a overwhelming
majority. What was their fault?. Demand for a

2. constitutional democracy, more jobs ,better
healthcare. Is it a crime to question their
regime and demand their rights?. But the
answer which was given to them was in the
form of a murderous crackdown. So now the
question is why didn’t the arab league suspend
Bahrain, is it because of pressure from Saudi
Arabia and US? Well then there is a urgent
need to overhaul the league’s system so that all
member states are treated equally and to stay
relevant in an environment where is a
sweeping change in the mood of the people in
the arab street.