State of Bahrain

State of Bahrain
دولة البحرين
Dawlat al-Baḥrayn
1971–2002
Anthem: نشيد البحرين الوطني
Baḥraynunā
Our Bahrain
Location of Bahrain
Location of Bahrain
CapitalManama
Common languagesArabic
Religion
Islam (official religion)[1]
GovernmentUnitary absolute monarchy
Emir 
• 1971–1999
Isa ibn Salman Al Khalifa
• 1999–2002
Hamad ibn Isa Al Khalifa
Prime Minister 
• 1971–2002
Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa
LegislatureNone (rule by decree) (until 1973 and after 1975)
National Assembly (in 1973–1975)
History 
• Independence from the United Kingdom
15 August 1971
• Admitted to the United Nations
21 September 1971
14 February 2002
Population
• 1971
216,078[2]
• 2001
650,604
CurrencyBahraini dinar
ISO 3166 codeBH
Preceded by
Succeeded by
History of Bahrain (1783–1971)
Bahrain
Today part ofBahrain

The State of Bahrain (Arabic: دولة البحرين Dawlat al-Baḥrayn) was the name of Bahrain from 1971 to 2002. On 15 August 1971, Bahrain declared independence and signed a new treaty of friendship with the United Kingdom. Bahrain joined the United Nations and the Arab League later in the year.[3] The oil boom of the 1970s benefited Bahrain greatly, although the subsequent downturn hurt the economy. The country had already begun diversification of its economy and benefited further from Lebanese Civil War in the 1970s and 1980s, when Bahrain replaced Beirut as the Middle East's financial hub after Lebanon's large banking sector was driven out of the country by the war.[4]

Following the 1979 Islamic revolution in Iran, in 1981 Bahraini Shī'a fundamentalists orchestrated a failed coup attempt under the auspices of a front organisation, the Islamic Front for the Liberation of Bahrain. The coup would have installed a Shī'a cleric exiled in Iran, Hujjatu l-Islām Hādī al-Mudarrisī, as supreme leader heading a theocratic government.[5] In December 1994, a group of youths threw stones at female runners during an international marathon for running bare-legged. The resulting clash with police soon grew into civil unrest.[6][7]

A popular uprising occurred between 1994 and 2000 in which leftists, liberals and Islamists joined forces.[8] The event resulted in approximately forty deaths and ended after Hamad ibn Isa Al Khalifa became the Emir of Bahrain in 1999.[9] A referendum on 14–15 February 2001 massively supported the National Action Charter.[10] He instituted elections for parliament, gave women the right to vote, and released all political prisoners. As part of the adoption of the National Action Charter on 14 February 2002, Bahrain changed its formal name from the State (dawla) of Bahrain to the Kingdom of Bahrain.[11]

  1. ^ http://en.wikisource.orgview_html.php?sq=NATO&lang=en&q=Constitution_of_the_State_of_Bahrain_(1973) Constitution_of_the_State_of_Bahrain_(1973)
  2. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 January 2015. Retrieved 20 June 2013.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. ^ The Middle East and North Africa 2004. Routledge. 2003. p. 225. ISBN 1-85743-184-7.
  4. ^ "Bahrain". National Post. Archived from the original on 6 October 2012. Retrieved 5 October 2012.
  5. ^ Talbott, Strobe (25 October 1982). "Gulf States: Stay Just on the Horizon, Please". Time. Archived from the original on 3 October 2012. Retrieved 2 October 2012.
  6. ^ Darwish, Adel (1 March 1999), "Bahrain remains stable despite arson attacks that took place in the country", The Middle East
  7. ^ "The Rich/Poor & Sunni/Shiite Rift". APS Diplomat. 18 March 2002. Archived from the original on 17 January 2013. Retrieved 5 October 2012.
  8. ^ Darwish, Adel (March 1999). "Rebellion in Bahrain". Middle East Review of International Affairs. 3 (1). Archived from the original on 14 April 2012. Retrieved 2 October 2012.
  9. ^ Malik, Adnan (14 December 2002). "Bahrain's monarch opens parliament after a span of nearly 30 years". Associated Press. Archived from the original on 17 January 2013.
  10. ^ "Country Theme: Elections: Bahrain". UNDP-Programme on Governance in the Arab Region. 2011. Archived from the original on 10 May 2011. Retrieved 9 February 2011.
  11. ^ "The Kingdom of Bahrain: The Constitutional Changes". The Estimate: Political and Security Analysis of the Islamic World and its Neighbors. 22 February 2002. Retrieved 17 February 2011.

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