Bahrain Embraces its Minorities
The New York Times writes that Bahrain is one of the few Arab countries that embraces its Jewish minority, albeit only 36 reside in the microstate, a small island nation off the coast of Saudi Arabia in the Persian Gulf. King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa recognizes value in his country’s mixed population and supports diverse religious practice where Hindus, Sikhs, Christians, Jews and Muslims coexist. His government recently appointed a Jewish woman as ambassador to the US, the first Jewish ambassador to represent an Arab country abroad.
Many political figures criticize Bahrain’s efforts to acknowledge its small Jewish community, as they believe it’s an effort to appease the US, one of the country’s allies. Bahrain is also the freest economy in the Middle East, according to the 2006 Index of Economic Freedom published by the Heritage Foundation/Wall Street Journal, which is based on measurements of, for example, business and financial freedom, property rights and governmental corruption. Could this be attributed to the nation’s positive attitude towards cultural difference?
