Dubai has approved a constitutional change allowing military courts to try citizens, in a huge crackdown on government dissent. Amid ongoing reforms to squash all forms of criticism against the government, Bahrain’s parliament approved emergency measures on Sunday that will allow an unofficial state of martial law to be enacted, resulting in the rights of activists and dissenters stripped away. Bloomberg.com reports: Loyalists of Bahrain’s rulers call the change necessary to fight terrorism as the persistent low-level unrest that followed the 2011 demonstrations has escalated recently in tandem with the crackdown. The island’s 40-member Consultative Council, the upper house of the Bahraini parliament appointed by King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, voted for the measure Sunday. Their approval came less than two weeks after the 40-seat Council of Representatives, the parliament’s elected lower house, passed it with little opposition. The bill revises a portion of Bahrain’s constitution by removing limitations on who military courts can try. Bahrain is a predominantly Shiite island ruled by a Sunni monarchy. Government forces, with help from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, crushed the 2011 uprising by Shiites and others who sought more political power. In the wake of the protests, military courts tried hundreds of [...]
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