Lord Guilford lauds the democratic development achieved in Bahrain

Speaker of the Council of Representatives, Khalifa Bin Ahmed Al Dhahrani received this morning the British Lord Guilford in his office, in presence of MPs Ahmed Al-Saati, Abdul Rahman Bumjeed, Hassan Bu Khammas, Abdul Hamid Al-Mir, Jawad Bu Hussain, and Ibtisam Hijris. The reception was also in presence of Assistant Secretary General for Administration and Finance Affairs, and Information Technology, Mohammed Ghareeb, Dr. Saleh Ibrahim, Head of the Advisory Board, Rashid Sulaibeekh the Adviser of the Parliamentary Division and a number of directors at the General Secretariat. Member of the British House of Lords, member of the Parliamentary Group concerned with Kingdom of Bahrain, Lord Guilford praised the development achieved by Kingdom of Bahrain in the parliamentary action, and the continuation of the democratic march with steady steps for the best, lauding the depth of the Bahraini-British relations. Lord Guilford stressed the importance of the remarkable democratic development in Kingdom of Bahrain since the beginning of the election process in 2002, and after, and the gains and achievements accomplished. He also stressed that the continuation of communication and cooperation between the legislative councils reinforces such relations and supports economic projects between the two friendly countries. During the meeting, Speaker of the Council of Representatives stressed the importance of investing the historical relations between Kingdom of Bahrain and United Kingdom in strengthening cooperation between the constitutional institutions, particularly the legislative, and developing the democratic infrastructure, legal and parliamentary cooperation, as well as exchanging delegations. MP Ahmed Al-Saati highlighted the active role of the Council in participation in the completion phase of the National Consensus Dialogue. MP Ibtisam Hijris pointed out the importance of supporting women in the democratic process, and means of enhancing parliamentary female cooperation between the two friendly countries. MP Abdul Rahman Bumjeed highlighted the importance of reinforcing communication and transferring issues with credibility and objectivity, particularly when reviewing the reports related to the conditions of countries concerning the democratic issue and human rights, so as to be fair and positive. For his part, MP Jawad Bu Hussain pointed out the progress of the Bahraini democracy, and the efforts of the wise leadership for consensus with the people through National Action Charter, the Constitution, legal institutions, and allowing a large area of freedom of action, opinion and expression, and dealing with citizens in accordance with the rights and duties of citizenship and equality. In a related development, MPs Hassan Bu Khammas, and Abdul Hamid Mir highlighted the need to strengthen trade relations between the two countries, and the importance of preserving historical relations and common interests.