All Fools' Week

Seems like April Fool's Day came without a knock this year. I was expecting a BIG show on the 1st of April, but it didn't take long for the fiction feeding newspaper, Alwasat to pull one on us. For the past month, this newspaper that has lost all credibility and is currently under interrogation, has lied openly and in the light of day. A newspaper is known to be a credible news source to the readers, regardless of it siding with one group or idea over the other. This newspaper has lost the respect of many for printing lies, plagiarizing false information in its paper, and of course embedding subliminal messages in its articles to stir emotional turmoil in its readers. It is quite shameful for a newspaper that calls itself one, to deliberately lie.

Alwasat Newspaper, since its establishment in early 2000s was the one newspaper that reflected oppositional views, headed by a key oppositional figure, Mansour Al Jamri, was a key event in the opening up of society and allowing for more relaxed attitudes towards press and freedom of speech and writing. However, this newspaper was quick to attack everything that the government would call for even before its naked scandal.  Due to the country opening up, no one stood in their way of freedom in writing, but this time they have taken it too far, even for the government which put a stop to this newspaper for a day and called for replacing Al Jamri by Abadli Alabadli as the new editor and chief.

A few days ago when Bahrain TV exposed the truth of Alwasat Newspaper, Mr. Al Jamri who was asked to participate declined the invite while his wife, Reem Khalifa, who we have seen at the beginning of the events during the first international press conference, wipe her crocodile tears and fake her shaky concerned voice for the "Bahraini" people at Pearl Circle, has disappeared and immediately closed her once active anti-government twitter account. This foolish act has come at a wonderful time of what the world calls April Fools' Day.  The world celebrates it on April 1 every year, however the origin on this day, many writers suggest used to be January 1 in the 16th century.

The previous months, from a satirical point, have been filled with a lot of media rubbish, a "peaceful" protest, phony images and distorted truths, a failed revolution, wrongful accusations of the government and practices of the forces and of course a channel or two that have shifted their focus to solely discuss, Bahrain - as if this tiny island requires this much attention by them. All these commissioned lies, hoaxes and practical jokes of varying sophistication are played on international media, social network sites, forums and lastly on themselves. With emphasis on practical jokes like "fake" blood spilt on clothes and manufactured truths to name a few, it seems that many have lost their direction and sense of differentiation. If these are all the lies in the first week of April, then what should we expect by May? Perhaps that humpty dumpty exists or Michael Jackson is alive and kicking.

Brave Bahrain