BAHRAIN PROTESTERS BESIEGE PM OFFICE

MANAMA, BAHRAIN (AP) -- Thousands of Shiite opposition supporters blocked the entrance to the Bahraini Prime Minister's office but failed to disrupt a government meeting on Sunday as the campaign for reform in the strategic Gulf nation entered its third week.

Bahrain's Shiite majority has long complained of discrimination and political persecution in the island nation, which is ruled by a Sunni dynasty. The protesters demanded the prime minister step down because of corruption and a deadly crackdown on the opposition in which seven people were killed.

Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa, the prime minister and the king's uncle, has been in power for 40 years.

Khalifa, who was presiding over a weekly meeting of government ministers, told the state-run Bahrain News Agency that changes are under way and the kingdom's "reform march will continue."

"The government's development policies will continue upbeat as we are determined more than ever to achieve our goal of upgrading the citizens' standards of living by providing them with the means of decent life," he said.

The Shiite opposition groups have called for a constitutional monarchy, but some of the protesters camped out in the capital's Pearl Square are demanding that the Sunni monarchy step aside altogether.

Currently, one house of Bahrain's parliament is the only elected body, but it holds limited authority since all the country's decisions -- including the appointment of government ministers -- rest with the king.

The 40-member institution has been in limbo since the 18 opposition legislators resigned last month to protest the government's deadly crackdown.


--The St. Augustine Record, March 7, 2011. p. 5A; www.staugustine.com