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Pressure grows over Bahrain

by Michelle Fortune , 09 February 2012

The FIA is coming under increasing pressure to cancel the Bahrain Grand Prix.


Last yera's event at the Sakhir circuit was cancelled following unrest in the Gulf state but the FIA are pressing ahead with plans to stage this year's Bahrain Grand Prix on April 22.

Formula 1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone believes there is no longer any unrest in the region but a group of British peers have voiced their concern at the race going ahead with seven members of the UK Hours of Loards calling on the FIA to cancel the event.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, Lord Ahmed of Rotherham, Lord Alton, Lord Avebury, Lord Hylton, Lord Boswell, Baroness Falkner of Margravine and Green Party leader Caroline Lucas have written a letter to The Times expressing their views.

"We note with concern the decision by Formula One to go ahead with the race in Bahrain scheduled for April," the letter read.

"The continued political crisis in Bahrain is a troubling source of instability in the Gulf region, and the lack of any move towards political reconciliation concerns those who wish to see Bahrain move in the direction of greater democratic accountability.

"It was hoped the recommendations of the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI) would provide a starting point for political reform which both government and opposition forces could agree upon.

"However, two months on we see an entrenchment of the positions of both sides which risks letting more extreme voices dictate the progress of the conflict.

"Given the current dire situation, with daily street protests and the deaths of more civilians, we do not believe that the time is right for Formula One to return to Bahrain."

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