About Time: Bahrain to Reopen Embassy in Beirut

After 34 years, the government of Bahrain has decided to reopen their embassy in Lebanon:

Bahrain is set to reopen its embassy in Lebanon after a 34-year hiatus, Bahrain’s foreign minister has said. “The political decision has been made, and it will be matter of only a few days,” Shaikh Khalid Bin Ahmad Al Khalifa said following talks with Lebanon’s Prime Minister Sa’ad Hariri.

Well, to be fair, I think it will take more than a couple of days to clear the cobwebs (if the original premises still exists).

“…There will be numerous new political and economic measures stemming from these special ties, including the re-opening of the Bahraini embassy in Lebanon, the country that we consider the vital heart without which we cannot live,” he said in Istanbul where he met the Lebanese premier.

Except that you did live without any diplomatic connection to “the vital heart” for 34 years. Ironically, Bahrain was slow to first open its embassy in the first place. In 1974, the embassy was first established in Beirut and then it was closed 2 years later due to the Civil War.

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Overpaid Lebanese

Now is that even possible?

[Bahraini] MPs yesterday decided to question a top government official over what they claimed was her lavish spending on Lebanese employees. MP Shaikh Mohammed Khalid Mohammed highlighted the issue at yesterday’s session, saying it was understandable why the [Ministry of Culture and Information] was asking for an additional BD2 million [US$5.3 million] to meet recurrent expenditure.

“They bring in Lebanese experts and give them wages more than those earned by a minister in a month. Everyone is waiting to learn about their contribution. Can anyone imagine the senior expert earning BD9,000 [US$23,850], while the youngest, under 25, making BD5,500 [US$14,600]. The ministry also wants that money for new Lebanese secretaries, in their mini-skirts, who earn BD3,000 a month [US$8,000].”

The MP goes on to wonder what qualifications Lebanese have that makes them more appealing than Bahrainis. Ah, you mentioned it dude: “mini-skirts“.  Anyway, in my opinion, you can never be overpaid; there are always things that would be out of your economical reach.

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