King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa of Bahrain patronized a ceremony at Al-Sakhir Palace today during which he endorsed the Constitutional Amendments after being approved by the Shura and Representatives Councils. Addressing the ceremony, King Hamad said "Today, our unified will has come to a turning point in the history of Bahrain, embodied in the implementation of the constitutional amendments that were set out in the recommendations of the National Consensus Dialogue, following the adoption by the two legislative Chambers - the Shura Council and the House of Representatives - of their full responsibilities in this respect. They have studied, reviewed and redrafted the amendments, approved the final draft, and submitted it for our endorsement and ratification, by God's will, as a qualitative leap of which we are proud. This move proves the exercise by our people of remarkable dialogue and exchange of views with genuine patriotic intentions, within the constitutional institutions." "We hold that consensus is the best way for reform. Consequently, we, in the Kingdom of Bahrain, embarked on a decade of reform in every aspect of our life. Upon our consensus, we have set together the principles and foundations of our democratic transition in the National Action Charter, which garnered overwhelming popular support, and almost unanimous consensus. We are keen, all the time, to preserve our plurality and common coexistence to work together to achieve the collective national interests in a manner that maintains and guarantees our progress, independence, security, and stability. In our Kingdom, the people elect their representatives in the municipal councils, and in the Council of Representatives, and go to the independent judiciary system and the Constitutional Court. Further, the Constitution guarantees freedom of expression and assembly, participation in and contribution to public and national affairs in accordance with the Law. We look today on these constitutional amendments, through the participation of the legislative power in consolidating its role to oversee the government's performance, and in continuously supporting this role to accommodate and respond to the hopes and aspirations of our citizens, and to concentrate our efforts towards establishing and supporting development projects, to open direct communication channels with the people, to hear their concerns, and to take them into consideration to best serve them, to ensure their wellbeing and dignified life. Our aim is to realize these national achievements, which are aspired to by all," King Hamad said. "The doors for dialogue are wide open, and national consensus our ultimate aim. We hope that all national gatherings and societies will take the initiative to assess their performance to cope with the pace of development and reform," the King said.
