The Constitutional Court has rejected the controversial article (20) of the draft law that bans certain sections of the expatriate community from obtaining a driver’s licence.A session chaired by Constitutional Court President Shaikh Khalifa bin Rashid Al Khalifa yesterday ruled that the law was non-compliant with the provisions of the Constitution in the Kingdom.

Earlier, the Shura Council had passed the law that bans expatriates from obtaining a driving licence should their jobs do not require it. The draft law came up after seven years of endless debates among the Kingdom’s legislative bodies.

Reacting to the new development, Human Rights Watch Society Bahrain Founder Faisal Fulad hailed the decision taken by the court.

“We’ve always felt that this proposed law was against the human rights. The expatriates too have the right to move freely in the country. The decision taken by the court is the right one and we fully support it,” Mr. Fulad told DT News.
Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI) also clearly stated its intention to block the draft legislation if was implemented.

“Article 20 which bans expats from driving strips immigrants of one of the basic human rights, the right of movement. This kind of decisions will only harm Bahrain’s reputation, hurt its investment assets in the long run and destabilise the business community,” it said.