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Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
King's lunch invitation creates royal flap
LONDON -- Britain has come under criticism for inviting the king of Bahrain, whose Gulf state has engaged in a brutal crackdown on political dissent, to a lunch Friday celebrating Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee.
The lunch in Windsor Castle was the largest gathering of foreign royals in Britain since Queen Elizabeth's grandson, Prince William, was married to Kate Middleton last year. Then, as now, the decision to extend an invitation to members of the Bahraini royal family has angered those who are upset by the deadly violence deployed against demonstrators since protests erupted in the Gulf state.
Bahrain's Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa eventually skipped the royal wedding, saying he didn't want the controversy to tarnish the couple's happy day. But on Friday, Buckingham Palace confirmed his father, King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, attended the Queen's lunch -- along with some 45 other royal guests from around the world.
He did not attend a more formal banquet hosted by heir to the throne Prince Charles and his wife, Camilla, at Buckingham Palace on Friday evening.
Labour lawmaker and former Foreign Office minister Denis MacShane said diplomats should have tried to keep Al Khalifa away from the Queen, "rather than expose her to having to dine with a despot." Republic, the anti-monarchy group, called the lunch invitation "a catastrophic error of judgment," which "seriously damages Britain's reputation."
The Foreign Office, which advised Buckingham Palace on the invitations, said Britain's ties to Bahrain allowed U.K. officials to talk frankly with the strategic island nation's rulers about "a range of issues including those where we have concerns."
Swaziland's King Mswati III, who is accused of living in luxury while his people go hungry, also attended the lunch.
-- The Associated Press
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition May 19, 2012 A31
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