Bahrainis boycott second round of vote

Numerous Bahrainis have boycotted the second and final round of the Persian Gulf kingdoms controversial parliamentary by-elections. According to witnesses, fewer than dozen voters turned up in 20 minutes for the Saturday elections at the largest polling station in the village of Sehla, AFP reported. Meanwhile, only one voter cast his vote during the same period in the village of Sanabes. Manama held the by-elections to replace the 18 lawmakers from the main opposition group, al-Wefaq, who resigned in protest to the regime's brutal crackdown on anti-government protesters. Of the 144,513 eligible voters in 14 districts only 25,130 came out to vote, representing a 17.4 percent turnout, the Bahraini government's elections website www.vote.bh reported. Since mid-February, anti-government protesters have been staging regular demonstrations in Bahrain, calling on the Al Khalifa family to relinquish power. On March 14, troops from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates were deployed to the country to assist the Bahraini government in its crackdown on peaceful protesters.