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Dear Stan, Here is a letter I have sent to the management of Amwaj Islands, I would be very interested to hear what other readers think.

I am very disappointed to read that you are continuing with your plans to completely ban boats from the areas inside the breakwaters at the islands. I am a resident of Amwaj and have spent a lot of time in these very waters that you plan to close off.

I wish to make a few points that I think may give you reason to rethink your decision and may guide you to a more positive solution for every one.

Firstly, I should state that I fully agree that safety is extremely important and I congratulate you for taking action now before any accidents occur.

However in many parts of the world designated swimming areas are separated from other areas where boats are free to move by clearly visible buoys and connecting ropes.

In closing this area off to boats and leaving it open to swimmers you are sending all the wrong messages as it will encourage swimmers to disregard safe swimming guidelines (ALWAYS SWIM PARALLEL AND CLOSE TO THE SHORE).

I am sure that you have noticed that the area of water just inside the breakwater is an amazing resource for wakeboarding and waterskiing. The water here gets flatter than any other site to be found in Bahrain.

The popularity of Amwaj with wake-boarders can be seen very clearly by the number of wakeboarding boats around the canals of Al Marsa. By banning boats from the breakwater area you are instantly reducing the appeal of the islands to a large market since you are removing a fantastic resource.

In terms of safety, I believe you will have seen wakeboard boats spend most of their time around the breakwater wall and away from the beaches where accidents involving swimmers could occur.

I am also sure that you have observed how popular Amwaj is with kite-surfers given their appearance on much of your promotional material.

When you watch them you will see that they spend time going from inside the breakwater to out in the open water.

If your management proceed with your plans to erect the barriers at the end of the breakwater you will once again remove a fantastic resource to another group of people who have come to Amwaj to take advantage of its 'island life'.

On a breezy afternoon you will also notice the breakwater provides a very welcome shelter to boats whose passengers want to have a lazy afternoon lounging in the flat waters it provides.

By indiscriminately banning boats from this area you will alienate a large group of your existing residents and scare off other potential buyers or renters.

The Amwaj Islands is a fantastic development that should be allowed to reach its full potential, however, it will not get there with poor prohibitive management that takes the easy or lazy solution to every problem that it encounters.

I wish to outline are more considered course of action, that will require more time and money, but will still maintain very high safety standards and also make Amwaj one of the most desirable places to live in Bahrain.

Do not ban boats from the areas inside the breakwater.

Separate swimming areas (up to 50 metres from the shore) from the rest of the water area with clearly visible buoys.

Create and enforce a very clear set of rules for behaviour of boats (and maybe jet-skis) inside this area.

Police both entrances to the area inside the breakwater and restrict entrance to the waters as if it was a club. No valid 'Responsible Amwaj Resident' card. No entry!

Support people who want to kitesurf, wakeboard and waterski. There are business opportunities in these sports. Nurture them and they will bear fruit that can nourish all of Amwaj.

I swim, I wakeboard, I kitesurf and I boat in these waters, I hope that I can continue doing so in the future.

The Flying Nun,

(Name and address

supplied).

Dear Stan,

WE were moved after reading your report about the young volunteers providing such timely relief to Bahrain's construction workers in GulfWeekly, dated August 20.

Their efforts are highly appreciated. Come India in summer, one can see similar such activity in many towns and villages performed by various voluntary organisations, groups and individuals.

Temporary thatched huts are setup for a period of three to four months in which earthen pots containing drinking water and made available for passers-by to quench their thirst.

Many volunteers run mobile carriages with water filled earthen pots to serve the thirsty during these hot summer days.

In a desert country like Bahrain similar activities could be performed.

All like-minded volunteers could come together and, working in an organised manner, reach even more people.

Water points could be set up in selected locations where cool, drinking water is not freely available. This could be one of the many fruitful ways of spending the summer holidays for school and college students, alongside paying visits to the construction sites and distributing drinks.

Seturam Aspari, Adliya.