A BAHRAINI woman, who owns what is believed to be the first sex shop in the region, fears she could run out of business following a new government ban on sex toys.
Khadija Ahmed, who claims the products she sells are saving marriages by spicing up couples' love lives, is now considering leaving the country.
Ms Ahmed, 32, said it could be the final nail in the coffin for her business, which she claims is already being targeted by authorities.
"There isn't a reasonable cause for banning the products because it's not immoral and they don't go against our religion," she said.
"I pay a lot of money to ship my products to Bahrain and as soon as they enter the country, Customs officials confiscate them or force me to send them back - so I have to pay again to ship them here again," she said.
"I have lost thousands of dinars and my business is suffering as a result, despite having a large customer base who call me on a daily basis asking for more products.
"They tell me that my products have helped their marriages and the success of my store proves that there is a demand for such products among married Bahrainis. My products aren't illegal. They are widely available in Bahrain's markets, but the only difference is that I collected them under one roof."
The mother-of-three, who runs the Khadija Fashion House in Jidali, is now planning to appeal to the highest authorities to reverse the ban.
She is also calling for more co-operation from Customs officials, saying restrictions already imposed were threatening her business.
If not, the mother-of-three is considering moving to another country to start over.
"I don't have any other choice," she said.
"I am a Bahraini woman who works and owns a business to feed her children. There is nothing illegal about my shop and I am always careful that my products are within the law, our ethics and religion. But because I am being harassed so much, I am considering selling my shop, taking my children and leaving the country.
"I have been offered the chance to start a shop in a nearby country, where I can live in peace and continue my life without any trouble."
Ms Ahmed is now planning to write to His Royal Highness Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa in the hope that he will intervene.
"There's nothing else I can do to save my business from suffering," she said. "I am appealing to His Royal Highness as my last resort and I hope he can help ease the troubles I am facing.
"But if that doesn't work, I will have to leave the country."
The GDN reported five months ago that Ms Ahmed, who opened the Khadija Fashion House in 2008, was facing criminal charges for allegedly insulting a Customs officer during an argument over products she was importing.
Her case is due back in the Lower Criminal Court on September 15, but Ms Ahmed claims it has already cost her a night in a police cell.
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