JEDDAH, Mar 7 (Arab news): A large number of young Saudis as well as religious clerics have rejected the plan to hold anti-government protests in the Kingdom. Speaking to Arab News, they commended the government’s open-door policy enabling the public to meet with authorities and express their views.
They also emphasized that freedom is guaranteed in the Kingdom, which follows the teachings of the Qur’an and Sunnah. They believed that demonstrations would not bring the desired results and would cause only chaos and destruction.
Saleh Al-Mustadi, 33, who works for a service firm in Jeddah, said he was not happy with developments in many Arab countries where hundreds have been killed in demonstrations. “I hope peace and stability returns to these countries,” he said.
Al-Mustadi believed that demonstrations have done more harm than good.
“In Saudi Arabia, we have many other alternative means to express our views. For example, every week Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah receives members of the public and takes quick measures to solve their problems,” he said. “I don’t agree with the idea of demonstrations, although some Arab countries allow them, because they are more harmful to the public.”
Fahd Al-Sahli, 29, a teacher, also rejected the idea of demonstrations saying it is not a solution. “The Saudi government has been promoting dialogue between officials and the general public as well as between the various groups to resolve problems,” he said, adding that Islam does not allow violence and destruction of properties.
“Demonstrators may demand unreasonable things and the governments may not be convinced. So it is always better to have some sort of dialogue to reach agreeable solutions.”
On Saturday, the Interior Ministry issued a statement underscoring the Kingdom's long-standing prohibitions on public demonstrations, saying demonstrations and calls for demonstrations “go against the principles of Shariah and Saudi customs and traditions.”
Al-Sahli commended the Kingdom’s dialogue experiment initiated by King Abdullah.
“The national dialogue forums set the stage for constructive dialogue between various segments of society, realizing public interests and safeguarding national unity,” he said.
The King Abdul Aziz National Dialogue Center has been organizing dialogue forums on social, cultural, economic, educational and other pressing issues. “This is a unique experiment that cannot be seen in other parts of the Arab world,” he pointed out.
Faris Al-Harbi, 22, who works for a car company, said that freedom of expression is guaranteed in the Kingdom within the framework of Islamic teachings.
“Citizens can either approach the court or meet the authorities to solve their problems. Some regional governors meet citizens weekly to look into their problems.”
Khaled Al-Ghamdi, 21, a university student, also emphasized the importance of constructive dialogue between the authorities and citizens. “It’s a better alternative to destructive demonstrations,” he said.
“Poverty, corruption and unemployment are issues all over the world, not just in Arab countries. The Saudi government has taken steps to fight these problems. Following the Jan. 26 floods in Jeddah, the authorities are now questioning 55 government officials and businessmen for causing the deluge.”
He also spoke about the government’s efforts to fight corruption by taking action against corrupt officials. “In Saudi Arabia we have a system called administrative intelligence to monitor corruption in government departments,” Al-Ghamdi said.
King Abdullah recently beefed up the Kingdom’s monitoring agencies by adding 1,200 employees, he added.
Faisal Al-Subaie, 26, who works in the oil sector, pointed out that Saudi Islamic scholars including the late Sheikh Abdul Aziz bin Baz have opposed demonstrations as un-Islamic practice.
Sheikh Muhammad Othaimeen, another prominent scholar who died in 2000, also rejected demonstrations saying it would cause chaos and confusion and harm the public.
Meanwhile, the Council of Senior Islamic Scholars issued a statement on Sunday, forbidding demonstrations and public protests.
“The council affirms that demonstrations are forbidden in this country. The correct way in Shariah of realizing common interest is by consultation, which is what the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) established,” said the council, which is chaired by Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Aziz Al-Asheikh.
“Reform and advice should not be via demonstrations and ways that provoke strife and division and this is what the religious scholars of this country in the past and now have forbidden and warned against,” the council said in a statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency.