Justice for Women: Some Urgent Steps

Dr. Khaled Batarfi,

Before I left home today, I was shocked to see our neighbor so broken. She was beaten hard by her drunken husband. He banged her head to the wall, knifed her hand, and used metal and wood sticks over all parts of her body. When she escaped, he followed her to the street. She was only saved when my family took her in.

Later in the day, the poor woman returned home for the sake of her three-year-old daughter.

What options does she have? I wondered. She could go to the police, but she might not be able to prove her case. If she could get through all the painful legal and security procedures that could go on for years, how could she and her little daughter survive? If divorced, she will be deported to Somalia, her poverty-stricken country.

Thousands of women are grilled in a harsh, unfair cultural and legal environment. A woman may escape but that would be a move from her family’s fire to society’s Hell.

A Saudi woman was refused once and again her man of choice. When she protested, her father threw her out and her uncle took her in. Both insisted she can’t marry an airline captain because he would be away most of the time.

With nowhere to go, she went back to her father and accepted the first suitor. As it turned out, he was an animal — rough, tough, and raw. He would see her unconscious on the ground and take her to bed to fulfill his desires, instead of calling for medical help. When she finally left home and walked mindless all over town till midnight, everyone assumed she ran with a boyfriend. She accepted all kinds of punishment on her return to her family but insisted she would prefer to die before she returned to her husband.

After divorce, she was put under virtual house arrest; denied marriage, education and even contact with her divorced mother for many years. No friends, visitors, parties or telephone calls were allowed. When the ban on marriage was finally lifted, she felt so scared that she might refuse suitors for fear of more nightmares with another heartless man.

She was luckier than others, though. Many women had to accept life of endless nightmares with abusing husbands for the sake of their kids, or because their families won’t take them back, or they can’t prove their case to biased male-dominated courts. A woman I know endured over ten years of torture to stay with her six children. When she couldn’t take it anymore, she filed for divorce and custody. Because she didn’t cover her face in court, the judge assumed she was unfit to raise them properly. He ruled that she could see them once a week, but her ex-husband invented all kinds of excuses not to let her. For years, she would wait in a car outside their schools and home just to see them going in and out. She finally had the ruling overturned and won custody. Without her rich and well-connected father, she wouldn’t have managed.

Another woman who fled with her kids from an abusing father found protection with a prominent family. After a long process, the court found that he did abuse his kids ... sexually. Another father was torturing his infant daughter. Her mother had to cover up because she had nowhere to go if divorced. Doctors refused her lame explanation and informed the authorities. Mother and daughter are now in a safe home while the investigation is going on.

Many mothers are blackmailed to drop their custody right for freedom. Overwhelmed courts are making it so difficult for poor and ignorant women to file for divorce, not to mention the difficulty of proving grounds for breakup. The few safe homes in major cities cannot cope with all cases. A free legal aid is just starting in Jeddah, and had yet to be readily available to women in distress.

Small steps and half measures are not enough. We need to discuss the whole issue of “women under stress” in an open national forum with women making half the participants. Major changes to the legal and court system has to be made. Safe homes, police protection, hotlines for help, easier access to legal aid, women sections in courts and — why not? — female judges are needed. We also need harsher and faster justice: An eye for an eye, longer prison terms, and larger compensation. These and other solutions will come up in such forums, and we must implement them not tomorrow, not today, but yesterday. It is high time for real justice for women.

Arab and Western Media Lies Revisited

Dr. Khaled Batarfi,
kbatarfi@al-madina.com

My last article “Arab Media: Our Faith, Their Lies” generated many enlightening responses. Most comments came from Western readers who saw similarities between our and their “perception manufacturing” industries. It is no consolation to Arabs that established democracies are doing it, though. By most standards we are very much atop the list of the worst offenders together with the likes of North Korea and Zimbabwe.

Here is a sample of the best responses.

(What will happen to the perception manufacturing industry with a change of existing rule? If the change is to a democracy like the US, it will expand greatly and grow in sophistication. Here we refer to it as “spin-doctoring”. I know the grass always looks greener but, in reality, it’s never as lush up close as from afar. — Mario)

(I think we all need to understand that no form of government has a monopoly on telling lies. The US, for example, has consistently lied about its illegal Iraq war. And in this case, 100,000 (give or take a few) people paid for these lies with their lives. And even though those lies were well known in late 2004, the liars were re-elected.

What I am saying is that even in a well developed democracy, the opportunity to throw out evil and corrupt politicians doesn’t mean they will be thrown out. The political systems under which people live have nothing to do with the social acceptance of lies, corruption and deceit. For so many years, Americans have access to the web, e-mail services, hundreds of satellite news sources and cell phones that reach around the world. The same applies in the UK and yet Tony Blair and G. Bush were re-elected.

The fact is that lies, bold enough, told often and loudly enough, become truth because people want to believe what they are told by “leaders”. Reality is just as subject to being ignored in the US as it is in North Korea.

Secondly, no form of government, democratic or autocratic, is immune from manipulation. In America, the constitutional form of central government guaranteeing specific rights was recently modified to ensure that persons maybe arrested and held without charges by the president’s orders. The reason for this is to make sure that lies and deceit are backed by police authority. So the form of government has nothing to do with the telling of lies or the acceptance of lies.

And in the final analysis, as Chairman Mao said, political power comes from the barrel of a gun. — Bob)

(Of course we are the ones that take things for granted but other than that your story of what the Arabs have gone through over the years sounds strikingly similar to our own lives in America. There is hardly ever a connection to reality when you really look into a lot of facts.

To be frank with you, it felt good in 1967 when I was 17 and Israel fought five Arab nations. Of course we had our news skewed as yours, but here’s what happened in our minds back then: Little tough guys stood up to many big bad guys in a very bad place. To us, then and now, it has always been a war between good Israelis and bad Arabs.

But then there was the USS Liberty and a gradual realization that there has never been an Israeli Air Force pilot stupid enough to attack the ship by mistake much less more than once and by more than one plane.

Yes the nation of Israel does have far too much power here for ages. The Democrats suck at dealing with this problem and the Republicans are even worse.

If you read the story do you think the sailors were hallucinating when they thought they saw a conning tower? I don’t believe this in the least. If there was one under the USS Pueblo what do you think would be also around the USS Liberty?

Our soldiers went there to do a clearly assigned job for the US government but when it turned into a real problem for it they were written off then and now. As the facts finally began to come out at inconvenient time, everybody just shut up on them. Wouldn’t it be true irony if it had something to do with the “Patriot Act”?

It’s not over yet! — Bob USNR)

Yes, Bob. It is not over yet! The people, ours and yours, will have the final say ... someday!

Arab Media: Our Faith, Their Lies

Dr. Khaled Batarfi,

When the “Voice of Arabs” radio told us triumphantly in the 1960s that Nasser’s Egypt had the strongest army in the region and could throw Israel in the sea if they choose to, we believed. When young, revolutionary, the Libyan President Muammar Qaddafi promised to be the unifier of the Arab world after the death of Nasser, we believed. When Baathists and Arab nationalists carried the “One Arab nation with eternal message” slogan, we believed.

Then came “Alnakbah” (the disaster) of June 5, 1967, when the one army of Israel destroyed not only the “mighty” Egyptian Army but also the Jordanian and Syrian. The Egyptian radio went on with the lies for days. According to the famous anchor Ahmad Said and his colleagues, the Israeli Air Force was losing tens of aircraft daily. This was when most Egyptian jet fighters were destroyed on the ground as though they were sitting ducks. The Egyptian media also claimed that American and British aircraft had joined the Israelis. Needless to say, all were sheer lies.

Many of us knew better afterward. Still, too many continued to believe, even today.

The Arab media kept telling us that all our troubles are due to Zionist conspiracies. They explained to us that we had to prepare for the liberation of Arab occupied lands. Sacrifices had to be made. Freedom, democracy, economic prosperity, good education and all kind of luxuries had to wait. Many believed. Many were skeptical. And as the wait got longer, the prison larger, the civilization gap with the rest of the world wider, more started to get skeptical. Resentment followed.

The new generation, born in a different world, was the most restless. They want to live like their peers in other parts of the world. Satellite TV, the Internet and other modern communication tools gave them an open, unfiltered window. They could see that what they lack others take for granted: Market-oriented training, secured, rewarding jobs, a wife and a home. Some expects even more: Travel, entertainment and (why not?) a car. They resent the military draft. They hate having to serve years in draconic conditions with little or no pay. It feels worse when they see that the rich and powerful can evade it.

The Arab conscious is getting more and more sophisticated and wise. The state media is not. They still sell the same lies and try their best to make us believe them. They want us to believe that some Arab leaders are re-elected because their nations have no better men or women for the job. Arab governments are doing like no other for their people. Our education is the best. Our democratic system is the envy of the world. Security is great not because most Arabs live under police regimes and emergency laws, but because of our wise, strong and honest leaders.

Besides, who said we are poor? Look at Somalia and Liberia and see how lucky we are! Better times are coming. We only need to be patient and work with the government to fight corruption and build a better society. Praise our leaders and pray for them to survive the challenges and win over the enemies and live long enough to get us all into heaven on earth. So don’t listen to the lies our enemies are spreading. Accusation of corruption, lousy management and nepotism are all baseless. Let’s stand together united with our leadership to prove to the envious world that we are truly one, united, strong Arab family.

Then came the Internet and Satellite TV. Then came CNN, BBC and Al-Jazeerah. Others followed and suddenly the truth can’t hide behind the smiley anchors’ faces anymore. The public eye and mind went past the newsroom curtain and the Dear Leader’s portraits to rich sources of information and explanations. So what the media answer would be?

Surprise, surprise! More lies, more going. No one believes? Who cares! There is a whole industry of perception manufacturing. Where would all these people go? How would this entire infrastructure be dismantled? Better leave things as they are, hoping somebody, somewhere still has faith.

Meanwhile, the elite will continue to benefit, the flaws will still be there, and the ship will go on sinking. The people’s knowledge of the truth will grow larger, their patience will get thinner, and the pot will be more and more boiling. The inevitable big bang will happen ... soon enough.

Western Democracy? Why Not?

Dr. Khaled Batarfi,

When Egyptian judiciary described US President George Bush’s call for international monitoring of Egypt’s referendum on the new presidential law as an outrageous intervention in their country’s internal affairs, I knew better. When governments protest international pressure to democratize and reform, because “reform must come from within” I know better. When state-run media call every criticism of some Arab leaders or governments a Zionist conspiracy, I know better. When some opposition groups and protesters are accused of being “fifth column,” stooges of foreign powers, I know better.
How is it that I always know better? Because I am an Arab citizen who understand something about how leadership works and am conversant with their political vocabulary. I could tell you before any question arise what the response would be ... exactly.
People’s demands are also predictable and simple. They want a say in how they are governed, in decisions affecting their lives, more freedom for the press, more openness and transparency and tighter accounting of public money and resources.
They need explanations, too. Why certain people are leaders for life? Why certain sects and ethnic groups are the chosen ones, even if they are in a minority? Why a great percentage of the population can’t have good education, decent jobs and accommodation, a social security net, or even a proper neighborhood?
Women are almost tired of asking questions about their voting rights, their participation in national affairs, and right to divorce, work, study, travel and trade.
Religious and ethnic minorities in some countries wonder if and when they would be treated as full citizens with equal rights.
They want equal treatment in schools, courts and workplace. They need protection, freedom of expression, and respect. They want to serve their country in the military, political and diplomatic services under the same rules and standards applied to the rest of us. They want to practice their religion, express their culture, speak their language and teach their kids their own history and culture. Why not, they wonder, why not?
On the “other side” (literally) are some governments and leaders who are too used to running people’s lives without anyone complaining or protesting, let alone demanding a part in decision-making and wealth sharing. They are used to reducing parliaments into puppets and playing with fake electoral system.
They get away with theft, corruption and murder. Some leaders put their relatives, friends and allies in every position they fancy, and distribute the nation’s wealth among themselves. They get away with rigging elections, running the media, controlling the religious authority and faking democracy.
Some governments put thousands of people in prison without trial, because they “talk politics.” And those are the lucky ones. Most are tortured, forced to humiliate themselves in public by incriminating themselves, given long terms, and when they leave they are denied work and left to rotten, with their families, in poverty, isolation and shame.
So is it any surprise that such elitist species would hate to have any other kind of real people share power with them, hold them accountable to their actions, and try and judge them if found guilty? Is it surprising that they would resist any international pressure to open up, shape up, and implement real reforms?
That is why I would accept the risk of being called a Western stooge when I agree with Western demands for Arabs to change and improve. No one is telling us how to do it. Arab governments could do it the way they like as long as they adhere to globally agreed standards. We could design the voting system that better suit us. We are free to customize our democracy and write our constitution to fit our culture and special case, as long as the people can accept or reject it in a referendum. And laws and regulations can be written the way we see fit, as long as elected representatives do it.
Then there is the cliché that “democracy is home made.” It is based on the incorrect assumption that the West wants us to apply their version of democracy as it is. Even if that is the case, we could always answer with our own, correct version. The world is changing, History is moving down the road of democracy and human rights. Those who deny and refuse to comply will be overtaken and overwhelmed by the flood, sooner or later, one way or another, by the international community or by their own people. Mark my words.

Too Much Preaching, Too Little Teaching!

Dr. Khaled Batarfi,

My favorite classmate at an American university was a Jew who was also a Communist. All my life I have heard only unfavorable things about Jews and Communists. How come my beloved friend is both and I never noticed until he himself told me?

Later, I befriended Jews and Communists and found them friendly, compassionate and trustworthy.

Later on, I came to know wonderful people of other faiths and other sects. Never once have I known a bad person who “hates us and conspires to undermine our faith” as I was taught earlier in my life.

This and similar experience, like befriending Catholic and Protestant priests, a rabbi, and atheists, taught me an important lesson in life. We are all the same species. No matter what is your faith, color or race, you are basically mind, heart and soul. We could connect with a simple package of hello, a smile and a handshake.

At the same time, I felt sorry for all those who are still hostage to preachers of hate, suspicion and superiority. There are plenty of these bad apples in every faith, culture and race. In the heartland of America, Russia, Middle East, Sudan, Japan and Europe, many good people pay hand and leg for being different.

Wars, crusades and civil disturbances ensued throughout history to prove who has the super faith or is the super race. Primitive and dark-aged as it sounds, it still exists today. The conflicts among civilizations are based on fear and mistrust of the other’s intentions, as it is on interests and politics.

In a class I took during my US studies on intercultural dialogue, students discovered that even those with the best intention had deep accumulated biases and ideas that needed to be flushed out. Most discovered that they got these thoughts from family, friends, media, schools, churches, mosques, synagogues and temples.

Almost all biases were explained as reaction to perceived stands of the others. They regard their own prejudice as protective measures. (The world is a dangerous place, and enemies are out to get you. Read History. You can’t be too careful. Stick with your own, and keep a watchful eye on the conspiring others.)

Schools, media and places of worship are the main institutions we need to work on. In our case, we have a lot to do.

Our Ministry of Religious Affairs did review the records and stands of thousands of preachers and imams on its payroll. Circulars went to every imam in the Kingdom on how to deal with issues of interfaith. Many were given training courses on similar subjects.

The Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Higher Education took similar steps — all with a view to removing misconceptions about other faiths and promoting interfaith understanding. The Ministry of Information gave Saudi media hints and tips on the subject.

King Abdul Aziz Center for National Dialogue chose the topic of “The Dialogue with the Other” as the subject of the next conference, later this year. Teams of researchers are conducting workshops all over the country to debate the issue on regional bases. The better participants will be chosen to join the national conference.

Is that enough? I would say no. You can’t change a mentality, an attitude or an ideological doctrine overnight. These concepts were made over ages. A whole generation was affected. To fix all that, we need a grand strategy that deal with the roots as well as the symptoms. We need to examine the reference books and doctrines that bred the phenomenon.

The old guards of these texts and concepts must either change their mind, or be changed. Removing parts of books and sermons would help in the short term. Removing the convictions behind them will solve the problem permanently. The new National Dialogue Forum is our chance to formulate such a strategy.

Our schools need to change directions. Instead of focusing on nonpractical, nonscientific subjects, we must concentrate on science and technology. The market is full of preachers, short in teachers, full of talkers, short of workers. The future of this country can only be built on the solid concrete of science not the moving sands of ideologies.

In short, we need more teaching and less, much less preaching.

Problems Do Not Go Away Simply Because We Deny or Ignore Them

Dr. Khaled Batarfi,

The Indonesian press is boiling these days about alleged abuse of maids in Saudi Arabia. At the same time, they join the rest of the Muslim world in condemnation of alleged abuse of the Qur’an in US prisons of Guantanamo.

I am troubled by both accounts, since it seems both of us, Americans and Saudis, are in a state of denial. Instead of facing problems head on and dealing with their roots, we preferred the easy way out. Problems do not go away simply because we deny or ignore them. In fact, they get bigger and harder to solve.

Let’s start with our problem. Recent reports published in the Saudi press indicate disturbing trends. Thousands of foreign workers, especially maids, suffer from physical and financial maltreatment. Many work endless hours, don’t get good accommodation and meals and don’t get paid in time, or not at all. Worse is the sexual and physical abuse. It is hard to believe that a Muslim family would deprive an animal, let alone a human being, of sleep, rest and/or food. It is more disgusting to learn that helpless women in our custody are forced into sexual acts. I can’t recognize this, and find it almost impossible to believe. Still, it is happening at an alarming rate, and we should pass the denial mode and do something about it — now. One thing we can’t and shouldn’t is to cover up. Some think it is in the best of our national interest and image to solve problems case by case, in silence. We are under intensive attacks and we shouldn’t give our enemies ammunitions to accuse our religion and culture of brutality and inhumanity, they say.

Whenever a problem is aired, we deny it. If it persists, we turn the table. Instead of admitting guilt, we blame the victim, accuse them of lying and the press of misrepresentation.

Now, I am not saying that is all we do. The Ministry of Labor recently established a new department to deal with expatriates’ complaints and improve their work environment. The head of the Department for the Protection of Foreign Workers, Ahmed Al-Mansour, is given the title of deputy minister. Another, the Department for Speedier Settlement of Labor Disputes was established earlier this year and is credited for solving the cases of the five Indonesian maids who were met in Jakarta airport on their return by the Indonesian president. A safe haven is established to take care of mistreated maids. How much difference this will make? Only time will tell. But good results are already showing.

What I am saying is that we need change in our attitude toward the problem. We must acknowledge first of all that it is catastrophic. This cannot be tolerated in the Land of Islam. With such attitude we could come with effective solutions.

The first thing we should do is to improve our labor system. All expatriates should register with an authority responsible for their welfare. On their arrival, they should be given a leaflet in their own language about their rights and duties, rules and regulations, with a hotline number to call for consultation and emergency. The Department for the Protection of Foreign Workers should make random checking on them to make sure they are well treated and fairly compensated.

In case of maltreatment we should apply a harsher code of justice. Punishment should fit the crime: An eye for eye and a tooth for tooth. When an employer delays or denies his/her employed their dues, they should pay more. First-time offenders must be denied the right to have new workers for say six months. Repeated offenders lose their privilege indefinitely.

When a complaint is filed, like that of the Indonesian maid Nour Miyati, we should allow her access to lawyers and embassy representatives.

Americans should take the same attitude toward human rights issues in Guantanamo and elsewhere. Pretending all is well, fair and legitimate won’t make it so. The whole world, including American war allies, as well as US courts and human right organizations, are protesting the illegal detention and inhumane treatment of hundreds of people in custody without trial or access to lawyers since Afghanistan invasion.

The abuse of the Iraqi and Afghani prisoners show consistent patterns and indicate real problems that need to be fixed in its entirety, not denied, covered up or solved case by case.

If I may suggest solutions I would start, as in our case, with the vital need to change mentality. Approaching these issues should come from sincere recognition and appreciation of problem and serious search for solutions. Concerns about image, prestige and status should take a break. You must be humble enough to fix and correct your mistakes. “I am a Superpower” attitude won’t do.”

Same here, same there. We all need to change ways, or ... shame on us.

Fighting Crime and Illegal Immigration

Dr. Khaled Batarfi,

The campaign against illegal immigrants is very much overdue. For decades, millions have immigrated to this country seeking economic, spiritual, and social and political asylum. Most came legally, took residence and work permits and helped us prosper. We owe them for taking this country and nation to the new age.

Many others came for the same goals, but by illegal means or with illegitimate intentions.

Millions come for pilgrimage every year and many stay over. Citizens of certain areas of the world are more likely to do so. They are mostly poor, uneducated and unskilled. Others are skillful, but weren’t fortunate enough to get contracts, or calculated it was more rewarding to work as free-lancers. Many are useful as temporary help, but in total they overwhelmed the labor market with cheap, unreliable workers.

Thousands of laborers and domestic help arrive legally to work for homes and companies. Then they leave their job because they don’t like the pay and treatment or find better offers. Many are making it their business to contact newcomers, offer them free-lance jobs with higher pay and more flexible hours outside the system. It is unfair to the sponsors who paid for their tickets, visas and other expenses. It is dangerous for the rest of us because many turn to crimes. Organized criminal activities, like theft, drug trade and prostitution, are increasingly common. Individual acts such as mugging, pickpocketing, rape and even killing are on the rise.

Shunned by the system, illegal residents concentrate on certain areas of towns. Usually, these areas are in a dismal state. They lack proper infrastructure, public services and security. Visit there and you feel like you are in a different world. Residents have no access to educational and health facilities. Gangs rule in the absence of law and order.

In some places, people live for generations outside the system. They are neither Saudis, nor legal residents. Many have lost their original ID documents. They can’t get work permits or provide their families with proper schooling, training and medical services. Without good skills and legal status they have to survive one way or another. Some do temporary jobs; others don’t feel obliged to work hard for a society they consider hostile. Beside, taking higher risks gives richer rewards, especially considering they don’t have much to lose in any case.

In the last few years, the rise in crime was indicative of the worsening economic situation of some ethnic groups. Many were encouraged by the weak visa restrictions, improving economy, and the distraction of security forces with the campaign against terrorism. As more and more get away uncaught, others were encouraged to follow suit. Something had to be done ... soon to arrest or regularize the status of hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants.

In the last three weeks the campaign against crime started in earnest. In Jeddah, Makkah and Riyadh, military and civilian authorities cooperated in the crackdown. On good intelligence work, teams of special police and civil defense forces in tandem with municipality and passport representatives moved into hitherto off-limit areas. Thousands of thieves, prostitutes, fake doctors, drug sellers, black magicians and illegal residents were taken into custody. Convicted foreigners will be punished, then deported to their home countries, put on the black list and won’t be allowed in under any excuse and disguise. That is justice. That is right.

But what is not justice or right is to mistreat prisoners or deny them their due legal and human rights. We need to make sure that prison space is available, stay is comfortable and the whole situation is monitored by independent agencies, like the Saudi Human Rights Society.

We, especially the media need to be extra careful not to stereotype, generalize or categorize on racial lines. In Islam there is no guilt by association. Allah says: No soul shall be punished for the sin of another. No race is better than the other and the best of us are the better in deed and character, not blood or color. In the Land of Islam and the two holiest mosques, racism cannot be tolerated. Hate speech about Africans, Asians, and others must not be printed. News stories and headlines about the issue must be treated with sensitivity.

The message should be clear to all: We won’t tolerate crimes, or illegal work and residency. But we are a civilized Muslim nation and we will assure that only the offenders are punished — justly and humanly.

I would also call for expediting the status correction of long-term illegal residents, as Governor of Makkah Region, Prince Abdul Majeed promised. This way, we could tap the huge pool of local, Arabic-speaking, culture-savvy laborers to replace millions of foreigners in low-paid, menial jobs.

Simultaneously we should tighten our visa requirements as well as our border security to prevent illegal crossovers. We might not achieve 100 percent results, but we should make 100 percent effort — all the time.

Saudi Liberals and Election Lessons

Dr. Khaled Batarfi,

There are many lessons to be learned from the first Saudi municipal elections in decades.
One of the most important is the state of our nation’s consciousness.
It has been difficult in the past to gauge the mindset of the majority. In the absence of scientific research, the answers depended largely on whom you talk to. Islamists would tell you this is a conservative Muslim nation. In the Land of Islam, home to the two holiest mosques, there is no place for liberalism and secularism.
The liberals would advise you to ignore the vocal minority of extremists. Most people, they contend, are fed up with the conservative message and influence but are afraid to alienate them. Given a chance, those people will want to be set free of religious influence and control.
People like myself always felt that the majority is with neither side. Islam is the “religion of balance” as the Qur’an and the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) told us. We are not to go extreme either way, lest we lose our track and leave the realm of Islam, as the Prophet advised.
To be a good Muslim doesn’t mean living in a cave, isolated from the world, and hostile to others, and to anything we don’t understand or are not used to. We work for our day like we live forever, and for the hereafter like we die tomorrow.
We always felt that extremists on both sides hijacked our voice and identity, and we urged both to come closer to where we stand — in the middle.
Observers heard these arguments for ages and wondered what exactly was the case. In the last few months, we all had a look at the truth. It isn’t perfect, it isn’t whole, it isn’t comprehensive, but it is more scientific and closer than any other measurement of what Saudis stand for.
Here we are looking at a parade of candidates representing all walks of life. Some are right-wingers, some on the left. Some were tribals, merchants, professionals, and bureaucrats, highly educated, ignorant, rich and poor. Extremists of all hues were present as well. So, who won when the people finally spoke? Let’s have a look at the winners’ background in the biggest cosmopolitan cities, Jeddah and Riyadh; the ultra conservative Buraidah; and the holy cities, Makkah and Madinah.
The winners in all these towns have something in common. All are well educated, many in Western universities. Most are hard-working middle class, with a good record in community service, well before the elections were on the horizon. They have no known connection to ultra conservative organizations but they are no liberals. In fact, most are moderately conservative, like the rest of us. They, like us, are Muslims, not Islamists. We, Muslims, subscribe to a religion of tolerance, civility and decency, treating others the way as we wish they treat us. Unlike us, Islamists are politically motivated and run on global agendas.
As in secular Turkey and Bahrain, people chose candidates with good credentials. They are capable, professional and good Muslims. To be a good Muslim is to work hard, act decent and deal clean. Ethics are not exclusive to Muslims, but the religious tend to be more ethical. The combination of professionalism, hard work and high principles produces a wonderful team of highly motivated and productive officials, as the Turkish experiment proved. After decades of corruption and weak performance, the Turkish economy engine is humming like never before. Corruption and inflation are way down while the growth is exceeding European rates.
The lesson here is: Saudi people are moderate, wise and mature. They listened to all, heard from all, but when they chose they chose well. We ignored the self-serving, deep-pocketed candidates who thought they could buy their way to glory. We passed on those with ideological agendas, left and right. And we especially ignored the out-of-touch liberals, who arrogantly thought they could lead from high and above.
From the high stools of their saloons “diwanias”, newspaper columns, satellite TV, radio, university and corporations they thought their message captivated the public consciousness and imagination. On the day of judgment, they shockingly and suddenly found that they didn’t. People didn’t feel liberals represent them, couldn’t trust them, and wouldn’t vote for them.
This is made clearer in contrast. The “golden list” of candidates endorsed by eleven Muslim scholars won by a huge margin. While the unorganized liberals were busy fighting among their ego-inflated selves about positions and intellectual platforms, the conservative candidates and their supporters were busy talking to the grass roots about earthly issues and real concerns.
The lessons are many and the message is clear. The questions are who would better learn from them, and who would continue to ignore ... and lose.

Elections and the Golden Lists

Dr. Khaled Batarfi,

What is going on? Why are losers of the first municipal elections in decades protesting? What do you think of the “golden lists” of candidates endorsed by a number of popular Islamic scholars and preachers?
I was asked those questions by some foreign friends who are closely following the developments in Saudi Arabia.
In a meeting attended by some members of Jeddah’s “Golden List” and their opponents, I listened to arguments from both parties. List members were defending the right of eleven Islamists to endorse seven candidates out of over five hundred. This is after all a lesson in democracy and endorsement of candidates is one legitimate way of playing the game, they argued. Besides, how can we have freedom of expression if people cannot express their support for one candidate or the other?
The opponents ask: How can we compete and why should we if certain candidates are already guaranteed to win? On what basis those scholars chose the lucky seven? When they say certain candidates are good Muslims, what that make the rest of us? Besides, the rules prohibit getting support from any government employee. Some of the endorsers work for the government. Not only they publicly endorsed the candidates, but they also participated in their campaign programs and activities with sermons and lectures. It is also against the rules for candidates to coordinate with each other.
Those complaints were filed with the concerned authorities. But there were no evidence to support the allegations of material support from government employees and coordination among list members. After consultation with experts and Saudi Telecom, it was not possible to establish that candidates and endorsers were responsible for the broadcast of the Golden List. Members of conservative websites published the lists. Others distributed them by e-mail and SMS messages. It wasn’t against the rules for scholars to participate in campaign programs or endorse candidates.
When it was my turn, I explained that endorsement is a citizen’s right in a democracy. In the States, for example, a group of distinguished economists may support the president in his re-election campaign. Another group of corporate executives or religious leaders might support his opponent. Even newspapers could endorse one party or another.
The electorate needs this kind of advice to help them choose from among hundreds of candidates. Without that, they might lose interest or choose the more familiar names. Those with the deeper pockets are usually the winners in this case. Ads and other campaign activities cost more than 100 million riyals in Jeddah alone.
The Islamists took the initiative and produced a list. The question is why the others didn’t. I expected groups like former mayors, engineers, university professors in related fields and other opinion leaders to come up with a list each. The public, then, will find it much easier to choose among endorsed lists.
What were missing in the Golden List are the bases for the recommendations. In the Golden List case the only reason given was the endorsed were “good Muslims” and competent individuals. Those are vague terms that can be said of many.
Why the public would comply with a set list without much questioning is another story. This is the story of a generation taught not to argue with authority whether in homes, schools, or mosques. Children blindly obey parents; students study only schoolbooks, and believers take their imams’ teachings as final. That is why we are very much behind in scientific research. You need to have a free mind and spirit to be creative and adventurer. Faithfully following the script will help us maintain the status quo, but will never help us move ahead.
This slavish, lazy, dependent mentality and attitude explain why most people didn’t bother to do proper investigation of candidates. On Election Day they just turned on their mobiles, copied the names sent to them, and declared their conscience clear.
That being said, we must admit that the chosen candidates are some of the most capable. They are highly educated. All are university graduates. Three hold Ph.D. Four are Western-educated. Three are educators. Four work for the public sector and three for the private. Most have good records in community service. They worked hard and spent wise. Their campaigns were run professionally and efficiently. They spoke the common man’s language, and addressed real concerns and vital issues. Their credibility was high even before the endorsement by religious scholars. They deserve to win.
These are good lessons to learn for future elections. Another is that liberalism doesn’t sell in Saudi Arabia. Even in Jeddah, the most liberal town in the country, the electorate listened to their sheikhs and trusted conservatives. Western-minded Saudi liberals should know that Islam is in the DNA of every Saudi, and that’s a fact of life.

Not One and the Same Thing

Dr. Khaled M. Batarfi

When I write about Israel my choice of words betrays my anger and disapproval. This is due to Israel’s mistreatment of Palestinians and refusal to accept Security Council resolutions, and international and Arab peace initiatives.
To many Jews, criticizing Israel is anti-Semitism. I find it hard sometimes to explain how I could be their friend and an enemy of Israel at the same time. For them, censuring Israel is religious blasphemy and racial hatred. They seem to insist that you take Judaism and Israel, Jews and Israelis as one package. If you do otherwise, you enter that long, ugly black list, with the Pharaohs, Romans and Nazis. Some messages are so partisan, but not all. In fact, most, especially from American Jews, are scholarly and reasonable, if sometimes misinformed. Here is a typical exchange with an American Jew:
Dr. Batarfi,
Why must you and others like you continue to pursue the line that Israel “terrorizes the region?” If the Islamic world would only recognize its scripture and history, one would know that Islam recognizes the Jewish people and their right to a homeland in the Israel/Palestine region.
This is why no Islamic leader would ever build a mosque on the Al-Aqsa site for the first six centuries of Islam (!!!). In fact, a recognized mufti in Palestine contradicted the Jerusalem mufti by suggesting that the Jews should be welcomed back to the region, not perpetually warred against.
It is true that Israeli policies have caused undue suffering to the Palestinians, but Arab state policies in the region have also caused undue suffering to the Jewish people in Israel.
When intellectuals in the Arab world like yourself begin to recognize that Israel will and should exist and that Zionism is not as sinister as you think, peace will come much closer. In turn, Allah will be happier knowing that the descendants of Abraham are getting along. Your first sentence implies that Israel is “the enemy”. This is not the way to a lasting future for all peoples in the region.
Dear Samuel,
We seem to agree on most issues. I would support the 2-state solution, but my first choice is one democratic, viable nation. Palestine is too small to divide, so I would call for a secular state and a US-like Constitution. Citizens and residents, visitors and pilgrims, be they Muslim, Christian and Jewish Arabs or Jews from Europe, America, Russia, Africa and elsewhere should be treated equally — same rights, same duties.
The Qur’an never stated that Israel is the house of the Jews. This and other claims such as that Qur’an never mentioned Jerusalem, and no mosque was built in the first six centuries, are incorrect.
Salam, Shalom,
K
I don’t know if my above statements would go far enough to explain my position as an Arab and Muslim, but I will always try. Some of my Jewish friends understand that even if we agree to disagree we continue to be friends. I hope we all learn to discuss political differences without ending up enemies.

The Other Talk With the ‘Other’

Dr. Khaled Batarfi

The next National Dialogue will be about another dialogue, this time “with the other.” Not much explanation was provided. But I understand, and hope I am correct, that the other includes the local other, as well as the foreign.
We seem to be in dire need to talk with many others, these days. While most attention is focused on our misunderstanding with non-Muslims, especially Western, more urgent talk is needed with non-Sunni, non-Hanbli, non-Saudi, non-male “others”.
Not that I don’t appreciate the external pressure on us to tackle the politically charged stand toward the West — I do. But I hate missing the chance to tackle the other files too. The world, I am sure, will feel better hearing a united voice, representing all factions and thoughts. Our credibility will be much stronger if we talk as a diversified, but united nation, with equal footing for all in an open-minded dialogue with a West built on principles of multiculturalism, human rights for minorities and women, and freedom of expression.
Once we did that, we must start a dialogue of our own. Here is how:
First, we should review our whole concept of isolationism. Like many conservative groups, especially in USA, there are some influential parts of society who think of the outside world as dangerous, corrupted, and corrupting place. They live a conspiracy theory of a scheming others trying to conquer our lands, steal our resources, corrupt our kids and distort our culture.
Unfortunately, certain events and policies of some Western governments, especially America, Russia and Britain, do lend credit to some of these theories. The one single issue that enforced the isolationists’ mode of siege has been, for half a century, Palestine. Today, the list of under-fire Muslim areas is much longer. It includes Chechnya, Kashmir, India, The Philippines, Thailand, and Sudan.
Of course, there are explanations from the other side, and complaints of faults and shortcomings on our part, too. Non-Muslim governments, West and East, that oppress Muslims, cite terrorism, independence movements and foreign jihadi involvement. They blame Muslims for being unable to integrate fully in dominant cultures. The problem is, neither party is willing to trust the other or even listen open-mindedly.
In our internal dialogue we must consider all perspectives and look for ways of bridging differences, and solving problems with the other side. This should happen in an environment of peace, hope and good faith in the other’s best intentions. Certainly, we cannot assume that all are of one mind about us. If we believe that certain circles of influence and power are too invested in their ways and stands, therefore a hopeless case, we could work with the better side, and talk directly to the silent, undecided, uniformed majority.
Many non-Muslim societies and intellectuals are simply unaware of our concerns and motivations. They see hate and anger, but don’t understand why. The devils inserted the notion that Islam, the religion, Qur’an the book, and Prophet Muhammad the messenger are the problem.
They put us all on a collision course, because they drew an impossible problem to solve. Since they can’t force or entice us to drop our religion and denounce our holy book and Prophet, the only way that remains for all of us leads to “Armageddon,” “Clash of Civilization” and “The End of History.”
Of course, both sides expect ultimate victory. This is just what the world was at during the Cold War. The wiser, of course, realized that total annihilation was the most likely end. They, and lucky historical events, helped in leading the human race away from this hellish road, to more cooperative, trade-based, electronically connected, multilateral world.
Today, we face similar dilemmas and challenges. We, Saudi intellectuals, must shoulder our share of responsibility. The forthcoming conference is one platform we should well utilize to come up with new logical, coherent, realistic and effective approach to all others.
We must face our internal differences, and sew a unified stand on this and all related issues. It is about time we admitted that many of our extremists mirrored their Western counterparts. They filled many innocents with misinformation that led to hate, apprehension and anger. They distorted our religion, reinterpreted our holy book and drew a hateful, arrogant, aggressive face for our peaceful, tolerant and inclusive religion.
The misinformed of them are our responsibility to re-educate and enlighten.
We tried this and it worked. The purposeful among them are our enemies and must be fought. The end products of their devilish work are terrorists who hunted the world and came back to hunt us. We should both face them and fight the schools of thought that produce them. Our future, peace and place in the world is at stake. We cannot afford to delay resolution any longer.

We Are Giving in More and More to Consumerism

Dr. Khaled M. Batarfi

Near our home, in Jeddah, sprang some hundred shops, three new malls, in addition to many more already in place. In one street, Al-Tahlia, hundred millions worth of investments are poured in malls and rows of shops. In the rest of the city, thousands more are either built, being built, or planned. That is at a time when unemployment is between 10-40 percent (official and estimated figures) among men, and double that among women. Our per capita income is less than $10,000, a third of the US. This phenomenon is at least five years old while our deficit was ballooning, and national debt was sky-high.
The questions are many, but the most important are the effects, negative and positive, of this phenomenon on our society and developing economy. No doubt that many are happy. Merchants and creditors are making good money, jobs are created, families have fun in the air-conditioned hypermarkets, and tourists, local and foreigners enjoy their shopping experience.
On the other hand, the gap between the haves and have-nots is widening; saving rates is in the zero neighborhoods; and Saudi society is becoming more and more materialistic, individualistic, and consumerist.
How much of these investments are going to survive in the cutthroat competitive market it is creating? How much of the return on mostly imported products is reinvested in our economy? How many jobs are created? And what kind of values are we learning as a Muslim, socially oriented, people?
I carried my concerns to the concerned people. Here is what I learned:
According to Director General of Jeddah Chamber of Commerce Saud Aonallah, the new malls are competing for the same pool of shops, and luring the best away from the older malls. The older in turn are taking from the oldest. The vicious circle continues until only the biggest, fanciest and newest stay in the game. The rest are forced into bankruptcy. He accused investors of copycat attitude and economic ignorance.
Aonallah also blames obstacles and lack of infrastructure development and other incentives for the weak investments in more productive sectors such as industry. He calls for cession in malls building.
Jeddah Mayor Eng. Abdullah Al-Muallami refuses the intervention concept. Since consumers are served better by more competition and as long as developers abide by building codes, he would encourage more of the same. It is there headache to worry about the viability of their projects, he insists, not his. “Either we have free market or planned economy. We can’t have it both ways.”
Mohammad Alharbi, commerce director in Jeddah Chamber of Commerce, wondered how come the only building licenses needed come from Jeddah Municipality, not from the Commerce Ministry?
Social scientist, Prof. Baker Bagader, says families are lured to malls for entertainment and shopping pleasures. People are now buying not only to fulfill their needs, but also to show up status. This, he says, will increase the gap and frustration between economic classes.
Princess Reem Alfaisal, writer and photographer, warns that our kids are getting the wrong message about their role in life. Writer and mother of six, Suraya Al-Shehry, criticizes the absence of reading-friendly bookshops and early learning centers in malls. “Eat, buy and play are the only alternatives. What kind of generation are we raising these days?”
Omar Bagaor, economy professor, charges that Saudi society is fast adopting the concept of consumerism.
He warned that our saving rate is now close to zero while 80 percent of banking loans is wasted in consumption.
Islamic banker, Prince Amr Al-Faisal, sees a conspiracy led by producers, creditors and states adopting the Western market model.
The model, he contends, is built on consumerism. People are seduced into buying on credit what they don’t need to keep the economy machine humming.
They labor for life to pay for manufactured lifestyle and debt interests. This materialistic mode, he claims, corrupts moralities and reduces people to corporate slavery.
Adel Almonaie, general manger of the largest mall in Jeddah (200+ shops), Al-Tahliah Shopping Center, surprisingly agrees with all the above charges, but adds that he is encouraging investors to open bookshops with US-style reading spaces, and early learning centers. He calls on merchants to better educate consumers about products and their technologies.
What do we do then? Al-Faisal urges our religious scholars and economists to come up with alternative models that better suit us.
I would add scholars in other scientific and intellectual fields like philosophy and sociology.
One concept we should refuse even to consider is isolationism. It would only increase our economic and political woes. We can’t afford to end up in North Korea’s lonely, hungry club.
Besides, it is impossible. The globe is too integrated, and our interests as its biggest fuel exporter are too incorporated in its mechanism to fit any isolationist scheme. That is another good reason to start our bridge-building dialogue with the “other.”

Let’s Not Sell Our Youth Short

Dr. Khaled Batarfi

Our youth face many challenges — many challenges. It is possible that the greatest of their challenges may be us — an older generation that is happy to proscribe but reluctant to include them in creating the path to tomorrow.
At a conference in Jeddah to discuss youth issues, I noticed with little surprise that the youngest of the some 60 men around the table were over 30. Most were in their 50s and 60s. In attendance, there were 14 youngsters.
I told them that when a doctor sees a patient he first asks “What is your problem?” Only after carefully listening to all that the patient has to say, and asking for more details can the physician consider a prescription.
Here we were talking about what is wrong with a whole generation, and we assumed we knew all about that there was to know. No representative of that generation was sitting at the table, but some were allowed to witness. We were discussing women’s issues, too. But not one woman was invited — even to listen and watch.
Later, one of the young men took the floor and made a statement that we all should give careful consideration. “You talk about our problems,” he said. “But as we see it, our problems are of your creation. Ask us, and we have solutions for you. Ask yourselves, and you won’t even admit you are part of the problem.”
The list of issues facing our young people was long. The most important that day was that education is our greatest challenge. It is the most important issue today, and it will be the most important issue every day to come until our society acts to remedy it.
Basically, students are taking more cultural classes than needed and less science than they should. Most graduates are in human sciences. More than 80 percent of master’s degrees and PhD theses are in language and religion. If we expect some industrial or business boom to keep our economic growth and population growth in balance, we had better make sure that our young people get the knowledge and skills they will need to make that happen.
Our curriculum needs continuous update. We need to consult with the various business and industrial sectors before deciding what directions to take. We need more practical training and modern tools, such as labs, computers and foreign languages.
Isn’t it strange that we enter the new century with some text books and educational tools that relate to earlier centuries? If we continue to dwell on past glories and stopgap solutions rather than aggressively prepare our youth for the challenges to come, we may well be relegating our society to the past. It may be easy to look beyond our borders to seek the cause of our problems, but perhaps the real cause is complacency and the purveyors easily visible by looking in any mirror.
We need to open up to investments. Our market is promising, and investors, domestic and foreign, would love to buy in. We need to eliminate red tape, offer incentives and speed up infrastructure development.
Our legal system needs to be updated to ensure we are competitive with the rest of the world in regulation and application of the laws. Our judges need to become familiar with business issues, and simple cases should be solved in weeks or months — not years.
As we move toward the future, our successes and failures to a large extent will be determined by our willingness or unwillingness to hear all sides of the issues and our determination or lack of determination to fashion meaningful resolutions to those challenges.
Some of us may believe that our greatest resource is our vast oil reserve, but that bounty is dwarfed by the incredible potential that the young men — and women — of this country possess.
The future we think about is the future that they will live — and the future they should help shape. It’s up to us to make sure they get that chance.

No Reason Why So Many Saudi Women Go Without a Job

Dr. Khaled Batarfi

Samia is a very frustrated girl. Her father is old and retired and her only brother lives in another town with too many responsibilities to spare much of help. Her mother is sick and needs medical attention while her younger sisters are still in school and need daily transportation, as she does. All her problems begin and end with money. She can’t have enough of her teaching salary to satisfy all these needs. Her pay of around four thousand riyals is hardly enough to cover food, medicine and accommodation expenses. Much could have been saved if she could drive to take her sisters to school and on to hers. Later, she could take them back home and run other errands. Besides grocery, she has to take her father to the three-days-a-week physical therapy, her mother to hospital or her grandmother’s home. Every now and then the family needs to go to social events and join family gatherings.
Since money is a constant challenge, she tried to improve her income by working evenings. Jobs are scarce for women outside schools and hospitals. Taking few courses in English and computer were supposed to help. But in all the companies she applied to, the pay was very low. A thousand or a thousand and a half riyal is not worth the headache. Her transportation alone may eat most of that.
Still, she regards herself fortunate. Her cousin had to travel over 130 kilometers everyday to teach in a village school. She wakes up before dawn, prepares her kids for school, takes off with her colleagues in a bus that speeds dangerously over desert roads, then comes back before dinner to take care of a husband and five kids. Things are getting worse because she is pregnant, and her maid had escaped, again.
Both ladies count their blessings when they compare their situation to that of some hundreds of thousands of unemployed women of various levels of education. Some are illiterate and others are postgraduates, and most are high school and college graduates. With less than adequate modern skills and tools, they have little or no chance of getting suitable jobs with reasonable pay.
This may sound strange, even unbelievable when we remember that some seven million expatriates work in the Kingdom. A good percentage of these jobs can be easily filled with Saudi women. Male expatriates, for example, mostly take secretarial jobs; so are other positions like receptionists, phone operators, factory labors, school bus drivers, staff in women sections in companies and public department. Islam doesn’t prohibit women working in a mixed workplace, as long as they observe modesty rules. The prohibition comes from traditions of certain regions and environments. While we respect the choice of those women who prefer not to work in a mixed environment or drive cars, we demand the same right to choose for those who don’t mind.
Samia, I am sure, will love to drive and work in a lingerie shop. She doesn’t understand why going with a male driver, alone, can be any more decent than driving on her own. She can’t fathom how males selling women underwear to female shoppers could be more conservative than a woman selling such private stuff to her own sex. Or a male staff attending to her needs in a public office is more Islamic than a woman doing that for her.
That’s why she demands the right to vote and run for office. She wants her voice heard, her needs addressed, and her views and interests taken into consideration. Decisions that affect her life, her work, her very existence must come by her, and her opinions should be as important as that of her other half.
Samia is right. Not only about the need to be included in the decision-making process, but also in the studies now under way to improve the education system. If boys complain from the limited choices and the inadequate curriculum to market requirements, wait until you see the girls’. It was only recently that their forty-year-old curriculum was updated. Women’s college choices are still very limited. They can’t study engineering, décor, marketing and many other boys-only subjects. The idea is why bother to study for jobs that are not suitable for women. But if that was the case forty years ago, it is not true today.
Girls who had to study in these and similar areas abroad find their expertise very much in demand. And the pay is much better than most jobs offered to graduates of Saudi colleges.
I am encouraged by the decision of Saudia Airlines and Saudi Arabia Basic Industries Co. (SABIC) to train and employ Saudi females in suitable jobs. I hope the rest follow their lead ... and soon.

Building Bridges With America

Dr. Khaled Batarfi, kbatarfi@al-madina.com

Last week I was invited to join the Saudi American Interactive Dialogue in Jeddah, titled “Fostering Community: Building Bridges of Understanding and Cooperation.” Sixty Americans and Saudis sat with each other on ten round tables, three from each side on every table, with one chosen as a moderator and presenter. We discussed two main issues: “The role of religion and social responsibility in community development,” and “The creating of a responsible media.” The conference was sponsored by Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry and key business entities.
We brainstormed and debated the issues of the day, and came out with analyses, conclusions and recommendations.
At the start of two sessions, morning and afternoon, we listened to two keynote speakers, Jamal Khashoggi, media adviser to Prince Turki Al-Faisal, Saudi ambassador in London, and James Oberwetter, US ambassador in Saudi Arabia. Their perspectives were insightful, positive and inspiring. I would have reported their main points, but they were off record.
Most Americans were visiting Saudi Arabia for the first time. They came from all walks of life, but mostly from academia and intelligentsia. The ones I talked to were impressed, especially with our female organizers, such as Ranya Bajsair and participants like Maha Fetehi. They expected official welcome and hospitality, but they weren’t prepared for the warm grass-roots reception. They found that Saudis might have issues with certain US policies, but they are not anti-American, certainly not against those Americans who do not support these policies, like many in the conference.
The delegates went around, talked to ordinary people, and debated with male and female professors, intellectuals, business people, diplomats, reporters, and writers. There were no taboos and they and their Saudi counterparts weren’t shy of raising questions that touched on the very core of our political, social and cultural differences. Both sides were open-minded. Most were not defensive or aggressive. They just wanted to know, and they deserved what they got — honest, if not always agreeable, answers.
The atmosphere was positive and constructive. We talked for hours, from morning to evening. Many felt we needed more than a day to discuss more issues. We hardly scratched the surface. As one delegate put it, we were just warming up for the real match.
On the role of religion in community development, I told my American counterparts that they don’t have a problem with the real Islam. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) married Christian and Jewish wives. His friendly neighbor was a Jew. They visited and cared for one another.
In our prayers we pray for our Prophet, as well as Moses and Jesus, peace be upon them. On the day of Ashura, the 10th day of Muharram, the first month in the Islamic calendar, we fast celebrating Prophet Moses’ (peace be upon him) safe escape from Egypt. These stories as well as other Christian and Jewish legends are narrated in the Qur’an. The first and largest chapter is titled “Al-Baqara” (The Cow) after the Jewish holy cow, and another chapter is titled Yousef (Joseph) after a Jewish prophet. Mariam is the title of a chapter devoted to the story of Virgin Mary and the birth of Jesus.
In fact, we cannot be Muslims without believing in all holy books and messengers of Allah, including Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad; and their books, the Torah, Bible as well as Qur’an, I told them.
The real problem has always been with the politicizing and misinterpretation of holy texts, and the use of religion to rally the troops and achieve earthly goals and interests. This is true of all religions. The Crusaders were driven to the Holy Land to kill and conquer in the name of God. That is what’s happening today in the Muslim world.
My American partners were surprised. I wasn’t. Intellectuals on both sides failed miserably during better times to educate themselves and the public about other civilizations.
Whether out of bias and disregard, as Edward Said claims in “Orientalism”, or disinterest and laziness, the result is troubling. Today, people of the same-origin religions regard each other with suspicion and apprehension, reaching the level of hate.
Their stands are based on mostly misinformation and ignorance even of basic tenets and principles.
The first Saudi American Interactive Dialogue (SAID) was created in the wake of Sept. 11 to “gain perspective on how we, as business leaders, academics, government officials, journalists and students, can foster greater understanding between Saudi Arabia and the United Sates.
Although the relationship between our two peoples remains strong, Saudis and Americans are confronted daily by misperceptions on both sides. SAID aims to dispel such misperceptions in an open and transparent dialogue and by working together to build greater understanding.”
This conference was a good one small, but important step, toward building that elusive bridge.

Women Driving in Saudi Arabia? Why Not?

Dr. Khaled Batarfi, kbatarfi@al-madina.com

My last column touched on the issue of women’s right to drive. And this generated some hot discussion on my e-mail list.
Readers who do not know Saudi Arabia well couldn’t understand or appreciate the reasoning against women driving. Saudis and residents who are familiar with the issue cite logistical and practical problems and concerns. No one claims the ban is Islamic. In Prophet’s (peace be upon him) time, women rode their horses and camels. In other Islamic countries, women didn’t have to compromise their modest dress code to drive. And they drive as well as men, if not better and safer.
Many readers fear that men, especially the young, will harass or chase female drivers.
This is blaming the victim. If men are the guilty party, then let’s ban them.
Some suspect that if we allow women driving, it will make it much easier for dating. They say it is bad as it is. Girls pretending to be out for school and social events go for dates! Give them cars and see what happens!
I say if they decide to date they will find a way. If you don’t trust your kids, boys or girls, don’t give them cars. But if you brought them up well, trust them. Besides, why do we assume girls would be less observant and conservative than boys? If both are as much suspect, then nobody should be allowed to drive. What difference does it make who sits on the driving seat?
Other arguments focus on practicalities, like traffic jams, accidents, car breakdowns, driving in remote areas, etc.
I say, we should plan and prepare. We could go gradually, allowing women over thirty to drive first, and then schedule other age groups. If they get in trouble they could use their cell phones. Mobile car service operators would help in case of breakdowns. We must take extra security measures and harsher punishment for harassers, like publishing offenders’ names and photos in the papers. They did that in Dubai and it worked.
We have to start by educating the public with media campaigns and encourage preachers, teachers and parents to contribute and participate. Solutions are there if we just look for them. As the Americans say, if there is a will, there is a way.
I like the following e-mail message I received from a Western teacher in a girls school. It very much sums up the problem from women’s perspective. It says:
I am a female teacher here in the Kingdom and I teach Saudi girls English. I was pleasantly surprised at the caliber of females I have come in contact with. I listen to their frustrations on a daily basis of the restrictions (mainly of not being able to drive) placed on them. The majority are perfectly capable human beings who just need their country to stop underestimating them and their abilities and the possibilities are limitless to what they will be able to offer this society.
Of course I can also understand the hesitation in allowing women to drive but I would place the fault of this completely on the men of this country. I could just imagine a car full of teenage Saudi boys hitting a woman’s car just for flirting purposes and this would make me personally more apprehensive about driving in this country. The problems are structural and deep-rooted. You can’t just lift the ban, but on the other hand, the longer you wait the harder it will get to change it.
A suggestion would be to fill the streets with competent, well-trained and prepared police, and have them clean up the act on the streets here. Maybe after a few months of over ticketing and tight restrictions you may have a situation where women will feel comfortable driving. You will also have to have driving schools for women and then, maybe, the country can conceptualize driving for women.
Another thing that needs to change is the attitude some men have toward women in this country. If the laws are there to make women feel more comfortable when in public then they are retroactive.
This can only change when men begin to see women as having a more independent role in society, for example, by driving. But women can’t drive until this attitude is curbed. What comes first, the chicken or the egg? It’s quite the dilemma. All I can say is the situation needs to change so better to start now and deal with the problems head on, rather than just watch things become more difficult to unravel. Bite the bullet, as we would say.
G.H.
Jeddah
I would go for the bullet biting ... now. Who says AYE?

Helping the Poor ... in Saudi Arabia

Dr. Khaled Batarfi, kbatarfi@al-madina.com

As the coordinator of a newly formed charity, I was invited to a meeting in Jeddah Chamber of Commerce.
Representatives of charities were trying to form a coordination committee under the supervision of Makkah Governor Prince Abdul Majeed. High on our agenda were: Starting a cottage industry for needy families to work from home, providing training courses and finding jobs for less-skilled persons, and micro financing for small projects.
The idea is that we could help more if we think small and specific. The government can build larger projects, implement grand solutions, and throw a wider net.
For us, we should focus on smaller, neglected areas, and come up with creative, practical, sustainable solutions.
For example, at the “Productive Families Society” we are working on a poor area south of Jeddah as our case study. Our first step was diagnosing. We asked the engineers at the Environment Designs College in King Abdul Aziz University to study the area. We are also gathering area maps, satellite images, and information about the state of security, health, education and other public services from concerned government departments.
The next step is to come up with “sustainable” solutions designed as modules. If we decide that the best way is to develop a totally new neighborhood, then we divide the project into cost units: Land, studies, houses, schools, clinics, training courses, job opportunities, micro financing for small projects, and so on.
Then we look for sponsors for each unit starting with our members. We don’t ask them to contribute in cash. Instead, we ask them to build or provide the service required from A to Z themselves. Our job is to organize and coordinate.
Others, in turn, presented their creative ideas. Ibrahim Badawood, from Abdul Latif Jameel Co. briefed us on their community services. They train young men and women and help them get jobs as chefs, tailors, mechanics, plumbers, computer programmers, photographers and specialists in areas unfamiliar to Saudis, like beauty, flower and décor.
They support good business ideas by providing young entrepreneurs with office space, logistics, financing, and business contacts.
Since they are a car agency, they sell their Toyotas to taxi, bus and pickup drivers. The owners pay interest-free monthly installments over three years.
The company established a nonprofit hospital in 1995 to cater for patients with disabilities and is providing training programs for Saudi specialists in this field.
They also give scholarships to talented, but needy Saudis, who aspire to pursue graduate studies in reputable international schools. Since 1994, they have sent hundreds of students to join the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
They run other programs to train Saudi talent in such areas as car maintenance and computer technologies.
Dr. Nadia Baeshen, the general manager of Khadija bint Khoailid, told us how they help poor families by training women in skills to work from the convenience of their homes.
They also help them market their products and provide showroom space with subsidized rent on daily, weekly, monthly and annual basis.
Dr. Abdullah Altelmesani of Makkah Development Society showed a video that included sophisticated training centers for both sexes, in partnership with reputable American and European training centers. In association with local businesses and the public sector, they provide free housing, education and training for the needy, jobs for the able, and outlets for homemade handicrafts.
Other participants in the meeting told us about their visits to countries like Tunisia to learn from their experience in helping poor communities and under skilled workers. They were fascinated by the way people are trained in traditional handicrafts and helped with soft, micro financing and government-supported marketing.
This idea is now being implemented here. Many families are getting small loans of around a thousand Saudi riyals to buy simple equipment that helps them produce traditional dresses, food and tools. Some are now getting together in small companies of twos and threes and are obtaining financial help and professional advice. They, in turn, are employing others in their neighborhood.
Factories hiring women for low-paid jobs are getting support from charities that pay for training and transportation. A center has been set up to provide free legal advice and representation to poor families and battered women.
I suggested we broaden the scope to include legal help for small home businesses.
Others are setting up CV databases and contacting both private and public sectors to find jobs for the unemployed, especially in the underprivileged and remote areas.
Saudi Arabia has always given generously to millions in poorer countries. Some of our best-intentioned help was misused and gave us a bad name. Without neglecting our global duties, it is high time we focused on our needy. Charity after all begins at home.

AIDS Here? What Do We Know?

Rami is an interesting case of humanity under fire. He was born with hemophilia. After a surgery eight years later, he received blood transfusion contaminated by the HIV virus.
They told him, “you have two years to live.” He knew everyone would eventually die, so he couldn’t understand what all the fuss was about.
Today, he is twenty-eight, and the renewable two-year extension is still hanging like a sword over his head. I noted he never cites dates, and when I asked why, he explained: When you await execution in a death chamber, time becomes irrelevant.
Still, Rami has always been an A student. He is now doing his Masters in history. That is because he believes in what the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: Do for your life like you live forever, and do for your hereafter like you die tomorrow.
Most people didn’t know about his illness, but some of those who knew made him feel guilty. He was kicked out of dinner tables, refused shake-hands, and denied medical treatment even in emergency rooms.
“I can’t forget when I had an emergency and went from one hospital to another asking for help only to be told: We don’t treat AIDS patients here. They said it like I was a criminal who brought this on himself and the world. I asked for an ambulance to my hospital in Taif (he lives in Makkah) but they refused. I remember crawling to my car in pain and dizziness with the ER doctor shaking his head, probably in disgust.
People suffering from AIDS, hepatitis and similar diseases need compassion more than anything — not pity, not tears. They just want to be treated like humans. They want to live what is left of their lives in dignity. Instead, they are shunted to a psychological prison, left to decay and disintegrate painfully on their own.
So what do the “Ramis” want from society? “We want and need acceptance, recognition and understanding. We need to eradicate baseless doubts and fears. We want people to treat us like human beings, not as nuclear refuse. This can only happen when we educate society with public awareness programs in schools, mosques and the media.”
Rami is proposing to set up what he calls “Friends of the Disabled Society.” He hoped members would include celebrities from all walks of life — media, sports, business, arts and academia, headed by the governor of Makkah Region, Prince Abdul Majeed.
He studied for many years the project he regards as his life’s dream and legacy. In fact, that’s exactly why he decided to break all social taboos and went public in last week’s Arab News interview. Only with such shock treatment, he calculated, will society wake up to the realities they hide under the carpet, hoping one day they will disappear altogether.
He plans for the nongovernmental organization, which he would gladly manage, to conduct public awareness campaigns such as organized events, participation in conferences, talk shows, workshops, media programs, school tours, etc. He would set up an extensive information center with a specialized library, research tools and an electronic database in cooperation with the world’s best medical and academic research centers in the field. The information would be accessible to doctors, specialists, patients, as well as the media and public.
In addition, he plans for the society to provide a social and sports club, a scientific forum, and a service center for patients. It would organize social and sports events for patients and their families and friends, and help them with their psychological, social and family problems. It would help in getting scholarships, jobs and would arrange marriages among patients under medical supervision and with expert consultation.
Rami is in a hurry. He explains that he doesn’t have much time. That is why he would love to achieve his vision before he has to go.
Thousands of AIDS patients as well as those suffering from other sexually and blood-transmitted diseases are suffering in silence. Most hide their illness, which increases the chances of transmitting the disease. It also raises the risk for patients who might skip certain treatments and precautions to hide their problem.
Women, more than men, pay a heavy price. They usually contract the disease from husbands, children and by blood transfusion. Even if they sin, who are we to judge them? Is the heavy punishment not harsh enough for us to try them more?
I call for Rami’s dream to be realized. I call on all those who could help, by joining and supporting his project, to give a hand.

Where Does All This Money Go?

Tens of billions of hard currency returned to Saudi Arabia after Sept. 11. Higher oil prices brought more cash. This is a big plus in any economy. But like when it rains on our cities, we are caught unprepared.
While hundreds of thousands are out of work, especially women and the young, and many investment opportunities go unutilized, it seems so odd that all this cash is not making much difference. Lack of investment avenues is sending much of Saudi capital to other investor-friendly places, such as Dubai, Jordan, Qatar, Tunis and Bahrain. Laws and regulations in more welcoming and encouraging environments as those areas are making it harder for Saudi investors to resist.
Yes, you want to be patriotic and invest in your motherland, but you cannot be the only one who cares. You are ready to sacrifice and go the extra mile to build that factory. But if you can’t cut all the red tape in a reasonable time, acquire the license, get a piece of land in the industrial area, or the necessary infrastructure and services outside that area, then no one blames you if you cut your losses and run.
You call on Jabel Ali industrial authorities in Dubai and a jinni comes out of the lamp to grant you all your requests. Your dream project can be rolling in no time, and all facilities and support for establishment, production and export are provided as part of the package.
In short, you feel that your success is everyone’s concern from the governor to the cargo handler. And if you need the law, the law is fair and square. No one is above the law and no case takes longer than needed. More important, everyone understands the difference between business and marriage contracts, dispute settlement and religious fatwa, 21st century commerce and medieval trade.
The money that stayed home went mostly three ways: The inflated Saudi stock market, real estate and money investment funds. Some, especially smaller capitals, were wasted on hasty, badly studied projects and fraudulent schemes.
Many unneeded shops were opened everywhere, especially in the communication and food sectors.
Today, there are more mobile phone malls and stores in Jeddah’s Palestine Street than the whole city of three million inhabitants needs. Billions of riyals are given to shadowy traders in mobile phone charge cards SAWA who promise astronomical profits only to run away with the spoils.
Real estate prices are skyrocketing. Many projects, as Bani Alnajjar Market in Madinah, promised up to 70 percent profits, millions of shares, and took billions of riyals for them, then went bankrupt. Investors in similar projects are crowding courts and police stations with little hope of getting their money back.
They joined thousands who have been waiting for settlement of similar cases for over twenty years, like that of Al-Ajhori investment fund.
The stock market broke the 10,000-point mark. When the newly established Al-Bilad Bank and communication giant Etihad Etisalat went public, people rushed to buy twenty times the offered shares. That is great, except that you try to buy ten thousand shares and get only three. Besides, many believe the market cannot sustain this boom. The bubbles eventually will burst as the American Internet startups did in the late nineties.
What can we do to absorb the flood of money and make the most of it? I am not an economist, but it does not need an expert to see that we are not doing enough on most fronts. We started privatization long ago when we sold 30 percent of state-owned Saudi Arabian Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC). Twenty years later, the rest of the giant petrochemical is still owned by the government.
The Saudi Telecom Company sold a similar percentage, and we still wait for the rest to be sold. Saudi Airlines announced their privatization plan many years ago. Today, they are still planning! The National Commercial Bank, our biggest, is not even planning. Same is the case with Petromin, Riyad Bank, and many others. How can we hope to absorb the extra capital without expanding the limited market?
We also need to protect people’s investments. Huge real estate development projects are eating up billions, and then go bankrupt. All an investor needs to sell shares in a multibillion-riyal project is to get a license from the Commerce Ministry after proving his land ownership. Having done that, it is a no-rule game. He could buy a palace and private jet, or invest the money in other projects and countries.
When all is lost, there is no one authority to turn to. Courts are overwhelmed and cases lurch for ages.
We badly need new investment openings for our money. But first, let us set up the right systems that encourage, protect and secure investors’ rights and riyals. Without that, the flow will keep moving on... elsewhere.

Without a Free, Fearless Press

Dr. Khaled Batarfi,
kbatarfi@al-madina.com

One nagging criticism of Arab culture concerns the state of our media. Democracy, critics say, cannot flourish in an environment where freedom of the press is as hard to get as gardens of Eden are in the Empty Quarter desert. For the public to have a voice in the running of their affairs, they need an independent outlet, a supermarket of ideas, an unbiased forum for intellectual debate. How could you enlighten the people and offer them a venue to express their views on the issues of the day, if you let the state control what is said and discussed?

True. There is a serious conflict of interests here. A chairman of a company cannot decide for the shareholders what issues to discuss and what not; what criticism to level and how to. Of course, if left to him, no one will be allowed to express anything but praise. Forget about the losses, the diminishing market share, and the sinking share price. All what matters is how fortunate we are that our leadership survived global conspiracies.

Things are changing, however. When it was feasible for a government to seize the airwaves and be the only voice people hear, it was possible to play the Big Brother. Today, it is inconceivable to exercise such power and enjoy such monopoly. The world is becoming one integrated electronic net. Communication is increasingly direct, independent, easy and cheap. It is as difficult now for parents to control what their kids watch and hear, as it is for governments to control what their people watch and hear.

The Arab world was slow to use the information superhighway. Satellite TVs, mobile phones and the Internet are still less used here than in other countries. Until recently, Arab governments were dragging their feet in introducing modern communication tools. In some Arab countries, it is still hard to get permission to buy a mobile line, an Internet connection or a satellite dish. Still, obstacles or not, the Arab masses enjoy unprecedented access to news and information about local and foreign affairs. People, across the country, the Arab world, and beyond, are virtually meeting and discussing taboo issues freely any time they choose. Programs in nongovernmental satellite TVs are reporting crises and events in a free professional way without having to toe the official line. Al-Jazeera, MBC, Al-Mustagella, and other semi-independent channels led the way. Others followed.

Even state-run channels, like Abu Dhabi, had to compete in an equally professional manner. A new dawn of openness has been descending on the Arab world in the last decade. Both the public and private sectors are getting used to stern criticism in the media. It was harder in the beginning, but now it is much easier for journalists to ask hard questions and for officials to disclose embarrassing facts.

Events that went unreported, or were heavily embellished and misrepresented in the past, are now told as they are. The public is getting used to its new freedom. More and more it is becoming impossible to roll back the trend. This is especially so because most of the population is young. They were born in a more transparent world, and they won’t accept the darker age their parents were forced to tolerate.

Freedom doesn’t come cheap and doesn’t always produce right outcomes. Along the way, we have to endure the summer heat and the winter cold, blowing winds and flooding waves, roadblocks and sudden bumps. We can’t have double standard on challenges and opportunities. If we conduct an election, we must recognize the winners even if they were our enemies. If we demand freedom of the press, we should acknowledge the rights of our opposition, never mind how harsh they are, how outrageous they act, or how vulnerable our current state is. To pronounce that “no freedom for the enemies of freedom” is to appoint ourselves public prosecutor, judge and jury on behalf of the people.

It is not for us to decide who people choose, what stations they tune to, or who has the right to be on air and who is not. The closing down of newspapers and online sites, the banning of TV and radio stations will damage our credibility and undermine our noble cause. What influences people in the final analysis is not the reporters but the reported events. Even if you kill the messenger, they will get the message, one way or another. Their media alternatives are many and varied, so forget about censorship. It is just not possible.

I say this not only to our Arab leaders and the intellectual elite, but also to Western powers, intelligentsia and media pushing for reforms in the Arab world. We do need reforms, but we also have to accept the unexpected and unwelcome outcomes. There is no half-pregnant in democracy, either we have it all ... or we don’t.