Saudis cling to outlet for free expression
The kingdom has told some private discussion groups to register or quit altogether.
from the April 11, 2007 edition
Page 2 of 3
Sami Angawi, the head of the Makkiah discussion group in Jeddah, which meets Tuesdays at his home, said he had not been asked yet to register or stop the meetings that take place in his home.
But the Al-Ain Cultural group in Al-Hassa, which is 15 years old and mainly discusses literary topics, was told to stop meeting in January 2007. But this did not stop the group, which has around 60 members, from participating in an arts showcase organized by the Saudi government.
"We haven't had any regular meetings since then," says Mohamed al-Naeem, the head of the group and a school principal. "But a smaller group of us have been meeting to produce a book of our collected poems and short stories."
The slow pace of substantial reform
Following the first municipal elections in more than 40 years in February 2005 and the enthronement of reformed-minded King Abdullah in August 2005 and his subsequent pardon of three jailed reformists, Saudis felt there was a glimmer of hope for political reform in the country.
Indeed, there have been signs of some social changes on the streets of Riyadh. Women can be seen without the traditional head coverings and the country's religious police, who enforce the kingdom's strict moral code, are less obvious.
But the arrest of nine Saudi reformists on Feb. 10, 2007, dashed the last hopes of many who were hoping for more substantial reforms. And many see the government move to regulate salons as another sign the kingdom is backing away from allowing more political openness.
The arrests took place after the nine had signed a petition addressed to King Abdullah calling for political reform and the splitting up of the Ministry of Interior. If this were implemented, it would seriously weaken the powers of the interior minister, Prince Naif ibn Abdul Aziz, who is known to be strongly opposed to the reform movement.
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