Now Target Of Al-Qaeda, Saudis Propose Democratic Reforms

by Peyman Pejman

(IPS) RIYADH -- Ever since Crown Prince Abdullah, the de facto ruler of this country, took power in 1995, many Saudis have been anxiously waiting for the political reforms he has promised.

The question of the sincerity of the government in this highly conservative and tightly-ruled kingdom, the birthplace of Islam, has been subject to unending debate.

In March, the government arrested half a dozen known reform activists. While a few have been released, others are still in custody, adding fuel to the arguments of those who say the government is not sincere about reforms that range from elections, greater involvement in day-to-day affairs, and voting by women, who do not have the right of suffrage in this oil-rich kingdom.

But many Saudis say they are convinced that the process has started and will not make a U-turn. It might not fly, but it will not grind to a halt, they say.

Khaled Batarfi, a political analyst in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia's second largest city, says what is being debated is not whether to proceed with the reform, but its details: to what end, in which direction and at what speed.

"Imagine, all of us, the people of Saudi Arabia, are on a plane, flying from one destination to another. There is no question that all of us would like to reach some destination," he says in an interview.

"The question is to what destination. Nobody says stop in mid-air because we know we will crash. Nobody is saying 'let's go back'. Nobody is saying 'let's throw some people out'. We want more influence on the route (we take)," he adds. "What kind of route and what kind of speed. Do we go East or do we go West? Do we go as far Washington or do we stop in Europe?"

With approval from the ruling family, Saudi Arabia has held a number of "national dialogue" conferences, during which hundreds of people from all walks of life -- women, Islamists, liberals, professionals -- have debated what changes they want to recommend to their leaders for implementation.

"The kingdom is committed to reforms. But reforms will be carried out at the appropriate time, in the appropriate way so as to not disturb the peace and stability of the country," Crown Prince Abdullah said during a March meeting with Saudi Arabia's intellectuals.

Many Saudis, whether in the government or not, find themselves in a quandary. On one hand, they want to continue to push their government to remain committed to an acceptable pace of reform.

On the other hand, they do not want to be perceived as taking those measures because of pressure from the outside world, especially the United States.

But even those who believe in the government's sincerity are warning that they will not wait forever.

Khaled Maeena, an outspoken pro-reform advocate and editor of 'Arab News', one of the country's two English newspapers, says reform should take place for the sake of Saudis, and not with the purpose of appeasing foreign governments.

"I think we should go with our own speed, but at the same time evaluate that speed. If it is slow, we should push it to a certain decent and respectable speed. We need not be prodded by the West. We have to protect our own interests. But let us remember, time waits for no man," he says.

Maeena says one reason some Saudi Arabians in general, whether officials or ordinary citizens, are hesitant to enforce faster reform is that they fear an invasion of foreign influence in this conservative society. That fear, he says, is baseless.

"There are those amongst us who are afraid from change, saying foreign influence will come. Foreign influence will not come because wherever Islam went, it took: Indian culture, the culture in Spain, culture in Persia, the culture in all these places," Maeena says.

"The Muslims came from the desert but yet they built some of the most beautiful gardens in the world, which is that indication that when 'bab al-ijtihad', or the reason and logic prevailed, then they were able to advance. But if we wallow in self-pity (and say) the cultural invasion in the West is out to get us, then I think we are harming ourselves," he adds.

There are, however, those in Saudi Arabia who believe the government is not serious about changes in the first place.

Mohsen Awaji, a former political science associate professor who spent time in jail for Islamic and anti-government activities, admits that the "reform train has left the station." But, he adds, the Saudi ruling family will do anything to stop the progress.

Crown Prince Abdullah's government has promised that the country will hold unprecedented elections by October to choose half of the members of all local councils in the country.

"Municipal elections will be the beginning of the Saudi citizens' participation in the political system," Crown Prince Abdullah told a recent session of the Shura Council, the country's unelected consultative assembly.

The foreign minister, Prince Saud Al-Faisal, similarly remarked that Saudi Arabia "has reached a stage in our development that requires expanding political participation."

Pro-reform activists hope this will lead to holding nationwide elections, hopefully even with the participation of women, who currently do not have the right to vote.

Awaji says that if the government is serious about holding elections, it would have started preparing people for the process of holding elections. But this, he says, is something that has not happened so far.

"You see, election means they have to adopt the idea of elections before the propaganda. The idea of the elections means that they have to allow the people to participate in ruling this country," Awaji adds.

Saudi officials have said the pace of the reform will be dictated by the country's social and political norms and culture.

They say faster-than-needed reform will cause instability in the country and leave the doors open for increased activities by terrorist groups, such as al-Qaeda, who have carried out a number of bombings in the country in the past year.