The Saudi Liberal Network, one of the biggest local forums, have announced today that the website will be shut down due “extraordinary circumstances and expensive costs.” In a short message posted on their homepage, the owners apologized for the sudden closure.
Earlier today I spoke to one of the forum moderators, who told me the decision to close the website was very difficult. “The owners have come under a huge pressure. They had no choice but to shut it down,” he said. The moderator did not reveal who was behind the pressure, but he said it was from “high above.”
However, this sudden closure could be temporary as we have seen in the past when the forum was closed for 8 months during the year 2008 and then reopened again. The website has also gone under many cyber attacks over the past five years. Such attacks have been a well-known feature of the war between liberal and conservative forums in the country.
My source tells me that the owners are currently looking into passing the ownership to a new group of people who can continue to carry the torch. But until a further announcement, the future of the Saudi Liberal Network remains unknown.
14 Comments
Unfortunately, here in Saudi Arabia lack the culture of dialogue and freedom of opinion
And this principle of contrary opinion as long as you disagree with me that means you are my enemy
I hope to return to the Libral network we need to discuss our issues in a style away from the oppression that is exercising
i think it ll be open soon. just be optemistic.
yeah man , i was disappointed to :(
i am still looking for alternative, if you got any please let us know ,, thanks Ahmed :)
I was browsing the site when it shut. It was working fine, then I took a break, and when I came back I clicked on a thread and instead that message came up.
It will be missed. I was never a member, but I regularly read it. It’s always interesting to read what Najd’s secular nationalists were debating.
Motaz,
I’ve seen 2 forums acting as replacement:
1. The free Saudi liberal forum: http://www.humanf.org
2. The free thinking forum: http://www.sahatona.com
Sahatona is more established of the two, being around for longer.
I was surprised and shocked by that, but I would like to say that the mission of enlightenment will continue and will never stop!
“High above” as usual.
Hi,
Thats bad, a well read forum should not be closed. May be the reasons might be stronger than the demand for the website.
Cheers.
http://www.assaudiah.com/forum
the alternative site is http://www.humanf.org
Which I think it will face the same end.
I’m amazed at how really F**ked up is the mind of Saudi conservatives, they are like no other.
Btw, the Forums was hacked at 12AM Just the day before it closed, and came back in few minutes (record timing :) )
I hope it comes really soon.
Saudi libral was the wider crackdown on freedom of expression in Saudi Arabia
Rest in peace :(
As you may all know
“ممنوع التجمع”
you expect a forum to stand erect,
thiers is bigger than yours… life goes on, maybe, just maybe, in 200 years we can talk….. It will depend on which era our beloved home will be contexed, 2210, or 610?!
Weather we are in heaven or hell by that time is a matter of current personal perception…..
“I’m amazed at how really F**ked up is the mind of Saudi conservatives, they are like no other.”
Marxists are just as bad at tolerating disagreement.
Id say that there were two scenarios, the forum is still under penetration; the prove for so is because the close came before penetration just hours–But i don’t think so is enough an acceptable reason due to I think the owner at least would send the member about it, no need to haid this problem. the second one, what is so-celled ‘ High above’ i think this is excuse very enough. Why? because the owners canceled all their contacts and even they didn’t send any message to the members to tell them about it, it was something never happen. i am who one of the thousands was amazed to ask what is going on?
i really do understand why they didn’t tell because the owners live in society has no any freedom –which no one would go to a jail because own a forum and all tax who can get for speaking free.
but why did this happen at this specific time ? does it mean no liberal anymore in Saudi Arabia and the high above will fight us?