Category Saudi Arabia

Mixing Banned at Saudi Banks

Few weeks ago I was talking with a friend of mine who works in the HQ of the Saudi Hollandi Bank when he told me that squads of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice have been raiding his workplace lately. He said the commission were not happy about the mixed work environment there and demanded that the bank segregate men from women. At that time I thought the bank would ignore the commission’s calls because a) it is none of their business, and b) banks HQ’s have been mixed work places for years.

What do I know? Not a very long time after that incident, we read that an “unwritten” order to ban mixing of men and women was given to all banks. The order also demanded banks to allocate separate gates and elevators for women only. None of the local papers here reports the news, and AlArabiya.net which broke the story first do not mention who issued the order. So, as you can see, here we have an order that is unwritten and unattributed, and SAMA, which regulate banking in the country, is declining to comment. Female bank employees said the decision would negatively affect their careers.

I’m not shocked, that’s for sure, I have seen enough lunacy taking place in this land, but I got some questions: How on earth the banks are willing to comply to some unwritten order? How those affected by this can object to it? Why this applies to banks and other private sector businesses but not to Saudi Aramco, which is supposedly owned by the government? Can NSHR say and/or do something about this?

So much for promoting gender equality and empowering women…

The Weak End

It wasn’t unexpected at all, at least not to me: several members of the Shoura Council decided to use the religion card against a proposal to change the Kingdom’s official Thursday-Friday weekend to Friday and Saturday. It is truly a pity how some people in this country would shove religion in everything even when it has nothing to do with it. The weak arguments raised by these right honorable members of our esteemed council are “baseless,” just like one of them described the economic reasons cited for the change.

Frustrated, although absolutely not surprised, I find myself repeating what Tariq al-Maeena has said earlier this week: “Are they trying to frustrate efforts toward a more progressive and productive society? It seems to have worked in the past on other issues such as the liberalization of laws relating to women.” It seems to me that this is exactly the case: when you can’t find a reason to halt the change, hey, you can use religion. But you know what I’m eagerly waiting for now? A fatwa by the religious establishment here declaring that changing the weekend is going to make this nation go to hell in a handbasket.

Who Else Wants a Good Textbook?

Secularism on the ethical side means chaos and mocking religion and virtue (…) Democracy is the political expression of secularism i.e. secularism is the origin and democracy is its branch in the political domain (…) The democratic system contradicts in its origin and essence the Islamic system

One of the courses I’m taking this semester is 104 SLM aka Political System in Islam. The textbook of this course has been revised several times over the years, and the latest edition in our hands today was authored by no less than six faculty members of the Islamic Studies department at KSU. Unfortunately, however, when start reading it, it falls miserably short as you would think this is some political party manifesto, not a textbook that is supposed to be fair and unbiased. The mentioned above quotes are just few examples of the gems that fill the textbook of choice for a mandatory course that all students in KSU, males and females, must pass in order to graduate. So much for raising political awareness in the youth.

Boom

While preparing to write one of the previous posts I had come across many images of the new projects under development in Saudi Arabia. I collected these images in this Ikbis album for your viewing pleasure. If one picture worth a thousand words, and if these pictures are any indication, then we are actually experiencing a new boom. Let’s just hope to come out of it with minimum damage.

Whatever Happened to Balanced Development

I watched Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum on television announcing the new national strategy for the United Arab Emirates last week. He was confident and direct, and not afraid to say the truth no matter how painful or embarrassing it could be. The way he talked about the ministry of justice for example was just unbelievable.

Few months ago, Mohammed bin Rashid, a true visionary, has locked the members of his new cabinet in a fancy resort in Dubai and told them they won’t leave the place until they come up with a clear strategy of the country for the coming years. Obviously, after making Dubai the miracle that it is today, he now wants to take the rest of the emirate with him to the future. Is there any doubt he would do it? I, for one, have no doubt. All the best to our brothers in the UAE.

Now moving to our magic kingdom, I guess I wasn’t the only one to be disappointed that the king’s speech to the Shoura Council carried no major announcements. The major news came later last week was launching a number of new projects worth US$31.5 bn in Riyadh. Amazing. That was my immediate reaction while watching the presentations on television. However, this also made me wonder about the “balanced development” agenda that many people were hailing the government for promoting last year.

Just last year, the media was abuzz with the news about the King’s visits to different corners of the country to launch new megaprojects in regions that were admittedly neglected and underdeveloped, including six economic cities that are expected to change the face of Saudi Arabia.

But probably our Najdi brothers got jealous seeing other parts of the country getting a little share of the development cake and decided to do something about it. I bet the rest do not envy the central region; I bet they are genuinely happy for their counterparts there; and I bet this leaves them wondering: was balanced development a true promise or merely a temporary slogan?

Al-Yamamh Girls are Blogging

Mrs. Lobat Asadi who teaches English at Al-Yamamah College in Riyadh has sent me a link to her project website that is used as a part of the course she is giving there. I know this practice might be common elsewhere, but I think this is interesting because I’ve never come across anything like this happening here in Saudi Arabia. Mrs. Asadi also provides links (check out the left sidebar) to blogs by her students. She thinks many people will enjoy reading the thoughts of these young Saudi women, and that “they are much more intelligent than people give them credit for.” I agree with her that many people underestimate the capabilities of our women, and I’m glad that blogs are offering opportunities to change the conventional thoughts.