Intellectuals clash on Twitter
Published: Jan 1, 2012 23:01 Updated: Jan 1, 2012 23:01
JEDDAH: Social media sites are becoming the new turf where ideas and personalities are clashing.
Saudi writer Saleh Al-Shehi triggered a controversy on the first day of 2012 when he attacked the second intellectual forum that was held in Riyadh recently through Twitter.
He tweeted what had happened during the forum was shame to culture.
“I believe that the so called cultural enlightenment program in Saudi Arabia is centered on women,” he wrote on Twitter, drawing strong criticism from other writers and intellectuals.
Al-Shehi said he made this statement in the light of what he had seen and heard in many forums.
“The situation of most of these forums are shameful…I reached this conclusion not because of any instant thought or emotions but after studying the situation in the past years,” said Al-Shehi, who is a columnist for Al-Watan Arabic daily.
He also pointed out that what is done secretly is worse than what is seen in public.
Eissa Al-Ghaith, a judge at the criminal court in Riyadh, urged Al-Shehi to describe what had happened in the forum.
“If you are a witness (to those incidents) you should not hide it,” he said and called for more dialogue among intellectuals.
Saudi novelist Abdu Khal also urged Al-Shehi to make things clear.
“Your allegation has crossed the limit. You have to either prove it or face trial for libel. You should apologize before things reach there.”
Islamic scholar Awad Al-Qarni was also critical of the forum saying many prominent intellectuals were not invited.
“Those who are invited to these forums are belonged to those who subscribe to a specific way of thinking,” he stated.
“We have a right to participate in the forum as intellectuals and academics. There is nothing wrong if we share our difference of opinion. Let’s make it a venue for dialogue.”
Al-Qarni said there should be come clear-cut criteria for selecting participants of the forum.
Social media activists including users of Twitter and Facebook criticized some of the practices during the forum, saying they did not represent Saudi culture.
They called for quick intervention by authorities to correct the situation.
Culture and Information Minister Abdul Aziz Khoja opened the forum last Monday.
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HARIS
Jan 2, 2012 17:12
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