The May 12 bombings in Riyadh served as a stimulant for Saudi writers who have flooded our newspapers with comments, analyses and views. Many have found in the attacks an opportunity to express vague opinions, criticizing only for the sake of criticism. Some commentators lead the reader nowhere by offering meaningless contributions that neither address the issue nor provide solutions. The day will be remembered as a tragic day in our history and world history as well. Everyone of us was appalled by the outrageous act committed by individuals who had been brainwashed and who had chosen a route other than the one known by all.

We have been hearing and reading that the school curriculum, the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, Friday sermons and religious revivalism are totally unrelated to the terrorist attack and that the attack itself should not be blown out of proportion. Things must be viewed from a wider perspective before any judgment is issued. It is true that many social problems have been positively addressed through these institutions and many issues have been dealt with and made clear through them. However, those who call for changing the school curriculum, claiming it helped produce extremists and terrorists, should remember that they too came through that same school curriculum. The same system produced virtuous individuals, reformers, intellectuals and liberal secularists. Thousands of young people who are part of the religious revival continue to play a leading role, serving society through various charitable and voluntary organizations.

Saudi writers should present practical solutions and use the media as a platform from which change for the better could be carried out. This is the role required of them, and in order to fulfill that role, they must be objective and try to address people’s concerns realistically. The problems facing our youth are a major source of concern for all of us and, if left unresolved, may foster more corrupt behavior and provide us with people whose moral and social standards are far from normal or desirable.

The result of that could well be other incidents like the one in Riyadh that shattered the country’s security. Foremost among the practical solutions we need is government transparency.

Major government policies should be plain for everyone to see and with citizens heavily involved to supplement the government’s role. This means that the level of political awareness and active involvement among the population must be increased.

Youth make up half of the population, and efforts should be directed to solving their problems, starting with unemployment, which is the source of many of our social evils and problems. Half of those attending school now will soon leave and begin looking for jobs, increasing again the numbers of unemployed.

Imams and educators as well as members of the Commission must be constantly appraised of the country’s domestic and foreign policy in order to be able to play a more active role. People must realize that the security of the country is a collective responsibility involving everyone instead of only the security forces.

Arab News From the Local Press 28 May 2003