The outside world is interested in Saudi Arabia for several reasons. It is the cradle of Islam and home to Islam’s two holiest mosques. It is also the largest oil producer, and recently there has been a new reason for international interest: It is accused of being a terrorist haven.
Ever since Sept. 11, linking the Kingdom and terrorism has become a regular idea served by the Western media to its readers and viewers. Interest in the Kingdom increased following the May 12 bombings in Riyadh. This time it is not only the media that is heavily involved. But, American government officials and intellectuals are echoing the same rhetoric.
US Attorney General John Ashcroft recently stood before Congress saying he wanted to tighten security laws by introducing capital punishment for terrorist crimes while displaying a “fatwa” authorizing the killing of Americans and using weapons of mass destruction against non-Muslims.
Time magazine said that reading a Saudi newspaper would show the claims of the Kingdom that it is free of extremism are a myth. The magazine also said that Saudi writers and commentators admit there is extremism in their society but nobody does anything about it. It also said that many religious scholars became aware of the trends only after the tragedy in Riyadh and yet have done nothing to confront the extremist ideology.
The Saudis realize the need to change the atmosphere that breeds terrorism, and the government is applying strict measures to monitor terrorism and extremism, but it needs to take bolder steps to deal with the extremists, improve its school curriculum and prevent donations from reaching extremist movements. In short, the American administration should help the Saudis draw their own road map.
Of course, we don’t expect this to happen but we realize the best thing we can do is work hard to prove we are a civilized Muslim society — and to do this without waiting for the government to do everything on our behalf.
We should work to prove we are a people who reject terrorism. Such an approach should be pursued as a national issue of concern to every single one of us since it affects our future and that of our children.
Saudi society after Sept. 11 is no longer closed to Westerners who may sometimes know more about our society than we ourselves do. This should lead us to be more open and frank when dealing with ourselves and with others.
- Arab News From the Local Press 19 June 2003
