RIYADH, 28 October 2004 — The World Assembly of Muslim Youth (WAMY) has taken up with the Saudi government the question of lifting the ban on transfer of funds abroad as it has compounded the plight of deserving students and orphans as well as WAMY’s 90 offices in the Kingdom and abroad.
“They are living in miserable conditions. Even the orphans have been suffering. We have asked the overseas students to borrow money till the ban is lifted,” Dr. Saleh Babear, assistant secretary-general of WAMY for executive affairs, told Arab News. He was speaking on the occasion of WAMY’s iftar party attended by diplomats from various countries.
Dr. Saleh Al-Wohaibi, secretary-general of WAMY, welcomed the ambassadors and briefed them on WAMY’s objectives. He said the iftar party was intended to promote dialogue in the interest of promoting international understanding as advocated by Islam.
Referring to the impact of restrictions on WAMY, Dr. Babear said 10,000 students who were on the payroll of WAMY were receiving a monthly stipend of $100. This was in addition to about 10,000 orphans who were receiving SR100 per month. All this has been stopped for over a year.
If the situation does not improve, he hinted that at least 10 to 15 percent of the staff may have to be retrenched. The restrictions were imposed following allegations by the US government that some charitable organizations in the Kingdom were acting as a conduit for transfer of funds to terrorists. Saudi Arabia has dismissed these allegations and called on the US government to substantiate these charges before it could take action against those involved.
Dr. Babear said WAMY has voiced concerns with the Saudi government officials over the situation created by the ban. “Ours is a democratic organization run by a board of trustees, who are elected by the general assembly. We have nothing to hide about our activities, which are conducted in a transparent manner.”
Asked about the impact of restrictions, he said there was a 40-percent drop in collections, “but we are trying to make it up through donations in Ramadan. If anyone wants to donate, he can deposit it in our account or he can visit us personally for the donation. We used to have boxes around the mosques and in some supermarkets. But now they are banned.
“We are confident that a majority of the Saudis familiar with WAMY’s activities and its cause would continue to support us... There is a freeze, but we hope that it is a passing phase. We are confident that these restrictions will be lifted and we shall be able to resume our activities.”
Responding to the US allegation that WAMY’s funds have been going into terrorist hands, Dr. Babear said the issue was politically motivated. “Nobody can provide any evidence to implicate WAMY, even though such charges have been leveled for a long time,” he added.
