MADINAH, 28 July 2006 — Despite determined efforts by the passport authorities to rid the city of illegal immigrants, residents complain that many of Madinah’s old suburbs with rundown houses and winding narrow streets still contain a large number of overstayers who have turned these areas in to drug, bootlegging and prostitution dens.
Majed Al-Muhammadi, a resident of the Al-Seeh neighborhood, says that the areas of Al-Seeh and Al-Jabouer are safe havens for overstayers because of their old buildings and maze-like narrow streets.
“Such neighborhoods are used by overstayers because they have lots of exits and it is easy for people to run away from the police and passport department if there is a raid. This place is attractive for illegal residents as the rents are low and the area is close to central Madinah,” said Al-Muhammadi.
He added that many single overstayers were living in these rundown suburbs despite a previous ban on singles living in residential areas specified for families.
Al-Muhammadi says that single men cause local families a lot of problems. He called on the authorities to reorganize the neighborhoods, make roads to allow police cars and fire engines access and implement the law banning singles living in family areas.
Faisal Al-Shareef used to live in Al-Seeh but then became fed up with the situation there and moved to Al-Aziziyah. “A lot of people, especially Asian workers, have turned their homes into international telephone booths. These people are taking advantage of the fact that it is difficult to trace them in such areas and that there is an absence of police,” he said.
Al-Shareef added that many Saudi youths come the neighborhood to buy drugs and alcohol and also to visit brothels. He believes that the best way to bring an end to the problem is to punish the landlords.
“We need to make them part of the problem. That is the only way the owners will exercise more care while renting out their buildings,” he added.
Al-Shareef said, “The municipality should renovate these neighborhoods and put them back in order especially because there are plenty of abandoned buildings. Such houses should be demolished to stop them from being used for illegal purposes.”
Other residents called on the local authorities including the passport department, the police and government officials to review previous police raids on these areas to find out how effective such campaigns have been.
