CUSTODIAN of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah’s request to Saudi ambassadors asking them to provide students overseas with guidance and advice has been very well received by parents. “You will find people who make mistakes or don’t know the rules,” the king said. These are worries for every mother whose child is in a foreign land and is liable to make the mistakes of youth. The monarch urged the ambassadors to hold regular meetings with students to show them how to abide by the rules of their host countries and advise them on how to properly represent their Islamic country. Some Saudi families still have concerns over the safety of their children and their acceptance in the West.
A similar message was delivered to educators and media professionals during a seminar entitled, “The Role of Media in Human Development,” held recently in Riyadh. More than 100 of the participants urged Saudi media to play a greater role in spreading tolerance and acceptance of progress and culture among Saudi youth, not only to prepare them for success in a future that will require such traits but also to help them project the moderate and accepting role that the Kingdom must play as the leader of the Muslim world.
The two-day seminar was organized by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and the Ministry of Culture and Education under the auspices of Prince Faisal Bin Salman, chairman of Saudi Research and Marketing Group (SRMG). Among the issues addressed at the event was the role of media in the development of education, children and youth. Prominent Saudi academics and media leaders took part in the debate and were urged to come up with media strategies and recommendations to serve in the development of youth and protect them from the threat of extremism, abuse and neglect.
Education is the key to success, and it is the weapon that can protect our young from hopelessness and despair. Dr. Seham Al-Suwaigh, dean of the Bahrain Royal College, gave a powerful presentation on the first day of the seminar regarding the challenges of the enforced education system in Saudi Arabia. She urged experts in the field to encourage research for better educational strategies to provide quality education and better mechanisms to monitor school performance. She said the Kingdom’s growing population requires additional schools and additional attention to ensure that educational standards are competitive with other nations vying for success in the global economy. A sticking point is success for both young men and young women in the Saudi educational system, as women now make up the majority of university graduates in the Kingdom.
Dr. Al-Suwaigh said the media need to serve as a watchdog of the educational system and make sure that promises for improvement are followed by implementation that results in improvement so that Saudi students eventually will be second to none in the global marketplace. Without intensive efforts to correct the deficiencies of our current system, out students will never meet international standards.
There can be hardly be two opinions that young Saudis need guidance and support so as not to be perceived as potential terrorists or extremists threatening world peace. One can only agree with the participants who stressed the need to confront the spread of extremism that has harmed Saudi society and has harmed the image of Saudi Arabia in the international community. Saudi media has been active in conducting awareness campaigns to protect our youth from the threats of terrorism and extremism. The media must continue to provide direction for the youth and help them regain the trust and respect as valuable contributing citizens in their nation’s building.
LBC-TV broadcaster Sheza Omar, who moderated a very lively session on the role of media in the empowerment of women, hosted a group of some of the prominent participants on the popular “Alhadath” program during which they reiterated their call for more effective media and urged men and women working in media to develop their communication skills and produce better programming to influence the young. The participants agreed that there is a need to educate and give media direction to the youth so that all serve as Saudi ambassadors when they travel abroad.
The session of the role of the media in the development of children and youth was moderated by Al-Jowhara Al-Angari of the National Society for Human Rights (NSHR). Al-Angari added depth to the session and urged the media to raise the level of public awareness about the legal rights of children and the moral responsibility of all Saudis to protect youth from abuse and other social ills that threaten our society.
The spread of satellite channels and the strong competition to attract the young viewers makes it difficult for parents to monitor or control youngsters’ viewing habits.
Charismatic television personality Ahmad Al-Sheqairi gave an inspiring presentation during which he urged the need to produce more quality TV programming for youngsters that compete with present TV shows which ignore the values that serve as the foundation for our Muslim society. He cautioned against the negative influence of some of the TV programs and noted some are contrary to our Islamic values. He stressed that in order to influence young people the programming must be as entertaining as the inappropriate fare against which it competes. Unfortunately, he said, programs that promote violence — cartoons, inappropriate video clips or sitcoms that encourage indecency — are among the programs that currently attract young people. Al-Sheqairi said the only way to compete is to produce more quality and entertaining programs that grab the attention of the young viewers. He presented live examples of successful ads and programs which include strong messages that are highly effective in promoting good citizenship and Muslim values. He said the media could play a more effective educational role in the absence of quality education in Saudi Arabia today. He concluded his brilliant presentation with a call to the Saudi media to develop communication skills and inspire the youth to succeed and excel.
Children must learn to respect knowledge and value the benefits of research and technology at an early age. Amr Koura, CEO of Alkarma Edutainment, addressed the need to promote Arabic educational TV programs, like “Sesame Street” that entertain and instill a love of learning in young viewers. He said the media should encourage youth to be active participants in media programs so that they can express their views and discuss their needs. The experience also would help them acquire confidence and enhance leadership skills at a young age. He also said TV contests and debates can be very beneficial as they encourage young people to develop their general knowledge and intellect.
Dr. Maisara Taher, a psychologist who presents a popular youth program on Channel One, spoke of media’s responsibility to guide the young toward a healthy future through programs that teach them their Islamic duties and social responsibilities. Parents and teachers need to monitor academic performance and also care about youngsters’ mental health in order to create a balanced younger generation, free of frustrations and rage.
On the second day, participants got an opportunity to exchange views and come up with recommendations for the development of human resources in Saudi Arabia. I was extremely impressed by the comments and opinions of some of the young media professionals who articulated the frustrations shared by many young people and demonstrated keen insight and analysis of the challenges facing the Kingdom. During the Education Workshop, a young Asharq Al-Awsat reporter was concerned by the influence of the propagators of the extremist ideology that infects organized summer programs and activities. He said unfortunately there is still a large number of the population who label those who support the reform movement as liberal, secular or associated with the West. These hardliners oppose progress and development and do not realize that they are threatening the future of young people throughout the Kingdom. He said the media should campaign for national unity through promoting love of country.
The most impressive moment of the whole event was when El-Mostafa Benlamlih, UN resident coordinator in Riyadh, concluded the sessions by introducing the organizing team, which was headed by Dima Al-Azem, UNDP public relations and knowledge associate. It is commendable that this very successful seminar was organized by a young team made up mostly of young women whose professionalism and efficiency helped make the event a rewarding experience for all. I hope that in the future we will see other organizations give opportunities to our young people to show their talents and allow them to take leadership positions to initiate change.
If members of the Saudi media came away from the event with any message, it was that they can no longer afford to play a casual role on the sidelines of these issues, filing a report when some information is released. If the Kingdom is going to succeed in implementing the reforms for our society to move forward, it is the media that must carry the banner, keep the watch and make sure that the citizens of the Kingdom remained informed while ensuring that all have a voice in the march of progress.
— Samar Fatany is a Jeddah-based radio journalist. She can be reached at [email protected]
