JEDDAH, 20 March 2008 — While the General Presidency of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice has made it clear that its members are banned from “hot pursuits,” opinions expressed to Arab News reflect mixed feelings about the commission’s role in society.

On Sunday a man and woman died in a car accident in Tabuk while commission members were chasing them on suspicion of being in a state of khulwa (illegal seclusion of an unrelated man and woman).

“I support the commission and wish that media people would not be blind to the great services done by the commission in upholding the moral values of our society,” said Fehaid Al-Shareef, a Saudi from Makkah. “It is unfair to hold the entire establishment of the commission responsible for a few inadvertent slips on the part of some of its members.”

On the other hand, Waheeb Abdullah, another Saudi, said that it was time for the authorities to take strong measures to check the actions of commission members and hold them accountable for their excesses.

“Several fatal accidents have been reported recently because of the commission’s harsh treatment and disrespect for the regulations. Who gave the commission the authority to chase a violator, whoever it may be?” Abdullah said.

Many of the feelings expressed were similar to the types of reactions one might receive in light of excessive force by police. Last year the Interior Ministry ordered the commission to seek police help to detain suspects, but at least two high-profile cases recently illustrate that some commission members are violating the ministry’s orders.

“I would like to make it clear that the General Presidency of the Commission had repeatedly issued instructions absolutely banning hot pursuits,” said Ahmad Qassim Al-Ghamdi, the director of the moral police in Makkah.

“There are other means to stop escaping violators, such as noting the plate number and description of the car and informing police to do the pursuit,” he added. “I would also like to warn any violator of moral regulations, who may be inclined to take to heels at the sight of the commission members, of the terrible consequences of their act.”

Khaled Hussein, a Makkah resident, stressed the need to prosecute commission members for committing crimes and in general to strip the moral police of their authority to detain people. Hussein said this is required even if commission members don’t commit any crimes or violate orders from their superiors.

“Some commission members behave in a humiliating manner while they see men with their wives. They harass couples and start interrogating husband and wife separately in a mean manner,” he said.

On the other hand, Majid Najari said the commission should enforce these moral laws so the police can focus on conventional crimes.