MAKKAH, 4 May 2008 — The anti-crime campaign in some poor neighborhoods of Makkah last month showed positive results, according to Ayoub Al-Jamal, a Saudi businessman of Burmese origin and one of the sponsors of the campaign.
“The Makkah Sans Crimes campaign, which took place between April 1 and 17, has no doubt brought about a radical change in the outlook of several communities, particularly the Burmese, in these districts. They now believe that they have to play a big role, even greater than the police, to make the place free from crimes,” said Al-Jamal, who is also a member of the Misfala District Council.
Al-Jamal cited one incident where a father turned in his bootlegging son. “The incident shows the deep impact the campaign made in the minds of the local people,” he said.
As part of the campaign, police visited various suburbs of the holy city, mainly those with high concentration of Burmese and Bangladeshi residents, stressing the need to abstain from crime.
Al-Jamal narrated another instance where a liquor brewer was rounded up by the local people, who let him go after he promised that he would never again deal in illicit drinks. He had converted his house to a brewery and used to sell liquor quite openly.
In the past, no one in the neighborhood dared to speak up against him because he threatened to beat or kill anyone who turned him in. But after the campaign the people in the area decided to stand united and not to be cowed down by the man’s threats. “Now no one dares to sell liquor on that street,” he said.
“Another perceptible change is at night. Previously the nights used to be full of brawls and quarrels. But now after 11 p.m. shops close and people go home peacefully. Even the sex workers in the back streets have disappeared, particularly after the people turned in a pimp in the Nakasa district to police. The man used to publicly invite passersby to the prostitutes kept by him,” Al-Jamal said.
He said similar campaigns would be organized in other districts as well.
