Saudi Arabia is experiencing a number of crimes that did not exist in the past. One ministry official told me that what was happening was not that crime was spreading, but that journalists are now allowed to write about it in newspapers. That may be true.
But if we look at the changes that happened in our society in the last two years, it seems inevitable that crime should increase. This is not because more newspapers are writing about them, as the minister told me, but because of poverty, unemployment, economic recession and stagflation.
This is evident if we look at the kinds of crimes that are committed. Armed robbery, theft and production of illegal substances can be attributed mostly to foreigners and the unemployed. And yes, there are unemployed Saudis who are desperate for money.
Then there are revenge crimes, whose perpetrators are almost certainly sick people who do not have the excuse of unemployment.
The most dangerous group of such criminals are the members of Al-Qaeda and brainwashed youngsters.
Surveys conducted in Algeria and Egypt show that the main cause of crime is poverty. If poverty is eliminated, then crime can be eliminated. Setting aside one hundred million riyals to execute a national strategic plan to eliminate poverty is a step in the right direction.
Arab News From the Local Press 19 March 2003
