ABHA, 15 December 2005 — The second day of the Fifth National Dialogue Forum entitled “Us and Others” addressed whether Saudis should work out differences among themselves before moving to the question of dialogue with non-Saudis.
“How can we indulge in a dialogue with the others if we ourselves are scattered into different groups,” Sheikh Hasan Al-Nimer, a Shiite scholar from the Eastern Province, told Arab News yesterday.
Al-Nimer suggested that Saudis ought to recognize the existence of a variety of Islamic schools of thought inside the Kingdom.
But on the other hand, other participants were upset at what they believe were deviations from the main theme of the forum.
“I believe raising the issue of differences among us is an exaggeration,” religious scholar Mohsen Al-Awaji told Arab News, adding that this was not a forum for addressing internal disagreements. He stressed the need for Saudis to express unity during a time of great change happening outside the country’s borders.
Al-Awaji said King Abdullah himself had requested a national debate at last week’s Makkah summit regarding the presence of different Islamic schools in the country and the Muslim world.
The forum kicked off yesterday by addressing the third topic of the agenda: The role of civil society in building relations between Saudis and outsiders.
Much of the day was devoted toward forming a national vision to regulate the way Saudis are to deal with others.
The participants debated all issues that they thought had a major role in establishing healthy relationships with the world, especially in the areas of media and education. Salman Al-Hatlan, editor in chief of Forbes Arabia, called for allowing foreign media to set up bureaus in the Kingdom.
“We have nothing to hide,” he said. “And I think the Western media have the right to establish main offices in cities like Jeddah and Riyadh. That would certainly benefit us greatly.”
Sheikh Abdul Aziz Al-Humayed, president of all courts in Tabuk region, agreed with Al-Hatlan, saying that no one should object to hosting others in our country. But he also made it clear that this must be done in accordance with Shariah regulations.
Another participant criticized the local media and blamed them for not playing a better role in delivering the true perspective of Saudis to the West.
The dean of a girls’ college in Najran, Nora Al-Mehbad, said that there were obvious holes in the performance of the media.
“Our media need to renew their methods. The Saudi media have become unable to show a more positive picture about our country,” said Al-Mehbad.
Dalal Diaa from Jeddah radio refuted this criticism of Saudi media by saying that “successful media cannot be done without sufficient financial backing, which we lack in the Kingdom.”
The forum participants also explored the issue of gender in their discussions yesterday and its relationship to how Saudis interact with outsiders.
Author Badriya Al-Bisher said that to build a healthy relationship with women on the other side, the situation inside the Kingdom has to be corrected at all levels.
“The participation of women has to expand,” said Al-Bisher. “Until recently, women were even denied pensions, and they still cannot participate in the Shoura Council or municipal elections.”
Riyadh Sheikh Mousa ibn Abdul Aziz agreed with Al-Bisher and accused extremists of excluding women from participation in civic affairs.
Regarding education, many speakers said Saudi Arabia must boost its participation in international exchange programs. Mona Al-Dameg, from the girls’ educational college in Qassim, said there should be special scholarships in our universities for Muslims who are minorities in their respective countries and that the government should participate in sending Saudis to study in foreign countries in order to benefit from different cultures.
Hussein Shobokshi, an economic consultant from Makkah, said Islamic universities in the Kingdom are in great need of support, as they failed to communicate with Muslims, let alone non-Muslims.
