MAKKAH, 5 October 2007 — “The only thing worse than a mistake is continuing the mistake.” These were the words uttered by a prisoner in Makkah to Arab News.
Rihana, 14, was convicted of illegal seclusion with a man. Her father renounced her when she was arrested and only her mother and sisters visit her. She met with the man earlier and used to go out with him during her work as a seller. Then she went to the Holy Mosque and was arrested there. The court sentenced her to three months in prison and 90 lashes.
But, fortunately, Rihana has seen the light for her transgression. She has now memorized three chapters of the Holy Qur’an. “The best thing that happened to me in prison is that I now know three chapters of Qur’an by heart,” she said. “I also learned to write some words quickly. I regret what happened and I am not going to do this again.”
Other prisoners described how their crimes have led them closer to God.
Saleha went out of her mind when she decided to kill her husband because he married another woman. She burned the house while he was sleeping. The fire spread and was about to kill her and her kids, too.
She has served three years and she still hasn’t officially received a sentence. She is longing to see her kids. But the relatives of their dead father have asked them not to visit or see her again. “I feel contrite for what I have done to my husband and five children,” she said. They were about to burn in the fire too and they refuse to see me now. Even my family renounced me.”
She said she is in a disturbed psychological state. She was transferred to the hospital in Taif for two months and then sent back to prison. “I have been here for three years now and I have not stopped for a moment thinking about my children and my fate after they abandoned me,” she said. “I know nothing about them since I have been here. The social specialist of the prison tried to contact them several times to come and see me, but they refused and changed their phone numbers. The religious activities in the prison, like Qur’an recitation, and the lessons of Islamic principles have taught me new things about my religion I didn’t know before.”
Z.A.’s crime started with a simple fight between his kids and the kids of his neighbors. The fight escalated to include adults. Z.A. hit one of the other kids’ relatives. He then was sentenced to four years in prison. He has already served two and half years.
He said: “The years I have spent here in prison have changed me and strengthened the relationship between me and God, through attending Qur’an recitation and Islamic lectures. I also learned how to think about everything more wisely. I urge people to learn from my story and act wisely.”
S.T. is another prisoner who was imprisoned after a conviction of an offense and verbal abuse. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison. “I used to be reckless and disrespectful to others, but the time I spent in prison was quiet enough for me to reconsider everything in my life. In addition, I learned a lot of good things, like praying regularly,” he said.
A.A. was convicted of drinking alcohol. He was sentenced to two years and four months in prison. At the beginning, his life turned into a nightmare, but then he felt relieved after attending the Islamic lectures and Qur’an recitation lessons.
“Before prison, I was suffering an extremely bad temper and I used to fight with everyone,” he said. “I didn’t have any problems until I was arrested on charge of drinking alcohol.”
K.L. is serving time for drug-related charges. He has already served two years. He regrets all the crimes he committed, which hurt him, his family and the whole society. This guilty feeling overburdened him, so his psychological state deteriorated and turned into depression.
The religious programs prepared by the prison administration in cooperation with the Ministry of Islamic Affairs have succeeded in supporting K.L. and curing his depression.
“The best thing I acquired here in prison is to say prayers at their appropriate times,” he said. “Prayers give the human being the hope and the spirit to generate the motivation to be better person.”
Nihal is a prisoner who was accused of conniving with her husband in a murder crime. She has children from her ex-husband. She refused to speak about her case and said that there are still things unclear about the case. She has been in prison for eight months waiting for the court sentence. “I never imagined that I would be in such place one day,” she said.
