"This is about building our national image, the image of a country that we want to be great, strong and progressive...."
Toward the end of April 2005, the then Crown Prince Abdullah embarked on a diplomatic offensive by visiting the United States and some other countries in Europe. In his speech in Dallas, Texas, the crown prince assured our friends that Saudi Arabia was relentless in its efforts to stop terrorism.
In his speech before the Saudi-American business council, he said: "Thanks to Almighty Allah, we have successfully overcome the hard days, and we are now moving toward a stage where terrorism is retreating and extremists are being defeated."
At the end of his speech, the crown prince invited American businessmen to invest in Saudi Arabia, particularly in the pioneering gas and mining ventures.
It was a very well-received speech because, as you all know, our fight against terrorism, in all its forms, is relentless. It was a welcome pronouncement because we have opened many business opportunities for our friends around the world, particularly in North America and Europe. Saudi Arabia achieved a milestone of public relations exposure with the crown prince's visit.
But regardless of how strong and influential a man is, he can't march on alone all the way, and bring about all the changes single-handedly, if there is no proper system to absorb the changes and take up the challenges if this nation is to take the lead in the region.
But this is not the topic of this article. Instead, I wish to talk about a very silent diplomacy that is winning the hearts, minds, and admiration of the international community. These are not being done by our government bureaucrats and members of our diplomatic corps, but by ordinary Saudis who are always there to do their best for the sake of humanity.
As you know, we were not frank with ourselves. Our government put too much of money and efforts to beautify our image and that was one of the less smart words I ever heard, because if you are beautiful you don't have to go around the globe to convince people about it. People are convinced already! But it will look funny if you are not handsome and still have the guts to go around and expect people to tell you: "Oh God, What a dashing face!". No, that will not happen in this world. So, we have two options now:
One is to go back and work on making our faces more beautiful by looking into our shortcomings, negative attitudes and defects and correcting them. This might take a lot of time, but it is a task that we have to do, the sooner the better.
The other option is to simply exploit what we do have, and we have so many things to feel proud of. We have great achievements made by great individuals to our credit - achievements that touch the heart of the world. I will talk about this particular option.
My friends in the expatriate communities have commented the good works of Dr. Hussein Al-Rabeah, the Saudi surgeon who successfully performed a series of operations to separate Siamese twins from the Philippines, Poland and many other countries. It was a delightful scene to see Dr. Al-Rabeah, along with the parents of these Siamese twins, beaming with happiness.
Now I want each of you, my good readers, to use your imagination to visualize this picture of the smiling face of Dr. Al-Rabeah holding the twins, as printed in newspapers all over the globe with a massage which says: "Dr. Hussein Al-Rabeah bursts into hearty laughter while holding the Polish (or the Filipino) twins after a long painstaking surgery to separate them with expenses born by the Saudi government. Dr.Al-Rabeah loves the world, Saudi government loves the world. We, people of Saudi Arabia, love the world."
"Saudi Arabia loves you!" that is our national image, an image we wanted the world to capture.
I want each of you to remember that Dr.Al-Rabeah is a bearded man!
That image printed in newspapers in Poland and in the Philippines and other international newspapers and magazines with large circulations, and beamed on national televisions bring the Clearest signal that Saudi Arabia is also a nation that cares and loves people, irrespective of their background. We like you because we believe in universal brotherhood.
Dr. Zuhair Al-Hullais, one of today's world-renowned child cardiac surgeons, would stand 18 hours every day to undertake operations in medical institutes around the world - in Canada, Egypt, and Iran and elsewhere just to save children with complicated heart problems. Some of the cases are those very experienced surgeons are afraid to handle.
In Canada Dr. Al-Hullais is assigned to the most delicate and complicated cases. He flies from one continent to another to fulfill his commitment to his profession.
In Cairo and in other Middle East countries, he is one of the most sought-after surgeons for children with heart ailments and young ones as well. As my friend Dr.Al-Refaii, himself a Saudi cardiologist and an avid fan of Dr.Zuhair, told me," The man breathes, eats, and drinks his job. What he had done in our cardiac centers in Dammam city was nothing short of a miracle."
How about if I ask each of you again to use the tool of imagination and to imagine the smile-illuminated face of Dr. Al-Hullais broadcast all over the world with that same glorious love message from him, from our government, and from all of us!
I want you to know that Dr.Al-Hullais also is a religious man.
Why I say this? OK, I will tell you why.
The stereotype about Saudis is that they are wealthy and filthy, (sorry to say that, but we have to go beyond rosy words). To make matters even worse, this dreadful September things happened in New York and the jihadis, Bin Laden and those attackers, who were mostly from Saudi Arabia, were all bearded. Add to that, the stories written and told by Saudis and non-Saudis about those so-called religious police ("Mutawwas") who are, of course, all bearded. All of that made each Saudi either a terrorist or pro-terrorist in the eyes of the Western world in particular, not to say anything of the notion that we Saudis hate others.
Going back to Dr.Al-Rabeah's picture, the world will find a successful, loving, and peaceful surgeon who loves his work and loves his patients regardless of their race or what they believe in. Looking at Dr.Al-Hullais' picture, the world will see a dedicated man of science for whom his theater room is the whole world. Evil and good have nothing to do with being religious or bearded. And to see is to believe!
It is a great pride for us Saudis to see Dr. Hullais and Dr. Al-Rabeah's pictures splashed on the font pages of the Japanese newspapers, such as the Asahi Shimbun, or Times of India, or Washington Post, or the Pravda or The Times, or Le Monde and many others with this clear message: "Saudi Arabia cares for you, Saudi Arabia loves you."
To read how Abdurrahman Al-Jeraisy, the well-known Saudi businessman moves around the world with his unflinching determination to bring the message to foreign businessmen and investors ("hey, you are forgetting the fact that Saudi Arabia is still one of the best destinations to invest") is very encouraging. To see his picture stashed in the glossy pages of the "Who Is Who in International Business" serves as a strong signal that Saudi Arabia loves to do business with the global market. This is the kind of face we wanted to see more.
The recognition bestowed on Mohammad Abdul Latif Jameel as the world's largest Toyota dealer reminds us of the hard work, resilience and pioneering spirit Saudis display in pursuing their goals.
Al-Jameel's long and successful partnership with Toyota of Japan is all about our national image as a trustworthy people who know how to deal with our global partners.
The pioneering spirit of the Saudi businessman Khalid Al-Zamil who opened chains of prefabricated steel factories in Southeast Asia and Middle East shows that Saudis, no matter the odds, are exploring the frontiers of the global market. The steel being used for Vietnam's development is Saudi Arabian steel. This is another face of the Kingdom we want to see more.
Is there a better national image than products stamped with "Made in Saudi Arabia" making inroads into the international markets?
Probably the most known face and name in the global energy circle is Ali Al-Naimi. His is a face - a national image - that says that Saudi Arabia would not let oil consumers down, even those in the poorest countries of the world.
Who would forget the image of Saudi Arabia in the good works of Thoraya Obaid as the Kingdom's envoy to the UNESCO?
Indeed, those great personalities make the face of Saudi Arabia both pretty and beautiful. And persuasive too. The image of this country is being enhanced by the good deeds of its citizens, whose dedication and professionalism to their chosen careers and calling are worth more than the billions of riyals we pour to aid our chosen and selected friends in the forms of donations and dole-outs.
Are we building our good image for the country when there are still citizens who are in dire need of our support? Are our social services adequate to help the poor, and the needy Saudis?
I leave these questions to you.
Are we really serious in saying that Saudization is working well, OK, fantastic? And now let me ask you, is it only the government's mission to present us beautifully, or is it also our mission as well? Let's see.
What about the reported exploitation and abuse of migrant workers? Islam does not permit oppressing workers, regardless of religion. Are we fulfilling our duty and complying with the terms of their contract? Are we withholding their salaries or delaying payment of wages under threat of deportation? Do we respect them? Do we treat them well remembering they have their dignities? Do we ever understand the circumstances they go through? We know that Islam prohibits blackmailing and threatening foreign workers with deportation if they refuse to abide by their employers' demands that violate the terms of the contract.
Do you think our image will be brightened when migrant workers go back to their countries carrying with them the feelings of frustration and the trauma of oppression?
Social services, jobs, presence of a large number of expatriate workers who are subjected to exploitation - these are the issues that should be addressed to project a good image of our country.
Many of us admit that these are very difficult issues. However, if we do our very best to address these issues, we would be able to show a national image that would surely be appreciated by ourselves and our friends.
What our dedicated citizens are doing here and overseas are indeed a pride and joy for all Saudis. We are showing the world that we really care and have that inherent love in our hearts.
However, the other images I mentioned at home - right at our doorstep - needs to be corrected.
We have to roll up our sleeves in addressing these issues. Now my dear readers, tell me please: What is about our national image then?
