Rich heritage a result of political stability: Prince Sultan

DAMMAM: The rich cultural and archaeological heritage of Saudi Arabia was highlighted at an interesting workshop at the ongoing National Built Heritage Forum.
Chaired by Prince Sultan bin Salman, president of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities, the session included well-known Saudi historians, experts and writers such as Ali Ghabban, Mohammad Al-Zulfa, Abdul Rahman Al-Mulla and Fahad Al-Hawas.
The speakers focused on the built heritage sites and the history of the Saudi state. They reminded the audience of the important heritage sites across the length and breadth of the Kingdom.
Prince Sultan said one of the prime reasons for the existence of this rich heritage is the political stability that the Kingdom has enjoyed ever since King Abdul Aziz first founded it.
“Whenever I am abroad and people ask me about Saudi Arabia, I tell them that we existed long before the discovery of oil, we have a long, long history, this Kingdom is based in the noble principles of Islam, we never strayed from the highly cherished human values,” he said.
Prince Sultan said Saudi Arabia was not built through wars and destruction. “Our founders gave preference to dialogue and reason, they remained embedded to the values of Islam, they respected their people, and it is because of these values that we see peace and prosperity in our nation,” he said.
According to him, when nations forget their roots and go against the values on which they were built, then they perish. “Take the case of Soviet Union,” he said.
“They demolished churches and mosques and banished religion, the whole country collapsed,” he said.
Prince Sultan said there have been many misconceptions about Saudi Arabia in the outside world. “They think we are uncivilized and they use words such as bedouin to describe us, it is wrong, there are many people from rural background who have become highly accomplished citizens,” he said.
Prince Sultan gave examples of how the country offered opportunities to all its citizens. “Everyone can become big and contribute to the Kingdom’s development. Our nation’s success is based on team work,” he said. “Take the case of current Dammam Mayor Dhaifullah bin Ayesh Al-Otaibi; he came from an ordinary background and had a tough time joining Saudi Aramco but once he got in, he succeeded, and today he is the mayor of one of the largest cities in the Kingdom,” said Prince Sultan. “This is a country of immense opportunities.”
Prince Sultan said there is a pressing need to inculcate the values of preserving the country’s heritage and its many historic sites. “Unfortunately, many of our youngsters are not aware of the importance of our history, heritage and the historic sites,” he said before narrating an interesting anecdote to drive his point home.
“I was traveling to Asir once with Ali Ghabban who is a very knowledgeable person. We came across a beautiful tower. We asked a young man, 24 years old, about its significance,” said Prince Sultan. “He told us he worked in the army and that he was new to the region and that he knew nothing about it and when we told him that this a 300-year-old piece of history, he answer was, ‘I am only 24 years old and how am I supposed to know about something that is 300 years old?’”
Prince Sultan said protection and preservation of the country’s heritage should be linked with the schools and universities. “We need to take pride in our heritage and let our youngsters know about the long and fruitful journey that we have made in the life of this nation,” he said.
Prince Sultan said Saudi Arabia has spent billions of riyals in preserving and restoring historic sites. “We don’t demolish historic sites and I was surprised when I went to Turkey one of the ministers asked me if we were destroying Ottoman structures and sites and I said we are spending billions on preserving these sites, we are proud of the Hejaz Railway, for example, and have spent SR 300 million to restore it,” he said.
Mayor Dhaifullah bin Ayesh Al-Otaibi announced the creation of a special center at the Dammam municipality whose main task will be to identify, protect and preserve sites of historical importance.
Dr. Pasic Amir, head of Architectural Department at Istanbul’s Research Center for Islamic History, Art and Culture (IRCICA), complimented Prince Sultan for raising awareness about heritage in the Kingdom.
“Thanks to Prince Sultan’s efforts, Saudi Arabia has become a model state for the rest of the 56 members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation,” he said. “Other countries can follow the pattern and policies that have been put in place here in Saudi Arabia,” he said and called for laying greater stress on educating the educator.