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Saudi authorities warn against further demonstrations
Saudi authorities have warned against further demonstrations following a rare rally in Riyadh called by an exiled dissident group. Protests "violate existing (rules) and anyone who takes part in them will be subjected to deterrent punishment meted out by the (Islamic) court," Thursday's newspapers quoted Interior Minister Prince Nayef bin Abdul Aziz as saying.
| Does that mean they're gonna cut off their heads? |
The internal security chief issued his reminder that demonstrations are outlawed in the kingdom on Wednesday, shortly before his ministry said that 83 of the people arrested at last week's rally, including three women, were still in custody and would appear in court. "Authorities arrested 271 people, of whom 188 were freed after proving that they had been drawn into the crowd and acted out of curiosity," said a ministry spokesman. Hundreds took part in the protest called by the London-based Movement for Islamic Reform to denounce the arrest of dissidents. The group has called for more demonstrations in Riyadh and other parts of the country on Thursday afternoon. Another warning came from the head of the kingdom's Higher Judiciary Council, Sheikh Saleh bin Mohammad al-Luhaidan, who told the daily Okaz in remarks published Thursday that demonstrations were "demagogic" and authorities were duty-bound to "stand up firmly" to such activities. Calls for demonstrations and sit-ins "amount to calls for strife, and to an attempt to spread vice and undermine security," he said.
| "Yeah. You got any idea the kind of lewd conduct goes on at these things? It'd curl your moustache!" |
In a clear reference to the dissident group's call for protesters to gather at mosques Thursday, Luhaidan added: "Using mosques as a starting point for chaos and demagogic rallies means diverting them to pursuits which they are not supposed to get into." A Saudi intellectual, requesting anonymity, told AFP Thursday that London-based dissident Saad al-Faqih, who heads the Movement for Islamic Reform in Arabia, had struck a chord with many people because he was using his radio station to tackle issues of concern to ordinary citizens. "While the language he uses in his attacks on authorities can only be described as cheap, the fact is that his focus on people's daily problems rings a bell with many, if only as a way of letting off steam," he said.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt 2003-10-23 |
