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NYT: Some Saudi Candidates Claim Election Violations
*snicker* The NYT is reporting it as if it was a real election. *snort*Claims of violations from losing candidates in Saudi Arabia's first nationwide elections raised concerns on Sunday that challenges could sour the country's tentative step toward democracy. More than 30 losing candidates in the Riyadh municipal elections have cried foul, claiming that the seven winners - all affiliated with mainstream Muslim organizations - violated campaign guidelines by presenting themselves as an unofficial alliance endorsed by religious sheiks. But the idea of challenging any results generated criticism from those who feared that the ground-breaking elections, held Thursday, would be marred by the bickering. "If there was variety in the council it would be much more helpful to the city than having members all alike," said Ahmed Owais, a chemistry professor and reform activist. "But the most important thing is that this is a great experiment, so we should defend it and it should continue." The elections, from which women were barred, are being held in three stages, with the next two in March and April. Only half the representatives in a total of 178 municipal councils are being elected; the rest will continue to be appointed. With the sheer number of candidates - nearly 100 in each district - many voters had appeared bewildered as to how to make a choice in each of the seven races. Political parties or other public organizations are illegal. The candidates who are considering filing an official challenge said up to six of the winners appeared on a list that was spread over the Internet, and more importantly by telephone via text messages. Riyadh residents who had seen one such message said it carried a note that read roughly, "These are the trusted people; we urge you to go and vote for them." The term "trusted people" would be recognized as an endorsement from the religious hierarchy given the backgrounds of the men, the losing candidates said. The message also suggested that forwarding it would bring blessings. "Of course there are violations; an alliance was formed, and this is in violation of the law," said Thafer Said al-Yami, a losing candidate and lawyer, who said he was informally advising more than 30 candidates considering challenging the results before an independent appeals committee. He noted, however, that the election bylaws did not specify the remedy for any violation, so it was unclear where the appeal would go. Another candidate, Badr bin Saedan, said he filed a complaint on Sunday in his district because the winner had violated several bans, including campaigning in person or over the Internet on the election eve. But Mr. bin Saedan, too, emphasized that he did not want to muddle the importance of gaining the vote. "These are the first elections, and I care that they succeed," he said. "That's more important than who wins or loses." The winners denied that they had been part of any coordinated slate, arguing that all kinds of lists were whizzing around via text message. One winner, Dr. Ibrahim Hamad al-Quayid, went with a group to visit the mufti, Saudi Arabia's highest religious figure, right after the results were announced. "The winners are not extremists," he said. "They are moderate academics generally trusted by the people. They do not represent a particular religious current, but Saudi society, which is essentially religious." Parsing the various schools of thought among Saudi Arabia's religious conservatives remains extremely difficult, not least because senior princes tend to quash any such attempt. The interior minister, Prince Nayef bin Abdel Aziz, rejected the notion of calling the winners an Islamist slate. "We all have religious inclinations and we are all Muslims," the prince said at a news conference. "I strongly object to the press concentrating on this issue because we do not accept questioning the choice of the Saudi community." Questioning the veracity of the Iraqi election, where people were willing to face real terror and possible death, where the Sunnis consciously and voluntarily trached their future for a few press clippings, then having the enormous gall to portray this PR joke as a serious election leaves me astonished, not. How typical -- MSM disingenuity in extremis. Ranks right up there with faithfully quoting Nayef with a straight face as a man fighting Islamists in the Kingdom of the House of Saud. Yewbetcha. Posted by: .com 2005-02-14 |
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