Saudi Arabia's religious police said on Monday that they will sue newspapers for defamation after a series of reports alleging abuse by its members were published.
| "Telling the truth is defamation! Allah will be sooooo displeased!" |
The Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice ensures that the Saudi society abides by the ascetic school of Islam thought applied in the kingdom, where clerics control the justice system. The force has wide powers to search for alcohol, drugs and prostitution, ensure shops are closed at prayer time, ban non-Islamic worship and maintain a strict system of sexual segregation in the Saudi society that even bans women from driving. Over the past two months, Saudi newspapers have quoted Saudi citizens accusing members of the police of abusing them. In some cases, the commission sought to defend itself through statements to the press but the newspapers quoted the same citizens contradicting the commission's statements. "This is not about suing the press simply because they criticised the commission. We welcome criticism," Abdul Mohsen al-Qassari, the commission's spokesman, said, "It is a reminder of the framework that has to govern the relationship between the media and the commission."
| "You grovel, we stomp on you." |
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