'Jahiliya,' fundamentalism characterize Saudi Arabia

On March 11, 2002, flames engulfed a girls' public intermediate school in the holy city of Mecca. Although this alone was tragic, what happened next was appalling. Members of the mutaween, a law enforcement agency of the Committee for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice, severely hindered the rescue efforts. These religious policemen blocked male rescue workers from entering the school in order to prevent them from 'sinning' or coming in close contact with uncovered females. Unfortunately, the young girls were not wearing the abayas (black robes) required by the Saudi government. Some of the students trying to escape the burning building were stopped from exiting by the mutaween, and one witness reported seeing the religious police "beating young girls to prevent them from leaving the school because they were not wearing the abaya" (according to the British Broadcasting Corp.). As a result of this debacle fifteen innocent children died cruelly and unnecessarily.

The above example is but one of many unfortunate events that continue to occur in the ever-worsening conditions of Saudi Arabia. For Jews and Christians, the city of Jerusalem and Palestine are the holiest of places. For Muslims, Saudi Arabia and in particular Mecca and Medina are referred to as the Holy Land. It is the place where Prophet Muhammad emerged and established the Islamic faith. It is towards Mecca and Islam's most sacred shrine, the Ka'abah, located in the Holy Mosque there that most Muslims throughout the world turn devoutly in prayer five times a day. Yet, this holiest of places has been sullied in contemporary times with the stain of fundamentalism, greed, and corruption. In effect, Saudi Arabia has returned to jahiliya.

Most people in the West are not familiar with the concept of jahiliya. Jahiliya refers to the period of time prior to the advent of Islam in the seventh century. Specifically, the word means a state of ignorance or barbarism. During this period of 'ignorance', the Arabian Peninsula was ripe with oppression of women, indifference towards the poor, and corruption and immorality amongst the merchant leadership. Female infanticide was quite prevalent, and accepted amongst the society. Women had no rights, and many females were captured as slaves during conflict and married off to wealthy merchants. The Quran and Prophet Muhammad placed a revolutionary focus on the women of Islam, granting them the rights to divorce, inheritance, and recognition of them as individuals. The wealthy Meccan leadership immediately opposed Prophet Muhammad's crusade, especially since it focused on social equality, and charity. The advent of Islam implanted a progressive agenda in the heart of Arabia, which spurred a flourishing civilization in the centuries to come.

Today, a millennium and a half later, the world observes a Saudi Arabia that has returned to a state of 'ignorance'. Nowhere is this more egregious than within the leadership. An autocratic monarchy, consisting of thousands of princes, rules with an iron fist of fundamentalism and oppression while basking in the lath of luxury. Despite the abundance of oil resources in the country, most of the wealth is embezzled in the billions by the Saudi monarchy, who deftly transfer the money to various investments and banks around the world. King Fahd bin Abdul Aziz, for example, is worth approximately $45 billion. However, this is just the tip of the iceberg, as the seven richest members of the Saudi monarchy are thought to have embezzled over $100 billion from the country (www.saudhouse.com). Even though these wealthy princes govern with strict 'Islamic' laws, many of them are seen leading lecherous lifestyles as modern-day playboys.

The state of human rights in the Saudi kingdom is even more depressing than the state of the leadership. Women are treated as second-class citizens, and are barred from driving, or wearing clothing other than the abaya. The Taliban were singled-out for their fundamentalist rule, but much of it was in fact inspired by the Wahhabist interpretation of Islam enforced by the House of Saud. General freedoms are also scarce, as no public gathering of three or more is permitted, mind large demonstrations. Religious tolerance is completely absent in the monarchy, which is truly ironic considering that Prophet Muhammad fought for the tolerance of Muslims in Mecca. According to Human Rights Watch, "The kingdom's Shi'a Muslim minority suffers particularly acute discrimination in matters relating to their religion and culture." Shi'a Muslims, are prevented from building any Mosques, or distributing any religious literature; often Shi'a religious scholars are arrested.

Although millions of Muslims travel to Saudi Arabia every year for the Hajj, or pilgrimage, the current Saudi regime has made the land of Mecca unholy. The kingdom resembles more the concept of jahiliya, than the Islam promoted by Prophet Muhammad. The Islamic world and Muslims in the West need to press this totalitarian regime to abandon its oppression, and corruption, no matter how central the country is to the Muslim faith. Likewise the Western world, led by the United States needs to change its approach to this exporter of oil, and leading purchaser of American arms. The Taliban were seen as anathema to modern civilization, yet the equally barbaric monarchy in Saudi Arabia is met with the deafening silence of governments all around this world.

Taufiq Rahim is a Wilson School major from Vancouver, British Columbia.