KSA 'Vice' squad losing its grip

[N.O.R.F]

It was business as usual for Saudi Arabia's religious police one night in June this year when a dozen of them stormed into the house of 28-year-old hotel security guard Salman al-Huraisi, arrested 10 members of his family, and ransacked his property in search of banned alcohol.

 

Known as the mutawa'in, this strike force of the Kingdom's Committee for the Protection of Virtue and the Suppression of Vice have essentially had unlimited power since their establishment, patrolling the streets with short sticks to flog those who overstep their strict Wahhabi version of Islam. Their "work" ranges from enforcing prayer times to ensuring segregation of the sexes.

 

But the mutawa'in went too far after detaining al-Huraisi, beating him so severely that he died in custody. Outrage has been expressed across the kingdom, with calls for justice bursting forth even from the heavily-restrained Saudi press. "Five years ago, we could have never done this" says one editor at the Saudi-owned daily Arab News. "The change is drastic."

 

Equally dramatic is the launching of three separate lawsuits against the committee - an unprecedented call to accountability for their heavy-handed behaviour. The public outcry has also forced the government to launch an investigation into the committee's behaviour - a striking illustration that the Wahhabi clergy may be slowly losing their stranglehold over the Saudi polity.

 

Established as a result of the pact between the religious establishment and Abd al-Aziz ibn Saud, the military leader and founder of modern Saudi Arabia, the mutawa'in were the symbolic bedrock of a union which has legitimised the existence of Saudi Arabia in its current form. When asked by al-Watan newspaper in 2003 whether the committee ought to be restructured, Prince Nayef, the ultra-conservative interior minister overseeing its work, responded scathingly to the reporter: "As a Saudi, you should be ashamed of asking this question." The newspaper's editor was fired shortly after the encounter.

 

The infallibility of the mutawa'in began to erode in 2002, when committee members reportedly prevented schoolgirls from fleeing a burning building because they had left their headscarves inside. Fifteen girls died in the blaze. Though Prince Naif refused to acknowledge any responsibility for the deaths, the particularly gruesome incident was a strong blow to the Committee's credibility.

 

Today, criticism of the committee has reached fever pitch. The National Society for Human Rights, officially sanctioned by the Saudi rulers, has issued a report criticising committee practices. Significantly, the interior ministry recently circulated a pointed directive reminding Committee members not to hold suspects in detention centers.

 

Physical attacks on the religious police have even been reported, with 21 incidents documented last year. "Sometimes my friends and I dress in western clothing just so that we can provoke fights with them," says one Saudi teenager with inflated bravado. "Their time is over."

 

The breakdown of these taboos stands as a testament to the kingdom's radical transformation over the past few years. Since officially taking power in 2005, the reform-minded King Abdullah has been attempting to sideline the official religious establishment in favour of the merchant classes and more progressive Islamic leaders.

 

These changes are anchored in the need to provide jobs to the 75% of Saudi society that is under 30 years of age and suffers from a 30% unemployment rate. Mindful of this talent pool of potential terrorists and anti-regime dissidents, King Abdullah has launched vast economic reforms, capped by accession to the World Trade Organisation. These will have ripple effects in conservative Saudi society. According to Jean-Francois Seznec, a leading expert on the kingdom, "the official ulama [religious scholars] will be among the main losers' of Abdullah's market-oriented reforms.

 

But while the link between the palace and the clergy has been diluted, it is far from broken. The Wahhabi establishment still has a wide base of support among some royal circles while conservative Islamism is popular in regions such as the Nejad. And the clock is ticking for Saudi Arabia's progressives. At 83, time for King Abdullah's reforms is running out, before one of his more conservative or less bold brothers takes the Saudi throne. One thing is clear, however, as a sociology Professor at King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah says: "The committee will never be able to regain its previous, untouchable status, after this public backlash."

 

check the link to the school girls story,,,

[Jacaylbaro]

But the mutawa'in went too far after detaining al-Huraisi, beating him so severely that he died in custody.

Subxanallah ! ! ! ! ....... mini-warlords iga dheh

[N.O.R.F]

Should there be a police like this? I'm reminded of the Burcaawi wadaad ya JB.

[Ibtisam]

Acuudu billah. No there should not be a Police like this anywhere! :mad:

 

I'm reluctant to call these people wadaad, I can think of few other names for them. :rolleyes:

 

This harshness is one of the reasons they are facing so many problems, and why they have so many underground nasty habits which is severely damaging their society. Not only that but these atrocious practices all in the name of Islam, no wonder young people are turning away from strict Islamic practices in these places and yarning for western culture. You cannot be beaten into Islam.

[Jacaylbaro]

I know Burcaawi wadaads are not that far from what is said here .... i personally know some of them.

 

 

Even here, we have somekind of a group they call Amru bil macruuf wa nahyu canil munkar .... typically those Mudawaíns .... and they sometimes use police forces.

[Ibtisam]

There is a difference between commanding the good and forbidding the evil, to what these Mudawains are doing. Beating people to death and terrorising the streets is not "good" now is it.

 

This is abuse of the deen and power that is trusted in them, in the end they become God, more people are scared of being spotted and whipped then leaving actions for the sake of allah.

[N.O.R.F]

Ghanima,

 

The wadaad I was referring to in Burco was imprisoned for two years. His crime? Trying to rid the city of such practices as adultery and fornification. He would drive around the known spots and catch people in action but would take their relatives in his car to witness it. More of a name and shame campaign. He didn’t beat anyone nor was he a threat. The police were involved as well.

[Jacaylbaro]

I know u r talking about M M Nur .... he is a good religious man but some of his actions were exaggurated ...... i know him personally and as far as i know he has a Islam loving good heart.

[-Lily-]

testament to the kingdom's radical transformation

It always amuses me when I read comments like these.

[Ibtisam]

^^^North: I Know the waadad you are referring to, But my comments were in relation to the posted article, which is about Saudi.

 

With reference to your wadaad, the only people who had anything against him were those who he shamed by getting family/ people to witness their after dark activities :rolleyes: from what I heard that was his only power, he did not beat anyone. I thought he was arrested for other reasons, rather than this.

 

For his own safety I don't think he should do that though, even messed up people have a whole family/ clan is behind them regardless of their actions :rolleyes: Not to mention that these youngest hang around in groups terrorizing people themselves after dark.

[Jacpher]

^Waryaara dee leave wadaadka out. It's SL. What do you expect. Riyaale and his crooks are doing it too.

 

I don't think the idea of mutawa is a bad one. It depends on how it gets implemented. I don't think the mutawa's primary job function should be that of a law enforcement. One of the problems with Saudis is that they put too much power on the hands of people. No accountability whatsoever.

 

I don't think it's the Islamic Sharia job to come to your living room and observe you do your prayer or detain you.

[N.O.R.F]

I don't think the idea of mutawa is a bad one. It depends on how it gets implemented.

With full accountability through an independent commission (which includes women).

 

We will be accused of being hardliners now

[Jacaylbaro]

No one ,,, i say no one is allowed to go inside a private house to observe what is going on without a permission from the households. Not a president, not a Prophet and no one.

[Jacpher]

JB, Not always. There are exceptions to every rule. Just every system, there are checks and balances that one can't or shouldn't over write.

 

North, there will always be elements of blame going on. SL can use a little mutawa services I would assume.

[Jacaylbaro]

We won't need Mudawas if we teach the people about Islam ....... let's educate them first then we'll never need those groups.