Saudi authorities warned non-Muslim expatriates on Friday,
the first day of Ramzan, not to eat, drink, or smoke in public until the end of
the Muslim holy month's sunrise-to-sunset fast or face expulsion.
The interior ministry of the oil-rich kingdom called on expatriates to
"show consideration for feelings of Muslims" and "preserve the
sacred Islamic rituals." Otherwise, a ministry statement said, Saudi
authorities will cancel violators' work contracts and expel them.
Saudi Arabia's population of 27 million includes
some 8 million expatriates, including Asians, Arabs, and westerners, according
to government figures.
The ultraconservative Sunni kingdom is the home
of Islam's holiest sites. The warning - which is issued at the beginning of
Ramzan every year - serve as a reminder that the western-allied monarchy must
answer to a strict religious establishment that holds de facto veto power over
many of its policies.
With challenges to the established order growing
bolder from a population nearly half of which is under 30, Saudi Arabia has recently made some moves to show
moderation. It is sending female athletes to the Olympics for the first time
this year. King Abdullah has promised to allow women to run and vote in
municipal elections in 2015. He also has tried to rein in the country's feared
morality police.
But Saudi rights advocate Waleed Aboul Khair
believes that while such moves give impression that the grip of hardliners has
eased, "when you look around, nothing has changed and suppression has not
changed." He is facing trial for "tarnishing the kingdom's
reputation," mostly by his political activism for women's rights and other
issues.
Warnings or no warnings, he says, "expatriates
are always at risk of expulsion for the least offence in the kingdom."
The prince newly appointed to handle most
aspects of law enforcement is known as a strict adherent to religious rules.
Prince Ahmed bin Abdulaziz was governor of the holy city of Mecca before
becoming interior minister.
Saudi Arabia is wary of the wave of Arab Spring
uprisings that has toppled longtime authoritarian leaders in Egypt, Libya,
Tunisia and neighboring Yemen.
It followed a carrot-and-stick strategy to
contain unrest by pledging around $120 billion for the kingdom's lower income
groups. It has heavily cracked down on protests, especially in eastern regions
dominated by Shias demanding greater rights, and is steering a middle course
between conservatives and reformers among the Sunni majority.
No comments:
Post a Comment