Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06RIYADH7191
2006-09-12 13:44:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Riyadh
Cable title:  

RIYADH RECORD: AUGUST 19-31

Tags:  PGOV PREL KISL KWMN SA 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXYZ0018
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHRH #7191/01 2551344
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 121344Z SEP 06
FM AMEMBASSY RIYADH
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 1458
INFO RUEHJI/AMCONSUL JEDDAH 7710
C O N F I D E N T I A L RIYADH 007191 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/12/2016
TAGS: PGOV PREL KISL KWMN SA
SUBJECT: RIYADH RECORD: AUGUST 19-31

REF: A. A) RIYADH 6737

B. B) RIYADH 6730

Classified By: Acting Deputy Chief of Mission David Rundell
for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).

C O N F I D E N T I A L RIYADH 007191

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/12/2016
TAGS: PGOV PREL KISL KWMN SA
SUBJECT: RIYADH RECORD: AUGUST 19-31

REF: A. A) RIYADH 6737

B. B) RIYADH 6730

Classified By: Acting Deputy Chief of Mission David Rundell
for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) SUMMARY: Youth summer camps in the Kingdom elicited
controversy from one of their lectures on the negative
aspects of the West and how Saudi journalists act as the
West's "agents." The Ministry of Commerce licensed the first
female engineer in Saudi Arabia; the hope is that many more
will follow in the wake of the newly implemented law allowing
female engineers to open their own firms. The General
Presidency for the Two Holy Mosques Affairs issued a proposal
to move the women's section of the Grand Mosque from the
central, holy section to an outer area far from television
cameras. A court in Al-Jouf annulled a three-year,
Islamicly-valid marriage due to a lack of tribal "fitness"
between the husband and wife. Tribal leaders resolved a
conflict with donations to a social society developed to pay
compensation for violent crimes. END SUMMARY.

--------------
Conservative Cleric Shakes Up Summer Camps
--------------


2. (C) Conservative Islamic cleric Sheikh al-Break
reportedly gave a strong lecture at one of the youth summer
camps sponsored by the Islamic charity, World Assembly of
Muslim Youth (WAMY). The lecture was anti-American in nature
and al-Break accused many Saudi journalists of being "agents"
of the West. Following the announcement of this lecture in
the mainstream media, there was negative public reaction and
calls for an apology to the journalists in the absence of
evidence from Sheikh al-Break. In a meeting with PolOffs on
August 27, Secretary General of WAMY Dr. Saleh al-Wohaibi
said that, although it was unfortunate that al-Break's
comments sparked such controversy in the media, it is "not
possible to control" all of the information given during
these lectures. WAMY is one of the major organizer's of
summer camps for children, and al-Wohaibi said its focus is
to encourage youth to engage in positive activities, such as
sports and religious study, during their summer vacations.
He also said that WAMY is an open charity that aims to

improve opportunities for youth throughout the Islamic world
and that the Saudi-based youth camps are only a small
sampling of their activities (septel).

-------------- --------------
Women Licensed for Business, Prohibited from Prayer
-------------- --------------


3. (C) On August 25, Azah al-Deghather became the first
Saudi female architect to obtain an engineering license from
the Saudi Engineering Association (SEA) following the
implementation of the recent law that allows female engineers
to obtain licenses to open their own engineering firms (Ref
A),According to several media reports, the SEA claimed that
two more female engineers have applied for their licenses and
should receive them shortly. The SEA expects an upsurge in
both membership and applications as a result of this newly
implemented process. (Comment: The speed by which the law
has been implemented and female engineers have successfully
completed the process to open their own firms is affirmation
of the SAG's continued push for reform. Nevertheless, there
have recently been several media pieces depicting the
obstacles business women face in registering their
businesses. Specifically, articles commented on the
practical need for a 'male representative' to sign for
business licenses, even though the Ministry of Commerce has
issued laws to the contrary. This imbalance between the
licensing process for general businesswomen and that for
female engineers exemplifies the contradictions regarding
women's rights in the Kingdom. End Comment.)


4. (C) The General Presidency for the Two Holy Mosques
Affairs issued a proposal on August 25 for shifting the
prayer place of women within the circumambulation area -- the
uncovered circle surrounding the Kaaba ("House of God")
called the mataf-- in the Grand Mosque of Mecca to two larger
spaces far away from the Kaaba. This change would prevent
women from performing tawaf -- the prayers required as part
of the five pillars of Islam -- easily and would also impose
restrictions on women's ability to perform the Hajj and Umra
with their families. Female scholars and worshippers alike
condemned the proposal, which pointed to increased television
broadcasting as one of the reasons for the shift, as
unacceptable and biased against women (septel).

--------------
Tribal Pride Outweighs Shari'a Law
--------------

5. (C) Three years and two children into a happy marriage, a
Saudi couple in Al-Jouf, a city in the northern part of
the Kingdom, have seen their marriage annulled on the grounds
that it violated social custom. The Sharia court ruled in
favor of the half-brother, who petitioned the court for the
annulment because he claimed that his sister was from a noble
tribe and should not be married to a non-tribal man. The
court ignored the previous Islamicly-valid marriage as well
as the father's permission granted for the marriage three
years ago. As a result of the court's decree, the woman was
forced to separate from her family and return to the home of
her half-brother; she chose to go to prison instead of
following the court order. (Comment: The ruling of the
Al-Jouf court indicates that tribal norms and customs in
practice often outweigh Shari'a law. It also reveals the
deep-seated prejudices many Saudis have against non-tribal
individuals (Ref B). End Comment.) After the decision was
made public, there has been much debate over this issue.
Many religious conservatives, including Riyadh Supreme Court
Judge Ibrahim Al-Khudairi, argued that tribal "fitness" is
"an essential element" of marriage. Other editorials
criticized the court's decision, including one columnist from
Al-Watan newspaper who worried that stories such as this one
are what give Islam such a bad name in the West.


6. (U) The sub-tribes of the al-Omrah family located in
Tannumah, a city in the north of Assir Province, celebrated
the end of a four-year dispute. The al-Omrah tribe, noted
for its work in agriculture and not for its religious
tendencies, ended the dispute on August 27. The dispute was
over lack of payment to a tribal social society established
for the purpose of centrally coordinating the payment of
"blood money" (the money paid as compensation to victims'
families following the perpetration of a killing within the
tribe). The society was funded by contributions from all of
al-Omrah's sub-tribes, and for the past four years
contributions were waning. As such, it ran short of money
and was unable to pay all of the required compensations,
resulting in unresolved tribal conflicts. Tribal leaders
reconciled the conflict by paying extra donations to the
society. (Comment: Formalizing the "blood money" payments
through a funding mechanism, and solving the conflicts
arising from it within tribal strictures, demonstrates the
trust people place in their tribal leaders as the guardians
of their community. Additionally, seeking justice through
the traditional payment of "blood money" instead of through
the Shari'a courts, intimates the deep-seeded tribal nature
of Saudi society. End Comment.)

--------------
VIP Visits
--------------


7. (U) Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah
Bin-Abd-al-Aziz discussed by telephone with French President
Jacque Chirac on August 25 the regional and international
developments in the Middle East, as well as bilateral
relations between Saudi Arabia and France. King Abdullah met
with Jordan's King Abdullah II on August 23, and they
discussed the latest developments in the region, particularly
the events in Lebanon and the Palestinian territories in
addition to the situation in Iraq.
OBERWETTER