An outspoken pro-reform journalist yesterday alleged that the Saudi government had banned him from writing, in the latest round of a battle between hardliners and liberals in the kingdom. "I got notification from Okaz (newspaper) the other day. It said they were told by the Ministry of Information that I could no longer write in the paper," Hussein Shobokshi told Reuters by phone. "I think it's the last article, where I talked about my vision for the country," the political analyst, who presents a show on Al Arabiya satellite channel, said. Shobokshi wrote in Okaz, where he penned a weekly column, that he dreamed of a day when Saudis voted in elections, debated human rights and women could drive — topics which have alarmed the kingdom's religious establishment.
| You know how it goes. First the elections, then human rights, then women driving. Next thing you know, they're laughing and singing and telling jokes instead of going to the mosque... |
The religious authorities fear that domestic and foreign pressure is mounting to limit their influence and secularise the state. It is not the first time authorities have clashed with journalists and writers. In May, the government fired Jamal Khashoggi from his position as editor-in-chief of the daily Al Watan, which the prominent writer tried to turn into a champion of reform.
| That's a sure-fire way to get fired... |
Another Islamic reformer said yesterday that the Mufti Sheikh Abdulaziz bin Abdullah Al Sheikh, the kingdom's top cleric, had this month banned his views from another paper. "He asked to see a copy of an interview the paper had done with me in advance, then he asked the paper not to publish it," Abdelaziz Al Qasim told Reuters. "The Mufti considered my opinions to be criticism of Wahhabism," said Qasim, a former Islamic law judge. |