My dear friend

I hope you ar enjoying your delay in the United States and that you are receiving a respectable education. I pay back been giving a lot of thought recently to the problems of our magnatedom and the come-at-able alternatives to the rule of the House of Saud. I gift so few opportunities and liberties here that I thumb that moderate Islamists may do a break dance job of governing our country than the princes. Let me try to explain how I intuitive feeling.Like m whatsoever of our generation, I have had trouble finding work. During the fossil oil boom of the 1970s, engrossment was more than secure and the giving medication was able to f every(prenominal) in extensive welfare benefits to citizens of the globe-beaterdom. More recently, however, the economy has stagnated. In 1998, for example, we had 27% unemploymentI feel that the economy is suffering due to our reliance on oil. condescension the fabulous wealth it brings to the country, the oil industry can only if em ploy a certain number of people. Since oil is essenti every last(predicate)y the only topic that our country produces, it is the only sector that provides large-scale employment other than the administration itself, which is dominated by the purple family and its ne bothrk of friends and cronies.Despite all the wealth gained from oil, the royal familyHas not invested the wealth into other sectors of night club instead, it has utilize the oil wealth to enrich itself, purchase vast quantities of weapons from the Americans, and buy loyalty from the nation by providing free social services. Despite all this wealth, however, our country has not open upn expectanter licenses to its citizens.Our queendom has eer relied on an alliance among the al-Saud family and the bag Wahabi clerics. One of the kings central roles is the custodian of the two holy governs (Mecca and Medina). The clerics give the king legitimacy, and in re twine the kings lavishly farm animal the clerics mosq ues, schools, and charity organizations.I feel that this alliance is bad for our country. Our country of necessity to be freer. Both the royal family and the Wahabi clerics are opposed to greater freedoms for us, the number citizens. Both assemblages benefit by denying power to other people. I have come to feel that the Saudi-Wahabi alliance is bad for us as Saudi citizens, because it denies us basic freedoms. It is also bad for the world as a whole, because it leads to terrorism.M all Wahabis have turned against the Saudi royal family, declaring that it is not sufficiently Islamic. They feel that the political science is too corrupt, too decadent, and too friendly with America. Osama hive away take is the most infamous Saudi who has taken this position. Even though he attacked America, bin Ladens primary enemy has always been the Saudi royal family, who he feels are bad Islamics who do not deserve to be the custodians of Mecca and Medina.The threat to the Saudis from its i ngrained citizens became clear shortly after(prenominal) I was born. This was a major turning point in the register of our country. When ibn Talal Hussein Hussein invaded Kuwait in August of 1990, m any(prenominal) feared that he would turn on Saudi Arabia next. Osama bin Laden told King Fahd that he would battle Saddam Husseins forces with the fighters he had trained and fought with in Afghanistan during the 1980s during the war with the Soviet Union.King Fahd rejected bin Ladens gloweringer, which probably wasnt very realistic any way. Instead, the king turned to the Americans for protection. Huge American armies came to Saudi Arabia and used our country as a base from which to attack Iraq and liberate Kuwait. Even though Saddam Hussein could no longer threaten Saudi Arabia, the decision to bequeath the American military into the kingdom infuriated galore(postnominal) melodic theme Islamists.I essential say that, as a proud and nonsymbiotic man, I would like to defend my o wn country rather than have the Americans do it. I dont wish the Americans any harm, its but that I dont want to rely on them and whimlly I would like their military to leave our land. Many people, however, feel more than more strongly about this than I do, and they began attack the house of Saud for allowing Americans into Arabia.As my generation grew, we saw the judicature come under attack from groundworks who wished to annihilate the regime. Throughout the 1990s these radicals, including al-Qaeda, attacked sights in Saudi Arabia that were associated with the government activity or the American military. We now have a confrontation between the House of Saud and the radical Islamists, but I dont feel that either group is able to govern our country effectively.Although I disap enkindle of the Saudi royal family, just as Osama bin Laden does, I also on the whole disapprove of bin Ladens goals and tactics. Basically I feel that the Saudis are far too conservative. Bin Laden f eels that they are not conservative enough The most amazing thing about the Saudis is that their allies, the Wahabis, are the people they have to fear most.For years, the royal princes funded Wahabi mosques and schools and charities around the world. They knew that some of these groups used the m unmatchedy for terrorist activities, but there was a sort of unspoken stipulation that the Islamist terrorists would not target Saudi Arabia itself. I dont cod do why our government ever trusted these people, but the terrorists broke the intellect and began to attack the royal family.So, my friend, our government has failed to diversify the economy beyond oil, it has failed to give more rights and liberties to its citizens, and it has used oil wealth to try to buy off radical groups, but this strategy has predictably backfired. These are very unsafe grievances to have, wouldnt you say?Perhaps an example of the royal familys idea of tidy exit illustrate my grievances. In 1992, King Fa hd enacted the Basic rectitude of Government by decree. The truth spelled out the nature of the government. The government was a hereditary monarchy, a model that was popular centuries ago in Europe. The king would serve as head of state, head of the council of ministers, and commander in honcho of the armed forces. In addition, the king appoints all ministers as well as all members of a new body, the consultative council.Here are my problems with this begin at straighten. Firstly, the Basic Law was enacted by decree of the king the Saudi people had absolutely no role in devising this law. Secondly, the law simply spelled out what was already known the Saudi family, especially the king, has all the power in Saudi Arabia.The consultative council was supposed to show a move towards greater representation, but I feel that it only illustrated the kings arrogance. Firstly, the council is appointed by the king, so we can assume it is make of up people who he knows will agree with hi m. Secondly, the council consults the king is in no way bound to follow its advice. So not only is this council not representative of the Saudi people, it doesnt even have any authority This is not the kind of reform we need this is not reform at all.My friend, our country has no paper, no bill of rights, no independent courts or media, and no direct representation for its citizens in government. This is not the pillow slip of country I wish to live in. Here is what I feel essential be done.I do not have any illusions about how long and hard the transition to democracy can prove to be. We have seen our neighbor, Iraq, torn apart by civil war and lawlessness after its repressive government was thrown from power. If the Saudi government disappeared overnight, I fear that our country could very well suffer from these same curses. For this reason, a godforsaken derangement of the government would not be a good idea. Iraq has shown us that dictatorship is preferable to anarchy, beca use at least dictators can preclude massive terrorist attacks.The answer does not lie in violent overthrow of the Saudis, and it also does not lie in radical Islamists. We are all Muslims here, it is true. Islam was born in Arabia. The prophet lived and died here. Mecca and Medina are here. We are the very place of birth of Islam. However, we cannot allow radical Muslims to take power from the Saudis.I have dim-witted desires, my friend. Like most people on earth of every slipstream and religion, I want simply to live my life in freedom and dignity and be able to provide for my loved ones. We have seen that radical Islamists, even though they claim to share our religion, are merchants of death only from everything I have seen, it seems clear that they are more interested in killing people, mostly fellow Muslims, than they are in governing.As more as I dislike the Saudis, I know deep blast that radical Islamists would be worse. They would likely be even more violent and repress ive towards the people than the Saudis are. The most radical Islamists wish to return Arabia to a 7th century state of purity. They feel that this is the ideal environment for Muslims. They wish to recreate a world before oil, a world before mass communication and entertainment, a world before America. This is a very dark wish. We should not be nave about what radical Islamists would do to our country should they ever gain power.The solution, I feel, lies with moderate Islamists. Islam must be the focus of any reform, because the mosque is the only power center of any substance other than the Saud family. There is no independent civil society here because of all the restrictions on speech and political participation. The mosque is the only place that people can freely gather and organize.As I give tongue to above, friend, we are Muslims, and any reform in our land must be Islamist to some degree it is inevitable. The important aspect then is to en authorized that reform is directe d through moderate clerics rather radical Islamists. We need Muslim leaders to direct the push for reform, but not the Muslims who wish to turn back the clock by 13 centuriesMy vision of a government of moderate Islamist clerics and scholars has umteen components. Firstly, they would stop trying to buy off radical groups and start adopting a more moderate interpretation of Islam than the Wahabis. This new government would recognize that when you give arms and funding to radical groups, these groups will needs turn on you.As we know, friend, our land is the heart of Islam, and any government we have will be responsible for maintaining the sacred places and providing for all the Muslims who make the yearly pilgrimage (hajj) to Mecca. We must also, however, understand that many Muslims look to Arabia for breathing in and Arabia therefore must be responsible with its influence and must not support radical and violent groups who kill in the name of our great religion.More moderate cle rics are the best candidates to lead the new Arabia for many reasons. They are educated and have experience with leadership and organization in the community. Because of this experience, we can be confident that the clerics will be competent as stewards of the state. Equally as important, they are respected by the society. One of the many lessons we have learned from Iraq is that a new government must be made up of people with deep roots in the communities they represent.The initiatory task of a more moderate government would be to salvage a constitution. This is an extremely important step, as Im sure you have learned by visiting the United States. An Arabian constitution would be much different from the American one, of course, but the concept is the same. Laws and rights must be enshrined by a binding document rather than beingness up to the whims of a king.An Arabian constitution might make more room for religion than the American one does, for example, or grant few individu al rights to citizens, but it would serve a very important function. It would represent a power greater than the king. It would provide a list of things that the government cannot do. These would include such elementary abuses as arrest without warrant or charge, torture, and suppression of media. For the first time in Arabia, there would be a limit on the powers of the government.This may perhaps seem like a very limited step, but imagine what a large one it would be for our country Arabia today is ruled as the property of a single family the country itself is named after the al-Sauds Can you imagine if the United States was called bush-league America? This is no way for a country to be run.I hope the friends you are making in America understand that Arabia will never be like America. However, I believe that some American ideas, combined with moderate Arabian intellectuals, offers the best hope for our country. Be well, friend.SourcesCleveland, William L. A History of the Modern spunk East,second edition. Boulder Westview Press, 2000.Hiro, Dilip. The Essential Middle East A Comprehensive Guide.New York Carol & Graff Publishers, 2003.Husain, Mir Zohair. Global Islamic Politics, second edition.New York Longman, 2003.