Posted on 12/23/2003 12:16:58 PM PST by witnesstothefall
Some 100 leading Saudi Arabians have signed a petition urging the government to speed up political reform. The document, sent to Crown Prince Abdullah, is said to partly blame Islamic militancy on the lack of popular participation in politics.
It is said to repeat calls for an elected parliament, an independent judiciary and equal rights for women.
But Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal told reporters on Tuesday that change would take time.
A leading reformer, who did not wish to be named, told Reuters news agency that the petition had been signed by academics, Islamic scholars and human rights activists.
He said they wanted the ruling family to give up some of its absolute powers, to turn Saudi Arabia into a constitutional monarchy, similar to Jordan or Bahrain.
'Laboratory'
A similar appeal presented to Prince Abdullah in September was signed by more than 300 people.
The Saudi foreign minister was not asked about the petition but said: "Being careful and fastidious does not mean we're giving up on the reform process."
"Our leaders do not regard the Saudi people as a laboratory in which to test ideas."
In November, King Fahd granted wider powers to the country's consultative council, the Shura, and announced that the first ever elections - for local councils - would be held next year.
A royal decree empowered the council to propose new laws without seeking his permission first.
The move was expected to speed up the decision-making process in the conservative Islamic kingdom.
The Saudi Government has been under pressure to introduce political and economic reforms, and recently faced rare demonstrations calling for change.
Saudis openly petitioning their government for political reform would have been inconceivable until only very recently. It is important to distinguish that this is a call for reform from Saudis inside the kingdom, not from the exile community.
Shifting sands in the Middle East. Is House of Saud capable of reform? Who knows, but the process of reform is begun, regardless.
Obviously, if the sight of a woman sends Muslim men into some kind of uncontrollable sexual frenzy, it is the men who should be wearing blindfolds, not the women who should be draped from head to toe.
Perhaps the men should stay home with the windows covered. After all, it is they who cannot control their urges.
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