School tragedy should sound alarm bells
By Raid Qusti, Arab News Staff
RIYADH, 15 March — Like all Saudi citizens, I was horrified to hear about how 14 female students aged 15 or below lost their lives in an intermediate school in Makkah. More than 50 others were injured. The students panicked and rushed to the school gate when they heard that a fire had broken out in the building. However, according to news reports and eyewitnesses, they came up against a closed gate left unattended by a 62-year-old keeper. The panic that had gripped the schoolgirls caused them to fight for their lives as they rushed downstairs, leaving everything — including their shoes and abayas — behind. As they rushed to get out, the weaker students were crushed underfoot.
So many mothers, who had kissed good-bye to their children in the morning, learned hours later that their daughters were dead or in intensive care. However, for the head of Presidency of Girls’ Education, it was just another chance to smile as he answered questions for the media.
Yes, it was disgusting to see him smile as he answered questions posed by a reporter from Al-Eqtisadiah. In this most tragic situation, he was merely saying that everything was all right. Not only did he fail to admit the presidency’s responsibility for not regularly carrying out safety inspections; he had the audacity to say that the presidency was striving to provide better educational environments in which girls could study. Moreover, he made sure that he appeared wearing his black official robe.
Had this tragedy happened in any other country the official would have resigned. However, that is not the case with Saudi officials. Not only will they never admit they are at fault; they would rather take their office chairs with them to their graves than resign!
The Saudi public has had enough of the Presidency of Girls’ Education. It has proved itself utterly untrustworthy, and year after year teachers and students alike suffer from its interminable bureaucracy, bad decisions and general carelessness.
No matter how hard Dr. Ali Al-Murshid, head of the presidency, and his staff try to deny that they were to blame for what had happened, they could never change the facts. Let the public be the judge:
1- Some 800 students were crammed into an area no bigger than 20 square meters; the size of the room was 4 sq.m.
2- The school capacity was 250 students but there were 800 students in the building.
3- The school was a rented, 13-year-old building — exceeding the ten-year limit set by the presidency.
4- The main gate was the only exit from the building.
5- There was not a single emergency exit, fire alarm, or fire extinguisher in the building.
6- The building was in a narrow ally and there was no proper ventilation.
According to the preliminary investigation, the rented school contract was recently renewed. If that were the case, who was the person from the presidency who signed the approval papers? He should be put behind bars.
The second question is: Why does the presidency continue to issue orders that the male gatekeeper for girls’ schools be over 40 years of age? Most such male gatekeepers that I have seen are in their 50s or 60s and in most cases illiterate and unaware of emergency regulations. Of course, the usual answer is that if the male gatekeeper were younger, he might take a sexual interest in the girls or female teachers inside.
Isn’t it about time our society got over these silly hang-ups?
According to Al-Eqtisadiah, an investigation is being made by the police as to why members of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice prevented fire-fighters from entering the building because some of the girls who were coming out of the building after the gate was finally opened were not wearing their abayas. The firefighters told police that they had seen these men, who claimed to be from the commission, beating the girls themselves with sticks.
If this proves to be true, then God have mercy on us!
In a life and death situation, can it really be true that the commission’s men were only concerned with the possibility of men seeing girls without abayas!
However, the most important issue we have to discuss is how it is only when tragedies like these happen in Saudi Arabia that all the dirt brushed under the carpet starts to surface. Why is it only that after tragic incidents like these occur in our country do officials appear on the scene? How is it that Saudi officials continue to deceive the public and betray the trust given to them by our leaders, and get away with it?
The difference now, however, is that the public and the press are not afraid to raise their voice and demand answers.
So far, the facts are these: 14 female students died that morning and a nation is in mourning. The only explanation that has been given is “carelessness”.
To that explanation, we have the right to say: It’s just not good enough.
If this proves to be true, then God have mercy on us!
I have a better idea. May God smite them.
At first glance, that works out to about 40 students per square yard. Somehow, I doubt it.