Saudi Arabia takes first steps towards democracy

Saudi Arabians will be able to vote for the first time after the absolute monarchy announced it was to hold elections for municipal councils.

The step comes at a time when the Saudi royal family is under pressure to bring democratic reform – especially since the September 11 terror attacks in the United States.

The Saudi Cabinet said in a statement, carried by the official Saudi Press Agency, that it “has decided to expand the participation of citizens in running local affairs through elections, by empowering the roles of municipal councils.”

The Cabinet did not say when elections would take place. Elections will be held in 14 municipalities throughout the country, with only half their members being elected, the statement said.

Saudi Arabia has an unelected national advisory body known as the Shura Council, but no parliament.

Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Abdullah, ordered relevant government bodies to complete, within one year, all necessary procedures for the elections.

Political analyst Dawoud al-Sheryan praised the move, pointing out that “one year ago, just writing about elections was considered an offence.” He said the elections should be free and fair elections, adding a vote should also be held for the Shura Council.

Mohammed al-Masaari, head of the London-based Committee for the Defence of Legitimate Rights in Saudi Arabia, downplayed the significance of today’s announcement, saying it “will result in nothing.”

“The law has been there (for decades) … but there has never been any elections yet,” al-Masaari, whose group opposes the ruling Al Saud family and wants a popularly elected government established in the Gulf state.

Saudis cannot hold public gatherings to discuss political or social issues, while press freedoms are limited.

But the fear of domestic terrorism, which was brought home for Saudis after the May 12 suicide bombings in Riyadh, initiated an unprecedented public debate, and some of the kingdom’s rulers have discussed opening the society. Critics say a lack of democratic freedoms has made the kingdom a breeding ground for extremists.

Last month, some 300 Saudi men and women signed a petition, the third this year, urging Saudi rulers to speed promised reforms to ward off the influence of extremist Islam in the kingdom. Saudi Arabia adheres to the puritan Wahhabi sect of Islam, which enforces a strict moral code.

Governments throughout the Middle East have been making various efforts at reform, particularly post September 11, as the region’s autocratic governments have come under heavy pressure from the United States to promote democratic reform and stamp out conditions said to breed terrorism.

Of the six Gulf states, only Kuwait and Bahrain have elected parliaments, but women are barred from voting or running for office in Kuwait. Qatar has said it will hold parliamentary elections in 2004 and both sexes will be able to vote.

The ruling party in Egypt, the Arab world’s most populous country where many live in poverty, last month launched a campaign of reform aimed at lifting the country out of debt and social and political stagnation.