Row over speakers at Saudi youth forum in Kuwait

[fd24]

A Saudi women's rights activist has told the BBC she is planning legal action against Kuwaiti Islamist MPs who demanded a ban on a youth conference that they condemned as un-Islamic.

Hala al-Dosari was invited to speak at the forum in Kuwait, which was aimed at helping young Arabs develop their understanding of Islam and society.

But the Islamist MPs complained that the forum had a suspicious agenda.

Ms Dosari was targeted for having been interviewed on a Christian TV channel.

'Path to openness'

The al-Nahdha (Awakening) Forum is an annual event organised by and mainly for Saudis but held outside the country.

The man behind it is Salman al-Ouda, a Saudi cleric who was once a hardline supporter of Osama Bin Laden.

But after serving a prison term, he very publicly changed his views, espousing a more tolerant and open interpretation of Islam.

Some 150 young Saudis - both men and women - were due to attend the forum this past weekend in Kuwait.

But the announcement of the guest speakers angered radical Islamists both in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.

They condemned the presence of Hala al-Dosari, a well-known women's rights activist in Saudi Arabia, calling her a Christian evangelist because of an interview she gave on an Arabic Christian TV channel.

The appearance of a Shia speaker was also attacked as being against Sunni religious orthodoxy - as well as pro-Iranian.

Several Islamist MPs in Kuwait demanded the forum be stopped. The Kuwaiti interior ministry obliged.

But more liberal groups in Kuwait defended the forum and its goals - and hosted it without Saudi participation at a different venue. Ms Dosari managed to give her speech via Skype.

She says the ban exposed the failings of those who opposed it.

It has become a big talking point on Saudi social networks, with many backing her.

She welcomes it as another small milestone on what she hopes is a path to greater openness in Saudi society.

Well done Saudi Arabia and Kuwait - for silencing the opposite sex yet again - shameful as always. can a leopard change its spots or a zebra its stripes?? I guess not..


BBC News - Row over speakers at Saudi youth forum in Kuwait

 

[H2O3C4Nitrogen]

^^

I do hope that in this era of Information age where concealing information is impossible these Arab totalitarian regimes will go through a drastic change, but that change will only bare positive fruits if it doesn't gets exploited!

All of these regimes are slowly going towards a slow and swift death , it can happen in this decade !

 

[Mosamania]

I always find it interesting how you people blame the "regime" for these things.

It is the clerical establishment which has support of most of the population. So if it is about being democratic then that was the democratic thing to do. However personally I am a liberal who hates those clerics with a passion and understand the "regime"s as you put it fight against them.
We do not want to turn into a Talibanistic society ruled by clerics. Nor like Iran with a head cleric as "Supreme leader".

 

[Syrian Lion]

I always find it interesting how you people blame the "regime" for these things.

It is the clerical establishment which has support of most of the population. So if it is about being democratic then that was the democratic thing to do. However personally I am a liberal who hates those clerics with a passion and understand the "regime"s as you put it fight against them.
We do not want to turn into a Talibanistic society ruled by clerics. Nor like Iran with a head cleric as "Supreme leader".

But you want to turn Syria like Saudi, according to you where clerics run the nation, NO THANK YOU.
One day you say your not religious, then the next day you start talking about religion, especially in Syria.

LETS STAY ON TOPIC, THANK YOU.

 

[fd24]

I always find it interesting how you people blame the "regime" for these things.

It is the clerical establishment which has support of most of the population. So if it is about being democratic then that was the democratic thing to do. However personally I am a liberal who hates those clerics with a passion and understand the "regime"s as you put it fight against them.
We do not want to turn into a Talibanistic society ruled by clerics. Nor like Iran with a head cleric as "Supreme leader".

How did i know you would bring Iran clerics into this? Lets talk about the silence of these speakers in the nations mentioned and stop attempting to bring different nations into this. We are fully awae who controls these clerics in Saudi and Kuwait - so please dont attempt to blind or let us go off topic.

 

[Mosamania]

How did i know you would bring Iran clerics into this? Lets talk about the silence of these speakers in the nations mentioned and stop attempting to bring different nations into this. We are fully awae who controls these clerics in Saudi and Kuwait - so please dont attempt to blind or let us go off topic.

Am I?? I am simply making example of worst case scenarios that's all not going off topic not by a long shot. And if you those clerics are under Saudi control think again because you can't be further from the truth. It's a power struggle between the clerics and the liberals the government is on the sidelines and on the side of the liberals in fact for this past 7-10 years too.

And I was merely clearing out your misunderstandings because you are clearly "not fully aware" not at all. In fact to the point of being hysterical to Saudis who know that in the past the most amount of trouble came from the clergy itself.

 

[Serpentine]

I always find it interesting how you people blame the "regime" for these things.

It is the clerical establishment which has support of most of the population. So if it is about being democratic then that was the democratic thing to do. However personally I am a liberal who hates those clerics with a passion and understand the "regime"s as you put it fight against them.
We do not want to turn into a Talibanistic society ruled by clerics. Nor like Iran with a head cleric as "Supreme leader".

Once again you talked and couldn't hold yourself for not mentioning Iran.
You should know women in Iran are much more free than KSA,they hold political offices,practice their religion (whatever it is),run to sport clubs,they don't wear Burqa and are free to wear jeans.The only Islamic thing about them is that they have to wear Hijab.
Unlike KSA having more than one wife is not a regular thing and is rare.I believe in this era,having more than one wife is like taking them as slaves( that's my belief,whether it's true or not).Once i saw a fat Saudi guy getting out of his car and his 4 wives following him.It was both ridiculous and sad.

 

[fd24]

Once again you talked and couldn't hold yourself for not mentioning Iran.
You should know women in Iran are much more free than KSA,they hold political offices,practice their religion (whatever it is),run to sport clubs,they don't wear Burqa and are free to wear jeans.The only Islamic thing about them is that they have to wear Hijab.
Unlike KSA having more than one wife is not a regular thing and is rare.I believe in this era,having more than one wife is like taking them as slaves( that's my belief,whether it's true or not).Once i saw a fat Saudi guy getting out of his car and his 4 wives following him.It was both ridiculous and sad.

Sadly a thread of this nature shows Mosamania as his true self. We could be talking about ANYTHING and i think the name of Iran will come into the thread. I didn't want this thread to become Iran v Saudi like he always does. He starts a troll fest and then claims the victimized chap - "look at this its so unfair" - i suppose we can but try. Please i appeal to you Mosa stop bring Irans name into everything.