Wednesday, 13 April 2011
Saudi Islamic preacher Mohammed al-Areefi. (File photo)
RIYADH—Several Saudi journalists and newspapers are filing a lawsuit against preacher Mohammed al-Areefi for labeling them “collaborators” and “rotten” in a sermon.
Their complaint is being filed with the Ministry of Islamic Affairs in this capital city.
In the sermon he gave last Friday, Mr. Areefi said Saudi papers and journalists working in them were unpatriotic and only catered to the needs of foreign powers. He also said that their writings were mainly driven by their whims and instincts.
Mr. Areefi’s accusations are part of his usual desire to be in the limelight, said Turki al-Sudairi, editor-in-chief of al-Riyadh newspaper and head of the Saudi Journalists Association (SJA).
“He wants to be the talk of the town and he actually succeeded in reaching that end, though in a negative way,” he told Al Arabiya.
Jasser al-Jasser, editorial manager of the Saudi newspaper al-Jazirah, said that Islamic preachers should work on uniting the people instead of sowing the seeds of sedition among them like Mr. Areefi had done.
“Areefi divides people into categories and lashes out at those with different ideologies,” he told Al Arabiya. “Hurling accusations at fellow Muslims violates the teachings of Islam. How can a preacher act against what he preaches?”
Mishari al-Thaidi, a writer, said that Mr. Areefi belonged to the hardline al-Sahwa (The Awakening) movement, which specifically targets journalists as part of their alleged battle against whoever they call “liberals.”
“Areefi and other members of the Sahwa act like there is a personal vendetta between them and the media. They like to promote the idea of ‘mercenary writers’ who serve the interests of foreign countries,” he told Al Arabiya.
Mr. Thaidi added that while Mr. Areefi alleged that foreign countries pay Saudi journalists, it was he and other preachers that belonged to the same line who are paid for the lectures they gave. These preachers earned much more than journalists, he said.
“Let us remember the survey by Forbes magazine about the wealth of those new preachers,” Mr. Thaidi said, referring to one of the American magazine’s popular features, lists of the world’s wealthiest people.
Saleh al-Tariki, a writer at the Saudi newspaper Okaz, said in an article that he opposed the use of mosques for inciting hatred against specific sectors of Saudi society.
“Friday sermons cannot be used to serve personal agendas and to tarnish the reputation of other Muslims,” he told Al Arabiya.
While Mr. Areefi was not available to comment, prominent preacher Sheikh Saad al-Suhaimi objected to the principle of generalization to which Areefi resorted in his attack against journalists.
However, Mr. Suhaimi added that some journalists were not patriotic enough when it came to certain crises that the kingdom experienced. He cited the conflict with Houthi rebels on the borders with Yemen, and the March 2011 protests—known as the Hanin Revolution—that demanded political reforms.
“Areefi was right about those journalists who either did not support the nation against sedition or were writing about trivial matters while drastic events were taking place,” he told Al Arabiya.
Mr. Suhaimi said that Mr. Areefi’s accusations were basically related to writers who had connections with foreign embassies, according to statements made by Saudi Interior Ministry Prince Nayef bin Abdul Aziz.
“Prince Nayef said that some writers were found to have suspicious connections with embassies of foreign countries and this is what inspired Areefi,” he said.
Mr. Suhaimi objected to writers’ reservations about using mosques or Friday sermons to discuss national or political issues.
“Mosques are a venue for discussing all kinds of topics and not only religious sermons. Also the imam has to come up with new topics or else worshippers will be bored,” he said.
Mr. Suhaimi accused writers who lashed out at Mr. Areefi of not practicing what they preached since they did not accept his opinion.
“How can they be promoting freedom of expression while they attack people who disagree with them? If they want to object to what Areefi said, they should do so rationally and not through attacking his person.”
(This article by Khaled al-Shaei of Al Arabiya was translated from Arabic by Sonia Farid, also of Al Arabiya.)
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