Epigraph: “And when the she-camels, tenmonth pregnant, are abandoned, and when the beasts are gathered together, and when the seas are made to flow forth one into the other, and when people are brought together, and when the girl-child buried alive is questioned about, ‘For what crime was she killed?’ And when books are spread abroad.” (Al Quran 81:5-11)
Source: The Huffington Post
By Betsy Isaacson
Posted: 05/18/2013 2:43 pm EDT
On May 15, Abdul Latif Abdul Aziz al-Sheikh, the most senior religious authority in Saudi Arabia, declared that Saudi citizens who use Twitter are risking damnation, according to a report from the BCC. A Saudi who tweets “has lost this world and his afterlife,” he said.
As the BBC elaborates, Abdul Aziz al ash-Shaikh’s comments are just latest in a concerted effort from the kingdom’s authorities in attacking the U.S.-based microblogging service. While Saudi establishment leaders frequently use technology like television and radio to broadcast their religious and political messages, Twitter and other digitally-based social media sites have Saudi leaders worried about government dissidents speaking out in the religiously conservative nation. “The government cannot follow everybody’s Twitter user name,” Saudi protestor Abu Zaki told NPR, explaining why activists have come to favor the microblogging media. “The authorities have to be selective and, hopefully, they don’t select my name.”
Unlike some other social networks, Twitter allows people to maintain multiple accounts and maintain them anonymously. That protection has allowed the site to become a veritable haven for Saudi dissent, according to the New York Times. On Twitter, “even the king has come under attack.”
Over the past two years, Twitter usage has skyrocketed in Saudi Arabia, company CEO Dick Costolo said. And with 70 percent of Arab Twitter users classified as “youths”, according one social media report, it’s no wonder Saudi authorities fear a disgruntled — and possibly more progressive — younger population speaking up. The desire to discourage Twitter users in Saudi Arabia is probably exacerbated by the recent history of youth-led “Arab Spring” revolutions in the Middle East.
The religious clerics comments aside, Saudi Arabia’s Twitter users have far more to worry about than their immortal souls. Al Jazeera reports that Saudi government are looking into way of ending anonymity on Twitter, and have recently begun arresting human rights activists who use Twitter as their platform.
The Muslim Times’ Editor’s comment: We pity the sorry state of the Saudis, who are being led by a short sighted and self serving monarchy and religious leadership.
Categories: Saudi Arabia, Social Media, Society
Strange thing is that the example of Catholic Church is being followed by all rich Muslims!
Perhaps more attention ought to be paid to the great exemplar!
Sir Muhammad Zafrulla Khan authored a lovely book bearing that title viz
“Muhammad, SEAL of the prophets”.
Earlier,in the late 1950’s ,the same author wrote his magnum opus,
“Islam: it’s meaning for modern man”.