MAHA AKEEL
The tragic death of 15 young girls in the Makkah girls’ school fire that occurred in March 2002 will forever be a black mark in our memory, not only because of the number of innocent girls who lost their lives but also because of the circumstances that led to their death and their implications.
It was reported that the Committee for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice — Saudi Arabia’s so-called religious police, or more commonly known as the “hayaa” — prevented the schoolgirls from escaping the burning building and hindered rescue workers from entering the building because the students were not covered in their abayas and headscarves.
The actions of the religious police caused outrage and condemnation both inside the country and internationally. A government inquiry concluded that the educational authorities were responsible for neglecting fire safety at the school, but rejected the accusations that the actions of religious police contributed to the deaths, despite the accounts of eyewitnesses and Civil Defense officers. Nevertheless, due to public anger and criticism of the religious police, the General Presidency for Girls’ Education, which administered girls’ schools and was controlled by conservative clerics, was scrapped.
The fire at Makkah’s Intermediate School No. 31 (for girls aged 13 to 15) started on the morning of March 11, 2002, caused by an unattended cigarette in a room on the top floor, according to the official inquiry. Others claimed it was caused by an electrical short circuit from a stove in