SAUDIS SCORE ZERO IN SOCIAL REFORM

IMAM Rashied Omar of the Claremont Mosque writes – in (“Responding to Saudi brutality”, Weekend Argus, October 20) – that we should constantly supplicate that the Lord of compassionate justice grants the people of Saudi Arabia a just social order.

That is not the job of God or the purpose of life.

Life is a test and it is up to the Saudis to make the changes in society. If it was God’s job, then life would not be a test.

You cannot say a student should write exams and then the invigilator is there to supply the answers.

Furthermore, the Prophet said one must first tie the camel, then put one’s trust in God.

What does “tie the camel” mean? It is nothing less than a full house democratic order – a multi-party democracy with regular elections, an independent judiciary, rule of law, freedom of expression, free enterprise, free markets, protection of property rights, being strict on crime and corruption, etc.

The Saudis score zero on each of these counts. The rest of the Muslim world does not fare much better.

I can’t see the Muslim world introducing these reforms any time soon since it sits with an unreformed mentality.

Even the hypocritical Turks have locked up 100s of their own journalists. So, it’s fine to lock up journalists, but not fine to cut them into pieces. NAUSHAD OMAR Athlone