Job Discussion Forums

[johnslat]

Saudi journalist sentenced to 60 lashes
From Mohammed Jamjoom, CNN
October 24, 2009 4:57 p.m. EDT

"(CNN) -- A Saudi court sentenced a female journalist Saturday to 60 lashes for her work on a controversial Arabic-language TV show that aired an episode in which a man bragged about his sex life, two sources told CNN.

The court in Jeddah also imposed a two-year travel ban on Rosanna Al-Yami, according to a Saudi Information Ministry official, who could not be named because he is not authorized to speak to the media. The ban prevents her from traveling outside Saudi Arabia.

This official identified Al-Yami as a fixer, who helps journalists obtain stories, and a coordinator for Lebanese Broadcasting Corp., the network that aired "A Thick Red Line," a popular show on social taboos.

On one episode, a Saudi man, Mazen Abdul Jawad, bragged about sex and got into trouble with Saudi authorities for his boasts. Abdul Jawad was put on trial and sentenced to five years in prison and 1,000 lashes.

Suleiman Al-Jumeii, the attorney who represents Abdul Jawad, also confirmed the sentence against Al-Yami, saying he believes she is the first Saudi journalist ever to be sentenced to lashes.

While the charges include involvement in preparing the program, she was not involved in setting up the episode in which Abdul Jawad appeared, the lawyer said.

Al-Jumeii doesn't represent Al-Yami, but he said he is keeping tabs on all aspects of cases dealing with "A Thick Red Line." The lawyer is attempting to pursue an appeal for his client and get his case heard in a special court that deals only with media matters.

CNN has attempted to get comments from Al-Yami and her attorney.

Abdul Jawad, a 32-year-old airline employee and divorced father of four, spoke openly about his sexual escapades, his love of sex and losing his virginity at age 14 on "A Thick Red Line."

That episode caused an uproar in deeply conservative Saudi Arabia, where Shariah, or Islamic law, is practiced. Premarital sex is illegal, and unrelated men and women are not permitted to mingle.

Saudi authorities shut down the Lebanese network's offices in Jeddah and Riyadh after the interview aired a few months ago. Abdul Jawad was arrested shortly after the program aired and charged with violating Saudi Arabia's crime of publicizing vice."

http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/10/24/saudi.sex.braggart.journalist/index.html?eref=rss_topstories


Regards,
John

[007]

Law #0 of the Magic Kingdom:
No law is above the Magic Kingdom's laws.!

[Mia Xanthi]

Ahh, yes...the first law of Saudi Arabia is that you never say or even acknowledge the truth about what really goes on in Saudi Arabia. As long as we close our eyes and pretend along with them, everything will be ok.

[johnslat]

Dear Mia,

Quite true - and yet, I still see a significant change in what can be "publicly discussed" these days compared to what the Kingdom was like back in, say, the early 80s.
Back then, such issues as drug use, spousal abuse, women's rights - and later on, AIDS were by and large totally ignored.

These day, well, I'd say it's gotten a lot better: From a 2006 article:

"The media in Saudi Arabia has begun to broach topics such as religious extremism, women's rights and unemployment that were once strictly off limits.
The changes have provided new insight into what has long been one of the most closed and conservative societies in the world.
In speeches broadcast on Saudi television, King Abdullah has repeated what is now the dominant message of his reign - Saudi Arabia must stamp out the threat of home-grown Islamic extremism.
It is a complete switch after decades of denial that Saudi Arabia had any such problem. It was the involvement of Saudi citizens in 9/11 that forced the reversal. The Saudi media changed, too - as for the first time it began to examine issues that had once been hidden.
"Journalists and newspapers have begun to tackle taboo subjects - like unemployment, crime, the issues of women's rights and security forces' battles with Islamic extremists," says Joel Campagna of the Committee to Protect Journalists who has spent months assessing these changes.
"This type of coverage was not in evidence over the last decade - after all, remember Saudi Arabia in the early 1990s was a country where after Saddam Hussein's invasion of Kuwait, the press didn't report the invasion for the first 48 hours."

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/5057106.stm

Don't get me wrong; there's still plenty of room for improvement. But for a society to make big changes takes time, and seen from a perspective of, say, twenty-five years ago, I think there's quite a difference.

Regards,
John

[Deicide]

Don't people just work in Saudi for the Money? Anyway...

[johnslat]

Dear Deicide,

This is very true:

"Don't people just work in Saudi for the Money? Anyway..."

This, however, while probably generally true, is not universally true:

Don't people work in Saudi just for the Money?

Regards,
John

[funcky1924]

[veiledsentiments]

If you think really hard, you might notice that it is about the local culture... in Saudi Arabia... which is what branch this is.

If it doesn't interest you, why did you bother to read the article and/or make a post?

VS

[lazycomputerkids]

[Deicide]

[johnslat]

Dear Deicide,

No, no - hope is what's really needed there - along with patience, curiosity, a very good sense of humor and other essentials.
Hope for a better tomorrow, once one's time there has ended.

And there, you see, is the REALLY big difference. There's an exit.

Regards,
John

[Deicide]

[Middle East Beast]

[johnslat]

Dear MEB,,

A bit presumptuous? How so? Are you referring to the small number of ex-pats who die there?

"I don't believe Saudi Arabia is becoming more liberal in any respect."

You might have a different view if you had first arrived there in 1980. If you don't mind my asking, when did you first arrive?

"I can't find any humor in it."

Umm, who does/has?

Dear Deicide,

A lot depends on both the individual and the employer. I guess I was lucky in the second and apparently my temperament made me fortunate in the first, as well. I was hardly ever sad there. I enjoyed my work a great deal and made some wonderful friends there.

Regards,
John

[Deicide]