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Contemporary art show in Saudi Arabia could herald a new movement

salama — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 11:13:38 +0000

Contemporary art show in Saudi Arabia could herald a new movement

But young artists like those included in “We Need to Talk” still face obstacles and government bureaucracy

By Henry Hemming. Web only
Published online: 30 January 2012

Visitors to the opening of “We Need to Talk”

JEDDAH. Usually it is the job of an art historian to pinpoint when an art movement begins. But last month, on the west coast of Saudi Arabia, the overwhelming feeling among visitors to a ground-breaking exhibition of Saudi contemporary art was that they had witnessed the birth of something new. They may well be right.

Organised by Edge of Arabia, an independent arts initiative, “We Need to Talk” (until 18 February) features more than 40 pieces by 22 young Saudi artists, almost half of them women, and includes videos, sculpture and photography from the likes of Abdulnasser Gharem, Ahmed Mater and Manal Al-Dowayan. Most of these artists have shown together over the past three-and-a-half years in London, Venice, Berlin, Istanbul and Dubai, but never before in Saudi Arabia. Could an exhibition like this have been staged in Jeddah ten years ago? “Of course not,” said the show’s curator Mohammed Hafiz, “because we didn’t have the artists, we didn’t have the works of art… there are many elements.”

One of these elements was a degree of indifference or suspicion displayed back then towards contemporary art. Now, members of the Saudi royal family, including the participating artist, Princess Jowhara Al Saud, as well as legions of young art fans packed the opening. A smattering of non-Saudis were also there, including photographer Wolfgang Tillmans, Jack Persekian, the former director of the Sharjah Art Foundation, Antonia Carver, the director of Art Dubai, and the following day Chris Dercon, the director of Tate Modern, took a spin round the show, later describing the artists involved as “true intellectuals with a great eye for form and immanence”.

“It feels like a movement,” said London dealer James Lindon, visiting Saudi Arabia for the first time. “There’s extraordinary solidarity between the artists and a desire to push things forward in an interesting way. I’m incredibly impressed by the quality of the work.” While some pieces explored shared Islamic heritage, such as Ayman Yossri Daydban’s pieces on the Hajj, most focused on elements of contemporary Saudi society, and did so in a way that was immediate, considered, and at times gently provocative.

In Sarah Abu Abdullah’s video, Anees 9999, the artist, dressed in an abaya (a long cloak women in Saudi Arabia must wear in public), covers a wrecked car with pink paint before stepping gingerly into the passenger seat. “I was about to go back to Saudi,” she says of the piece, “so I started to count the things I wouldn’t be able to do… I wouldn’t be able to choose who I would marry, there are few working opportunities, I can’t drive myself to work, I can’t have my own little apartment. I granted myself a simple wish, by pretending to have my own car.”

Nor did she think she could ever display a video like this in Saudi Arabia. Clearly, the times are changing.

Maha Malluh, whose work is currently on show in the British Museum’s “Hajj” exhibition (until 15 April), refers to the religious tapes that appeared in Saudi Arabia during the late 1970s in her piece Food for Thought 7200. The cassettes are laid out in 1970s bread-baking trays and have been positioned to spell words that resonate from the tapes such as “un-religious”, “shame” and “lies”.

What makes the inclusion of pieces like these unusual is that every piece in the show was inspected by a committee of senior artists at the Ministry of Culture and Information and all but one work was approved. Financial support for the exhibition largely came from the private equity company, Abraaj Capital, and Abdul Latif Jameel Community Initiatives, the social responsibility wing of the automobile and customer financing corporation. This allowed the show’s organisers to take more risks, not just in terms of the work but the staging. “We Need to Talk” is held in an unfinished, neon-lit wing of Jeddah’s Al Furisiya Marina & Mall—a highly unusual choice for a Saudi exhibition. “I think it’s just right for the work. It was a risk, but one that we felt was worth taking,” said Stephen Stapleton, the founder of Edge of Arabia and the co-curator of “We Need to Talk”.

Like the mall, the Saudi art movement looks set to receive considerable investment in event sponsorship and patronage in the coming years. As well as supporting the exhibition, Christie’s had eight representatives in Jeddah for the opening. Sotheby’s had four. By the end of the year both auction houses will have members of staff based in Saudi Arabia.

“Collectors [here] have the means and the interest,” said Paul Hewitt, the managing director of growth markets, Christie’s, who compared the emerging market in Saudi Arabia to that of Russia and India, adding that patience was key. For Lina Lazaar, a deputy director and international specialist for contemporary art at Sotheby’s, “every single Saudi that I know from my generation has or is about to start collecting contemporary art”.

Nonetheless this fledgling art movement faces some obstacles. There is no fine art college, no contemporary art museum, no dedicated art publication and no surplus of innovative art spaces in Saudi Arabia, with the notable exception of Jeddah’s Athr Gallery.

Saudi bureaucracy is another problem, a theme addressed in the show by several pieces. The Postman, a photograph by Sami Al-Turki, refers to the growing number of young Saudis who prefer to communicate by email rather than risk the state-run postal service, a situation he sees as analogous to what is happening in many Saudi creative fields as young men and women choose to feature their work and communicate by YouTube, Facebook and Twitter rather than through traditional channels. “We Need to Talk” belongs very much to this new tradition.

The fact that this exhibition happened, the extensive coverage it received in the Saudi media, and the prospect of a museum of contemporary art opening in Jeddah within the decade: all of this suggests an underlying shift. In Saudi Arabia today there is a new enthusiasm for art. It is being driven on by an indigenous movement of contemporary art that made its long-awaited arrival on a balmy night in Jeddah.

Saudi Arabia to probe delay of tests on imported food

salama — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 10:09:48 +0000

The Saudi Food and Drug Authority (SFDA) plans to launch an investigation into the delay of some of its laboratories in completing tests on food products coming into the country, Saudi Gazette has reported. The move follows complaints from a number of businessmen and importers that their perishable products expire while the tests are still being done.

India: ‘Kashmir ideally suited for Saudi tourists’

salama — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 12:39:31 +0000

By SIRAJ WAHAB | ARAB NEWS

DAMMAM: A high-level delegation of tourism and culture ministers, government officials, bureaucrats, airline operators and tourism experts from different states of India is currently visiting the Kingdom to familiarize Saudis with all that “Incredible India” has to offer.

Among the biggest contingents is from Jammu and Kashmir, a state that is rated as one of the best tourism destinations in India. The state delegation is being headed by Tourism and Culture Minister Nawang Rigzin Jora, and it includes Minister of State for Home, Tourism and Housing Nasir Aslam Wani, Tourism Commissioner Atal Dulloo, J&K Tourism Development Corp. Managing Director Satish Nehru and Kashmir Tourism Director Farooq Shah.

“This is the first time we are leading such a high-level delegation to Saudi Arabia to promote our state as the No. 1 tourist destination,” Farooq Shah told Arab News on the sidelines of the road show at Sheraton Dammam on Saturday.

The composition of the Kashmiri delegation, he pointed out, underlined the Omar Abdullah-led state government’s seriousness in attracting tourists from Saudi Arabia.

“Kashmir is without a doubt a paradise on earth and we believe that it is the natural crown of Incredible India,” said Shah. “Like a multifaceted diamond, Kashmir changes its hues with the seasons, and its honey-dewed orchards, rippling lakes and blue skies have a magical impact on tourists.”

For the average Saudi tourist, Kashmir has a lot to offer. “One, it is gorgeous; two, it is affordable and inexpensive; three, we have halal food; four, we have any number of mosques; five, it is very well connected by air and much closer to Saudi Arabia than European destinations,” said Shah.

“We are also known as the shopper’s paradise because of our traditional hand-made goods, beautiful shawls and wonderful hand-woven carpets,” he said. “Saudis specially like our houseboats, we call them floating apartments, they are nicely decorated, and in terms of service they are no less that any five-star hotel.”

For those young Saudis who are looking for adventure, Kashmir is again the right destination. “We are the place for wind sports, rafting, mountaineering, golfing and trekking … we have excellent facilities for all outdoor activities,” he said.

One of the reasons why Saudis and other Arabs have avoided going to Kashmir is the security situation. “Kashmir is as safe as any place in the world,” said Shah. “Our security situation is very stable, and it can be gauged from the fact that in 2011 we have had 2 million tourists; of them 70,000 were foreigners, including Saudi families.”

Responding to a question about tourist visas, he said: “Our embassies and consulates are very prompt in issuing visas; our Saudis brothers can contact the nearest mission and they will be more than welcome,” he said.

The tourism road shows are being organized by India’s Ministry of Tourism. The large delegation is headed by Tourism Ministry’s Rajen Habib Khwaja and includes Additional Director General Devesh Chaturvedi and India Tourism Regional Director Vikas Rustagi.

Dammam was the first stop for the road show. It travels to Riyadh on Jan. 9 and Jeddah on Jan. 12.

Arab world needs $144bn to meet food needs

hamid — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 11:53:09 +0000

FOOD CONCERN: Food security became a major issue in the Arab world since 2008 when food prices soared in the global market. (Getty Images)

Arab countries need to invest $144 billion in agriculture between now and 2030 to meet the demand for food for their growing populations, said an Arab official.

Arab states need to secure half of this amount from private investors to meet the demand of the combined population that is expected to reach 550 million in 2030, said Tareq Al Zadjali, director general of the Arab Organisation for Agriculture Development in an interview in Jeddah this week.

Al-Zadjali said the gap in the Arab world will reach $71 billion in 2030 and without encouraging business to increase investment it can’t be narrowed.

“The private investors need ready infrastructure and Arab countries need to develop that to attract them,” he added. “I don’t expect investors to build electricity stations, grains silos, and ports. This is the responsibility of governments.”

Al-Zadjali said these investments will allow for producing as much as 93 percent of the demand for grains within the Arab world; and 81 percent of the demand for sugar crops and 69 percent of that for oil seeds.

“I’m not expecting us to attract $144 billion in investments but if we attracted 75 percent of that sum then our plan will still work,” he added.

Food security became a major issue in the Arab world since 2008 when food prices soared in the global market. Many exporting nations gave priorities to feed their nations even as Arab countries had the money to buy from abroad, al-Zadjali said.

Since then Gulf countries such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates developed plans to buy farms abroad in Asian and African countries to export food back home. Al-Zadjali wants to see more Arabs investing in agriculture within the Arab worlds’ borders.

Saudi Arabia: Riyadh will hold their 1st Halal Food Control & Exhibition

salama — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 08:54:22 +0000

For the first time the Halal Food Control and Exhibition will be hold at Ryadh. These conferences will be hold concurrently with the halal products exhibition. Important issues surrounding standardization certificate of halal will be one of the main agenda will be discussed.

Saudi Arabia will hold a Halal Food Control and Exhibition for the first time. International-scale event production will hold in 12-15 February 2012 in Ryadh. A number of researchers as well as the institutions associated halal certification from all over the world are expected to join. Including organisations and enterprises that produces halal products.

As for who will be the subject of where issues are issues related to the vital problems related to lawful including searching for workarounds. Like slaughtering methods, terms and conditions for ensuring the consistency of food export, and automatic machine for slaughtering animals, standardization of halal certification, etc. So later retrieved the halal standards is truly an international reference.

In addition the participants can also be exchanged between countries in the field of supervision and control on halal food. Both of the parties and legislative regulations of different countries around the world and Islamic Nations in particular. Some other advantages are also expected to be open wide, both in partnering as well as in obtaining an agreement.

This event is open to companies that produce diary and non diary, red meat, halal food franchise, bread, chocolate, biscuits, beverages, organic produce, supermarkets, and much more. As for the targeted visitors alone leads to importer, exporter, manufacturers, hotels, restaurants, the Ministry of industry and trade all over the world, as well as halal certification agencies.

Special Conference hold for the first time in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, as a religious responsibility in support of Government’s role in serving Islam and the Muslims around the world.

Saudi Arabia: Singapore taps into rising Saudi food sector market

salama — Sun, 23 Oct 2011 22:01:27 +0000

Saudi Gazette JEDDAH – A Singapore business delegation from the food sector is currently in Saudi Arabia to explore business opportunities in the Kingdom’s burgeoning food and beverage sector.

The Singaporean food business mission – representing eight Singapore-based companies from the food manufacturing and logistics sectors – arrived in Jeddah Saturday, and is holding meetings with Saudi entrepreneurs in the sector until today (Oct. 24), then will travel to Riyadh for three-day consultations with Saudi businessmen in the central region up to Oct. 27.

Feroz Siddiqui, Center Director in Riyadh at International Enterprise Singapore and the First Secretary (Commercial) at Embassy of the Republic of Singapore, said the Kingdom’s food retail industry is expected to grow at a CAGR of 12.4 percent to reach S$83.9 billion by 2014.

“Most Singapore F&B companies in the Middle East started off in the UAE, where the expatriate population is large and familiar with Asian food. Having gained market knowledge and a track record, it is timely to enter Saudi Arabia. We see a growing demand for quality Southeast Asian food products and concepts as the Saudis are increasingly more receptive to Southeast Asia’s ethnic and spicy flavors,” he said.
According to recent BMI statistics, Saudi Arabia accounts for up to 63 percent of the GCC’s $9 billion food and beverage market, easily establishing the country as a major business and investment destination for key players in the food production value chain. With the Kingdom’s rapidly increasing population, which is expected to double by 2023, per capita food consumption is projected to balloon 31.24 percent by 2014.
An example of a Singapore-based company that has made headway into Saudi Arabia is Tee Yih Jia Group that entered into a partnership with Binzagr Group. In September this year, the company successfully launched its Spring Home brand of products in the mainstream supermarket chains such as Green Shopping Center and Dhahia Supermarket.

“Building strong relationships with partners have been vital to our success in the Middle East as this has enabled us to better understand the needs of the market. Likewise, we feel that it is also an opportune time for Middle East companies to begin investing in Asia with Singapore as a springboard,” said Darren Sia, company’s Market Development manager.

“Singapore has a strong reputation for its rigorous food safety and halal certification standards. However, to enter new markets such as Saudi Arabia, our companies need to be knowledgeable of their consumer food culture, and preferences,” he added.
Ted Tan, deputy chief executive, SPRING Singapore (Standards, Productivity and Innovation Board) – a statutory board under the Ministry of Trade and Industry of Singapore which is the main agency for enterprise development and competitiveness – said the trip to Saudi Arabia will help Singaporean food companies and representatives from the Food Innovation Resource Center “gain valuable first-hand consumer insights into the intricate taste buds of the Middle Eastern consumer. It will assist them in innovating their food products for the Middle Eastern market.”
Bilateral trade between Singapore and Saudi Arabia from January to August 2011 totaled S$14 billion, an increase of 29.6 percent from S$10.8 billion registered in the same period last year, said Nordin Mohamed Yatim, Center Director in Jeddah at International Enterprise Singapore and Vice Consul (Commercial), Singapore Consulate General Jeddah. Total trade value hit S$12.8 billion in 2009.

Total trade between the two countries jumped 36.4 percent Y-o-Y in the first eight months of this year to reach S$14.7 billion, he added. Singapore’s top exports to the Kingdom in 2010 were refined petroleum products and machine parts.
Main imports from Saudi Arabia last year were crude oil and organic chemicals.

Women in Saudi Arabia’s Shura Council, what next?

salama — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 07:42:42 +0000

By Samar Fatany

Global Arab Network - Saudi Arabia – The recent decision by Saudi King Abdullah to allow women to run and vote in municipal elections and become members of the Shura Council, a parliament that acts as an advisory council to the King but has no legislative powers, has huge implications for the status of women in Saudi Arabia and has provided them with hope for what they may accomplish with their new roles.

In his 26 September inaugural speech at the Shura Council, King Abdullah rejected the marginalisation of women in all sectors and encouraged their participation in political life. Citing examples of prominent women throughout Islamic history, his speech showed great determination to empower Saudi women and end attempts to undermine their role in the name of Islam. The King stressed the need to modernise society and attacked those who opposed the inclusion of women in decision-making processes.

King Abdullah’s decision has followed several statements in which he publically supported the integration of women into the workforce and welcomed the contributions of women to the economic prosperity of the country.

Legalised discrimination against women in Saudi Arabia has continued over several decades due to the influence of religious hardliners who misinterpret Islamic concepts. Some decision makers have used distorted Islamic rulings to support their conservative ideas, for example that women should not participate in nation-building, should remain inside their homes and should not have any role in the country’s future.

But the participation of women in the Shura and municipal councils will finally provide women with the opportunity to end the discrimination against them in the public and private sectors.

They will be able to exert pressure on the government through their lobbying within the Shura, and provide official recommendations addressing the challenges that have hindered their progress, such as the ban on women driving, the reluctance of the public to support women in leadership positions, the strict culture of segregation within society, the niqab (a face veil worn in addition to the headscarf) which can compromise the level of efficiency and professionalism of women’s careers, and discriminatory policies at some workplaces.

Women in the Shura can also serve the interests of women currently in the workforce by pushing for adequate maternity leave, reasonable working hours, onsite nurseries and equal pay.

Women council members could also promote the advancement of women’s status in society by the very fact that they will demonstrate that women can participate in and shape public life. Their newly recognised positions could promote a greater respect for women as they face the challenges of modern life.

Many Saudi women hope that women in the Shura will be able to challenge extreme religious rulings that are incompatible with Muslim women’s realities in today’s world. Among the issues that they could raise would be the need for a codified system to ensure a uniform application of Islamic laws. This would allow women to become familiar with their legal rights in Islam and not be at the mercy of the whims of family court judges, some of whom sanction domestic abuse or deliberately rule in favour of an abusive male guardian simply because he is a man.

As a first step, the women in the Shura will be expected to call for the elimination of laws governing legal guardianship, which give men rights over their wives, daughters, etc., and to address the injustices toward women in cases of unjust or disproportionate jail sentences, floggings, child marriages, domestic abuse, child custody or divorce.

The women in the Shura could also have a significant impact by advocating women’s participation in governmental and managerial positions. Together with other parts of civil society, such as the chamber of commerce or human rights organisations, the female council members could also inform male politicians and managers about the realities of women who suffer from discrimination and encourage them to work for change.

The challenges facing women are still overwhelming. And it may take another generation – or even two – to achieve the shift in the role of women in Saudi society that many of us have long desired. However, the inclusion of women in the Shura Council is a significant first step towards a society where women can assume leadership positions in public life and achieve proper justice.

Global Arab Network

* Samar Fatany is a chief broadcaster and journalist in the English service of Radio Jeddah and a social activist who has been involved in fighting extremism and enhancing the role of women and youth in Saudi society. She is also a columnist for Arab News and the author of three books. This article was written for the Common Ground News Service (CGNews).

Saudi Arabia pharma: Pfizzing

hamid — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 10:45:58 +0000

FROM THE ECONOMIST INTELLIGENCE UNIT

Pfizer has become the first multinational pharma investor to set up a wholly owned subsidiary. It is all part of the Saudi efforts to expand the healthcare sector.

Because of restrictions on foreign-ownership of businesses, foreign investments in Saudi Arabia’s pharma sector have traditionally been limited to joint ventures with domestic firms. Now the development of economic “free zones” is changing that, and Pfizer of the US is one company taking advantage.

Pfizer recently announced plans to set up a new factory in the King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC), north of Jeddah. The KAEC is one of several free zones established by governments in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region as part of drives to attract investment and promote diversification to non-oil based industries. The zones offer investors the chance to set up wholly owned companies backed by incentives such as tax breaks.

As such, they may offer the chance of grabbing greater market share in Saudi Arabia’s fastest-growing sectors, including healthcare and pharmaceuticals. Pfizer’s new facility will reportedly consist of medicine manufacturing and packaging technologies within one large site covering 65,000 square meters. Production of pharmaceutical products will start in 2015 and the Pfizer complex is expected to create as 200 new jobs.

While financial details of the investment have not been revealed by Pfizer, the American company’s Vice President of Global Supply, Bulent Atlig, claimed that it “demonstrates the confidence we have in the Saudi Arabian business environment and the high level of opportunity we see here as a growth market”.

Earlier this year, the Jeddah-based National Commercial Bank projected that the kingdom’s pharma sales would grow by 5.9% a year over the next two years to reach a value of around SR14.04bn (US$3.74bn) in 2012. This expected growth rate outstrips the 1-3% expected in most of Western Europe and Canada over the same period, and even the 3-%% expected in the US.

Pfizer, like most of its Big Pharma rivals, is continuing to push forward with overseas investment plans to offset the effects of the global economic downturn. Though Saudi Arabia’s growth comes nowhere near the heady growth rates expected in other emerging market economies, such as China, Brazil, Russia and India, the kingdom’s efforts to diversify the domestic economy – not least through investment in healthcare – may well offer long-term opportunities too.

Moreover, while Saudi Arabia accounts for 65% of all drug sales in the GCC region, the remaining states – Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and the UAE – are all experiencing rapid growth in pharma demand too. Sales are being fuelled by the same factors as in Saudi Arabia: population growth, infrastructure expansion and the roll-out of private healthcare insurance plans. The free zone offers Pfizer a manufacturing base from which to serve this region.

Becoming one of the first multinational drug-makers to establish a fully-owned subsidiary in Saudi Arabia will put Pfizer in a strong position to win market share. To date, foreign firms have invested in Saudi Arabia via joint-ventures or licensing agreements. Market leader Banaja Saudi Import Company holds a 51% share in Glaxo Saudi Arabia. Its biggest rival, the Saudi Pharmaceutical Industries and Medical Supplies Company, is 20%-owned by the Jordanian Arab Company for Drug Industries and Medical Appliances, while the Saudi Arabian-Japanese Pharmaceutical Company is part of an international joint venture.

But Pfizer may not have the market all to itself, with France’s Sanofi also expressing an interest in investing in KAEC. The Saudi government is also keen to attract further investment to reduce the kingdom’s dependence on expensive imported medicines, which currently account for around 84% of drug expenditure. The hope is that the foreign investors will help to inject the money, skills and technology needed to develop a strong pharma industry within the kingdom.

Expansion trend

Indeed, the development of KAEC is just one aspect of a government policy aimed at the rapid expansion of the whole Saudi healthcare sector. Since the mid-1980s, the GCC governments have been improving healthcare infrastructure to prevent citizens having to go abroad for specialist care such as organ transplants and neurosurgery. Moves to lessen the risk of oil shocks on healthcare provision gathered pace in the mid-1990s, with Saudi Arabia and other GCC states setting ambitious targets for the construction of state-of-the-art hospitals and specialist medical training centres, by attracting private investment into the sector.

But despite rapid development over the past two decades, rapid population growth has led to even more demand for healthcare – the population has expanded by over 25% over the past decade alone, reaching 27m in 2010. At 2.2 hospital beds per 1,000 people, Saudi Arabia’s provision is still under half the global average of 4.3 beds, according to World Development Indicators.

Reflecting the government’s commitment to improving healthcare, the kingdom’s 2011 budget allocated US$18.3bn for health and social affairs, 12.3% more than in 2010. Moreover, Riyadh’s ninth five-year national development plan, last year set aside US$73bn for developing healthcare infrastructure until 2014. In the plans are targets to construct 117 new hospitals, 750 primary healthcare facilities and 400 new emergency units.

News that Pfizer intends to establish a manufacturing facility in Saudi Arabia to capitalise on this expansion come just as the government is preparing tender documents for one of the kingdom’s most prominent hospital projects. The SR4.6bn (US$1.2bn) King Fahad Specialist Hospital in Dammam will consist of seven specialised medical centres on a 700,000 m2 site, providing 1,500 beds, an international medical academy, a research centre and a residential complex.

New medical cities with similar facilities are also being developed in Riyadh and Jeddah. And though the government is encouraging the use of cheaper generic medicines to help contain expenditure growth, the rapid development of a tertiary care sector will bring huge demand for the latest innovative life-saving treatments. Hence the efforts the government is making to attract innovative drug-makers along with the hospital investment it so desperately needs.

Makkah for the rich: Islam’s holiest site ‘turning into Vegas’

salama — Sun, 18 Sep 2011 18:22:39 +0000

Historic and culturally important landmarks are being destroyed to make way for luxury hotels and malls, reports Jerome Taylor for The Independent

Behind closed doors – in places where the religious police cannot listen in – residents of Makkah are beginning to refer to their city as Las Vegas, and the moniker is not a compliment.

Click HERE to download graphic of the building in Makkah: Makkah For The Rich

Over the past 10 years the holiest site in Islam has undergone a huge transformation, one that has divided opinion among Muslims all over the world.

Once a dusty desert town struggling to cope with the ever-increasing number of pilgrims arriving for the annual Hajj, the city now soars above its surroundings with a glittering array of skyscrapers, shopping malls and luxury hotels.

To the al-Saud monarchy, Makkah is their vision of the future – a steel and concrete metropolis built on the proceeds of enormous oil wealth that showcases their national pride.

Yet growing numbers of citizens, particularly those living in the two holy cities of Mecca and Medina, have looked on aghast as the nation’s archaeological heritage is trampled under a construction mania backed by hardline clerics who preach against the preservation of their own heritage. Mecca, once a place where the Prophet Mohamed insisted all Muslims would be equal, has become a playground for the rich, critics say, where naked capitalism has usurped spirituality as the city’s raison d’être.

Few are willing to discuss their fears openly because of the risks associated with criticising official policy in the authoritarian kingdom. And, with the exceptions of Turkey and Iran, fellow Muslim nations have largely held their tongues for fear of of a diplomatic fallout and restrictions on their citizens’ pilgrimage visas. Western archaeologists are silent out of fear that the few sites they are allowed access to will be closed to them.

But a number of prominent Saudi archaeologists and historians are speaking up in the belief that the opportunity to save Saudi Arabia’s remaining historical sites is closing fast.

“No one has the balls to stand up and condemn this cultural vandalism,” says Dr Irfan al-Alawi who, as executive director of the Islamic Heritage Research Foundation, has fought in vain to protect his country’s historical sites. “We have already lost 400-500 sites. I just hope it’s not too late to turn things around.”

Sami Angawi, a renowned Saudi expert on the region’s Islamic architecture, is equally concerned. “This is an absolute contradiction to the nature of Mecca and the sacredness of the house of God,” he told the Reuters news agency earlier this year. “Both [Mecca and Medina] are historically almost finished. You do not find anything except skyscrapers.”

Dr Alawi’s most pressing concern is the planned £690m expansion of the Grand Mosque, the most sacred site in Islam which contains the Kaaba – the black stone cube built by Ibrahim (Abraham) that Muslims face when they pray.

Construction officially began earlier this month with the country’s Justice Minister, Mohammed al-Eissa, exclaiming that the project would respect “the sacredness and glory of the location, which calls for the highest care and attention of the servants or Islam and Muslims”.

The 400,000 square metre development is being built to accommodate an extra 1.2 million pilgrims each year and will turn the Grand Mosque into the largest religious structure in the world. But the Islamic Heritage Foundation has compiled a list of key historical sites that they believe are now at risk from the ongoing development of Mecca, including the old Ottoman and Abbasi sections of the Grand Mosque, the house where the Prophet Mohamed was born and the house where his paternal uncle Hamza grew up.

There is little argument that Mecca and Medina desperately need infrastructure development. Twelve million pilgrims visit the cities every year with the numbers expected to increase to 17 million by 2025.

But critics fear that the desire to expand the pilgrimage sites has allowed the authorities to ride roughshod over the area’s cultural heritage. The Washington-based Gulf Institute estimates that 95 per cent of Mecca’s millennium-old buildings have been demolished in the past two decades alone.

The destruction has been aided by Wahabism, the austere interpretation of Islam that has served as the kingdom’s official religion ever since the al-Sauds rose to power across the Arabian Peninsula in the 19th century.

In the eyes of Wahabis, historical sites and shrines encourage “shirq” – the sin of idolatry or polytheism – and should be destroyed. When the al-Saud tribes swept through Mecca in the 1920s, the first thing they did was lay waste to cemeteries holding many of Islam’s important figures. They have been destroying the country’s heritage ever since. Of the three sites the Saudis have allowed the UN to designate World Heritage Sites, none are related to Islam.

Those circling the Kaaba only need to look skywards to see the latest example of the Saudi monarchy’s insatiable appetite for architectural bling. At 1,972ft, the Royal Mecca Clock Tower, opened earlier this year, soars over the surrounding Grand Mosque, part of an enormous development of skyscrapers that will house five-star hotels for the minority of pilgrims rich enough to afford them.

To build the skyscraper city, the authorities dynamited an entire mountain and the Ottoman era Ajyad Fortress that lay on top of it. At the other end of the Grand Mosque complex, the house of the Prophet’s first wife Khadijah has been turned into a toilet block. The fate of the house he was born in is uncertain. Also planned for demolition are the Grand Mosque’s Ottoman columns which dare to contain the names of the Prophet’s companions, something hardline Wahabis detest.

For ordinary Meccans living in the mainly Ottoman-era town houses that make up much of what remains of the old city, development often means the loss of their family home.

Non-Muslims cannot visit Mecca and Medina, but The Independent was able to interview a number of citizens who expressed discontent over the way their town was changing. One young woman whose father recently had his house bulldozed described how her family was still waiting for compensation. “There was very little warning; they just came and told him that the house had to be bulldozed,” she said.

Another Meccan added: “If a prince of a member of the royal family wants to extend his palace he just does it. No one talks about it in public though. There’s such a climate of fear.”

Dr Alawi hopes the international community will finally begin to wake up to what is happening in the cradle of Islam. “We would never allow someone to destroy the Pyramids, so why are we letting Islam’s history disappear?”

Under Threat

Bayt al-Mawlid

When the Wahabis took Mecca in the 1920s they destroyed the dome on top of the house where the Prophet Mohammed was born. It was thenused as a cattle market before being turned into a library after a campaign by Meccans. There are concerns that the expansion of the Grand Mosque will destroy it once more. The site has never been excavated by archaeologists.

Ottoman and Abasi columns of the Grand Mosque

Slated for demolition as part of the Grand Mosque expansion, these intricately carved columns date back to the 17th century and are the oldest surviving sections of Islam’s holiest site. Much to the chagrin of Wahabis, they are inscribed with the names of the Prophet’s companions. Ottomon Mecca is now rapidly disappearing

Al-Masjid al-Nawabi

For many years, hardline Wahabi clerics have had their sites set on the 15th century green dome that rests above the tomb holding the Prophet, Abu Bakr and Umar in Medina. The mosque is regarded as the second holiest site in Islam. Wahabis, however, believe marked graves are idolatrous. A pamphlet published in 2007 by the Saudi Ministry of Islamic Affairs, endorsed by Abdulaziz Al Sheikh, the Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia, stated that “the green dome shall be demolished and the three graves flattened in the Prophet’s Masjid”.

Jabal al-Nour

A mountain outside Mecca where Mohammed received his first Koranic revelations. The Prophet used to spend long spells in a cave called Hira. The cave is particularly popular among South Asian pilgrims who have carved steps up to its entrance and adorned the walls with graffiti. Religious hardliners are keen to dissuade pilgrims from congregating there and have mooted the idea of removing the steps and even destroying the mountain altogether.

US business mission eyes Saudi agro-food deals

hamid — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 10:45:47 +0000

JEDDAH: Top American firms are seeking new partnerships with leading agriculture and food companies in the Kingdom.

There are also plans to promote Saudi dates in the US as a healthy snack and a new addition to the American diet, according to the US-Saudi Arabian Business Council (USSABC).

The council is leading a delegation of 15 US companies to the Kingdom from Sept. 17 to 24. These firms are involved in agriculture, water and food industries.

Major companies include Schreiber Foods, Turkey Hill Dairy, Oregon Hay Products, and Holstein Association USA, Inc.

The mission consists of top companies specializing in agricultural production, irrigation, livestock breeding, processed and halal food, organic fertilizers, soil treatment, animal feed and feed additives, land-use mapping, and low water use grass seeds.

Participants of the business development mission will exhibit at Saudi Agriculture 2011/Agro-Food show in Riyadh.

The delegation will be located within the American Pavilion at the event with a total of five booths.

In conjunction with the show, the Business Council will facilitate one-on-one meetings with leading Saudi agriculture and food companies for potential partnership.

“The Business Council recognizes that food security is of utmost importance to Saudi Arabia,” said Edward Burton, USSABC president and managing director.

“This is the second time the Business Council has attended Saudi Agriculture/Agro-Food, and we have made it a priority to support the King Abdullah Food Security Initiative.”

One of the companies who took part in last year’s mission, The Royal Palm Group, will announce with Othaim Markets, a new all-American Halal poultry production for the Kingdom.

Iowa and Wisconsin, known for their natural feed grain and pure water, are raising the chickens for the contract to supply Othaim Markets. The value of the contract will be announced at the Saudi Agro-Food Exhibition.

Likewise, the Royal Palm Group, intends to establish its new Palm Date Company in Saudi Arabia in order to buy, pack and export Saudi Arabia’s best palm dates to the US.

“We intend to make the Saudi dates famous in America as a healthy snack and a new addition to the American diet,” said John Parke Wright IV, managing director of the Royal Palm Group.

The mission program includes briefings from Tahwid Al-Saffy, director of the Agriculture Trade Office at the US Embassy in Riyadh and Samir Kabbani, chairman for the National Agriculture Committee at the Council of Saudi Chambers.

Delegates will also hear a presentation from the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA).

The Business Council is organizing a number of events for the delegation including a reception at the Riyadh Equestrian Club on Sept. 21for leading company executives and council members.

On Sept. 24, the delegation will visit the Al-Ahsa Chamber of Commerce and Industry to hold talks with local farming and agribusinesses.

Saudi Arabia is the largest market in the Middle East for agriculture products and technologies.

The sector has recently averaged an 8 percent annual growth rate, due in part to a rapidly growing population.

Reflecting the government’s strong support of the sector’s continual development, agriculture, water, and infrastructure projects received $13.55 billion of the 2011 government budget, an increase of 10.4 percent over the previous year.

The US-Saudi Arabian Business Council is a non-profit organization that works to improve the mutual knowledge and understanding between the private sectors of the US and Saudi Arabia and promote and facilitate increased bilateral trade and investment.

Source: ARAB NEWS

Published: Sep 11, 2011 22:43