Saudi Arabia Strips Religious Police of Arrest Powers

[Pink.]

(CNN)Saudi Arabia has stripped its religious police of the power to arrest when carrying out duties and enforcing Islamic law.

Experts say the clarification on the kingdom's religious police's abilities to arrest will affect women the most.

Under the new directives approved on Tuesday, members of the force -- formally known as the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice -- can no longer detain people they identify as breaking the kingdom's strict standards of moral conduct.

Now, the so-called Haia force must report individuals' "misbehaviors" to the police or drug police, the official Saudi Press Agency reports.

"They alone have the authority to follow, chase, stop, question, verify identification, arrest any suspected persons," the decree states.

Tactics under fire

Fawaz Gerges, professor of Middle Eastern studies at the London School of Economics, described the update in regulations from the Saudi Cabinet as a "significant development."

"In the past few years there have been many complaints by the public that the religious police has overstepped it's authority, that it has misbehaved, that has mistreated families, that it has overreached," he said.
Saudi FM: 'We have the death penalty. We make no bones about it'

Saudi FM: 'We have the death penalty. We make no bones about it' 07:40

"It's a very, very controversial issue inside Saudi Arabia. Obviously the leaders of Saudi Arabia, the political leaders, have decided that the religious police is doing more damage than good and they are very much concerned with the popular misgivings about recent incidents in the kingdom."

He added: "[The change in powers] establishes restrictions on the ability of the religious police and it basically protects citizens from the misbehavior of one particular individual within the religious police."

Historically, the role of Saudi Arabia's religious police has been to ensure Islamic laws -- such as prohibition of alcohol and drugs, gender segregation and making sure women are appropriately covered -- are adhered to.

Gerges said many of the incidents that have increased public debate around the role of the country's religious police have centered around its treatment of women.

"Most of the grievances have focused on women -- women who are not fully covered, women who are not with their own guardians ... that's why we call it moral police.

"It targets women who do not play by the rules, the religious rules."

One such incident occurred in February when a video emerged on social media platforms of two women appearing to be chased and allegedly assaulted by members of the religious police near a Riyadh shopping mall. The incident sparked nationwide outrage, the Gulf News reported at the time.

A 'balancing' act
But while this is a "positive step" from a public point of view, Gerges said the move should not be mistaken as the beginning of significant social reform across the country.

He said King Salman, who inherited the throne in January 2015, is "very much liked by the ultraconservative religious authority" but is trying to ease civic tensions and find a middle ground.
His predecessor, the late King Abdullah, was seen as a "liberal" reformer.

"We should not over-read into this particular decision. It is a balancing act; it is designed to respond to grievances which have been aired against the religious police.

"It is a delineation of the religious police's authority on the part of the political leadership and creating limits between the religious police and the regular police."

He added: "So in this particular sense, it shouldn't be seen as part of a major initiative or reform movement in the kingdom."

http://www.cnn.com/2016/04/14/middle...police-powers/

[wmbondurant]

Their citizens social benefits have been drastically cut due to Saudi playing with oil output. So, who knows what they are up to ?

During the Arab Spring ,they increased social benefits to all time highs to keep the idiots in line .with this increase came more strict religious regulation .

[subhuman]

But that's the only thing I liked about them.

[Pink.]

Originally Posted by skaan

But that's the only thing I liked about them.

I wonder how they would take to a Witch like me immigrating to Saudi Arabia ...asking for asistance...and making attempts to speak with the king and his brothers...

[rob666]

Originally Posted by wmbondurant

Their citizens social benefits have been drastically cut due to Saudi playing with oil output. So, who knows what they are up to ?

During the Arab Spring ,they increased social benefits to all time highs to keep the idiots in line .with this increase came more strict religious regulation .

As much as they're hurting us by not cutting production, they're hurting themselves even more.

Their debt to GDP ratio last year was 20%........ And they burned through about a quarter of their cash reserves.

The end of their bullshit is in sight, one way or the other

[wmbondurant]

Originally Posted by Pink.

I wonder how they would take to a Witch like me immigrating to Saudi Arabia ...asking for asistance...and making attempts to speak with the king and his brothers...

You had better not walk unattended or the religious police will beat and molest you ......

They are notoriously savage to women ..

[wmbondurant]

Originally Posted by rob666

As much as they're hurting us by not cutting production, they're hurting themselves even more.

Their debt to GDP ratio last year was 20%........ And they burned through about a quarter of their cash reserves.

The end of their bullshit is in sight, one way or the other

They aren't hurting enough to cut production , OPEC nations are really really hurting ...........

I see a boom <12 months ?

[rob666]

Originally Posted by wmbondurant

They aren't hurting enough to cut production , OPEC nations are really really hurting ...........

I see a boom <12 months ?

What they didn't count on is you guys making a profit with oil at $40.

I think they're fucked either way........ If oil stays at $30-40, they're fucked financially, and they can't produce enough to drive it much lower......... they figured they could put the American producers out of business, and it should be pretty obvious by now that isn't going to happen.

This whole glut is the result of an overproduction of less than 2% of the worlds requirements per day........ And it took record production from the whole world, and America doubling its production in 7 years to accomplish that.

I think the next boom is inevitable, the numbers are clear.......... Demand is still increasing at a record pace, maximum world production is only a few % points higher than CURRENT demand........ Even if production stays at its current pace, demand will meet it in a couple of years

Add to that the billions in deferred projects, exploration etc etc etc........ It's takes that just to maintain current levels of production as we consume oil

5 years from now, the Big Crunch is coming...... Maybe less......... Warren Buffet went in on oil big time.

[Pink.]

Originally Posted by wmbondurant

You had better not walk unattended or the religious police will beat and molest you ......

They are notoriously savage to women ..

I have NO fantasies about not being killed...or worse....by those people.

I DO, However, have ideas about how those people should could, and would....given the opportunity, be made examples of...and dispatched ... Sometimes, they need equal medicine.

[wmbondurant]

Originally Posted by rob666

What they didn't count on is you guys making a profit with oil at $40.

I think they're fucked either way........ If oil stays at $30-40, they're fucked financially, and they can't produce enough to drive it much lower......... they figured they could put the American producers out of business, and it should be pretty obvious by now that isn't going to happen.

This whole glut is the result of an overproduction of less than 2% of the worlds requirements per day........ And it took record production from the whole world, and America doubling its production in 7 years to accomplish that.

I think the next boom is inevitable, the numbers are clear.......... Demand is still increasing at a record pace, maximum world production is only a few % points higher than CURRENT demand........ Even if production stays at its current pace, demand will meet it in a couple of years

Add to that the billions in deferred projects, exploration etc etc etc........ It's takes that just to maintain current levels of production as we consume oil

5 years from now, the Big Crunch is coming...... Maybe less......... Warren Buffet went in on oil big time.

It's a drip drip drip of a profit .... More like fill your credit cards up and save the cash ,,,,, it's been horrible ............

I've run my trucks in freight , refrigerator, cement ,,
The market is so saturated with competition , it's hardly worth the trouble ....

There are big companies that are happy just to make Thier truck payments and are way better equipped to micromanage their bottom dollar .

Oil companies are down to skeleton crews of old timers ........ Who steadily cycle through a fresh batch of new boots every few months .