An Arabian Royal Party Pooper, and a Persian Gulf Tijuana
“A poem in honor of the decision of His Royal Highness Prince Nayef Bin Abdulaziz, Second Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Interior, for taking the bold action of canceling the event that is polluted with civilization and impure slogans… an event that goes against the grain of Saudi solidarity…..”
The reference is to the decision by the minister of interior (security, police, etc) to cancel a Jeddah Film Festival, which would have been the first in Saudi Arabia’s history. The kingdom does not allow public cinemas either.Nayef is reported to represent a more conservative strain among the Saudi royals. He has made public statements more than once in recent months criticizing the electoral process in some Arab states and praising the royally appointed Saudi advisory council as the best that money can buy. His recent elevation to a Deputy Prime Minister was greeted with silent groans from Saudis who wnat to liberalize some aspects of life in the kingdom.
Persian Gulf Tijuana:
“Official Bahrain statistics indicate that about 4.5 million Saudis crossed into Bahrain during the first half of this year. About 80% of them crossed over the King Fahd Bridge. This means that 730 thousand persons crossed each month of this year. During 2008, over 18 million cars crossed the bridge……”
This can be explained by the first item, the one above about banning cinemas and any form of entertainment.
But no worry, the island state is also becoming Saudiized, like some other moderate Arab states of the New Middle East. This change is a result of Saudi influence, including the massive influx of tourists and the growth of the local Salafi movement which was encouraged by the oligarchy to offset the Shi’a majority.
The booze and the hookers are what almost all the hungry and thirsty Saudi tourists come for, not the Bahraini humid air. Sort of like they used to say about Tijuana and other border towns (now they can add dope and drugs). Gradual restrictions are being imposed on both booze and hookers in Bahrain, but will they clamp down completely? Then the Saudis will have to drive farther to Dubai. There is always pliable, buyable, rentable, anything-goes Beirut and its many diversions- with the exception of the Southern Suburbs, of course. But Beirut is a very long drive that requires going through unpleasant Jordanian and Syrian border guards. As they say in Riyadh and its environs: dommage, et zut!
Cheers
mhg
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