Hamad Al-Majid, member of the Saudi National Organization for Human Rights, thinks the TV programming broadcast into Arabic homes needs to be cleaned up. He cites the efforts of a group of Saudi women to form the ‘Association for the Call for Virtue in the Information Media’ that has precisely that goal. Cleaning up TV is no longer a matter for the clerics and preachers, he says. The effort has moved into the mainstream of Arabic life.
I see a major problem, however, in an official of a human rights program calling for the limitation of what people might see, because that limits what others might say. Governments should not be involved in channeling people’s thoughts into approved or disapproved categories.
Whether this Saudi view—popular or not—moves across the Arabic world remains to be seen. The programs some Saudis deem offensive certainly have wide audiences across that same world. That may not matter to the groups looking for reform, but they might take a moment to consider why these programs are popular.
The women have every right to choose what to watch. They have the right to penalize broadcasters of whom they disapprove through their role in the markets. They may choose to avoid products made by advertisers on the programs—a boycott, in other words—but they do not have the right to insist government take a role in silencing unwanted or disliked speech. They most certainly do not have the right to incite violence against these broadcasters.
An Intifadah Against Indecent Programming
Dr. Hamad Al-MajidThe matter is no longer bearable and, as a result, she has declared her own intifadah.
She was horrified by the terrible crime and she cried out for help. Her own kingdom — her home — was surrounded in the assault, and she shouted: Help! Enough! Enough! It is a case of another Kifayah [movement in Egypt against Mubarak's intention to stay on in power; Kifayah is Arabic for 'enough'], but this time it had a media and not a political connotation.
This loud cry of “enough” emanated last Saturday from a group of Saudi female academicians and educated women during the inauguration of the “Association for the Call for Virtue in the Information Media.”
According to the Internet web site of the group in question, the inauguration of their association is an intifadah against any Arab satellite TV channel that broadcasts Arab or foreign subtitled serials showing marital adultery, nude scenes, Kissing, intimate encounters, and mediocre dialogue. It is an intifada against satellite TV advertisements containing lewd suggestions, signs, and ideas that focus on the sexual exploitation of women. This movement is a big ‘No’ to the broadcasting of video clips showing see-through clothes, immoral scenes and songs with words of a sexual nature. It is a resounding ‘No’ to any satellite TV channel that shows programs involving dancing halls, cabarets, and night clubs, and that brings this seedy world into every Arab home. It is a female cry of protest against satellite TV channels that allow or even encourage TV presenters, male and female, to exchange blatantly flirty words, make trivial jokes, and utter sex-laden words.
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September:30:2008 - 08:50
I live in the states right now, and i know atleast what is possiblly on those channels, but the more important question is: even if they have a point, how is the government or anyone going to be able to stop it? It isnt like the government can block the signal from satellites. I think this is more of a case of people blowing smoke just so they feel better, but not actaully wanting to do anything.
September:30:2008 - 08:50
Even if the women have a good point (i dont know, i havent seen these channels) the question then becomes, what can the government do about it anyways? Seriously, it isnt like they can block and/or regulate satellite signals. It seems the woman just want to blow smoke without doing anything really.
September:30:2008 - 08:50
oops.. sorry about the double post. Still learning!
September:30:2008 - 08:50
No problem! Because your two posts were different, I left them both in.
All first-time commenters need to have their comment approved by me and that sometimes takes a few hours. Glad to see you here and hope to hear lots more from you.
September:30:2008 - 08:50
I am so damn fed up with hearing the bull about how western women are sexually exploited. That is the biggest lie ever put forward. Women in Saudi are exploited on every level including sexually.
They are exploited in the workforce simply due to the fact that the men are raised there (generally speaking) to believe that their that women are objects of exploitation. If that is accepted as a basic premise, then what do you expect will happen 9 times out of 10?
Also if I had to choose between a life of sexual exploitation and a life of utter nothingness of being blotted out as an invalid and being denied the right to experience life as a living, breathing and feeling creature…I am sorry but I would much rather be sexually exploited.
All that repression leaves people screwed up. Case in point, a friend and I were talking about video clips being exchanged between Saudi females. Do you want to know what it was? It was people having sex with animals. I wanted to vomit…honestly!!!
People rebel and when they do it gets real ugly! UGHHH
September:30:2008 - 08:50
Orbit has a code you can input on the remote control for every channel to lock it. I didn’t like even the commericials on show time so guess what I boycotted it by not subscribing to them!
However, I would never have gotten rid of my Orbit because I loved the news channel especially the one that aired “Good Morning America”. It really made me want to be in the US again.
I think I am going to open my front door and go out in my p.j.s and scream “GOOD MORNING AMERICA” I am sure someone will say Good Morning….
I have learned many valuable things from the television and mostly these are how to stay safe and live healthy.
September:30:2008 - 08:50
Sparky,
I have friends in Pakistan who asked me once :”is it true that you Western people have sex with animals ? That’s what people say here”;
What do you want me to answer such an amazing question ?
It’s so easy for malicious people to take the worst from a country and say all of its people go for it.
Moreover Westerners have as many shocking clichés of that type in mind about Middle-Eastern people as Middle-East people have about Westerners…
And what TV shows does not always help in improving people’s view about other parts of the world.