VZCZCXRO3638
PP RUEHDE
DE RUEHRH #5451/01 1910831
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 100831Z JUL 06
FM AMEMBASSY RIYADH
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9389
INFO RUEHZM/GULF COOPERATION COUNCIL COLLECTIVE
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 2686
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS 0624

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 RIYADH 005451 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DHAHRAN SENDS 
PARIS FOR ZEYA, LONDON FOR TSOU 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/09/2016 
TAGS: PGOV PHUM SOCI KIRF SA
SUBJECT: HASAWI SHI'A CONTINUE ADVOCACY EFFORTS IN RIYADH 
 
REF: A. RIYADH 5136 
     ¶B. RIYADH 1196 
 
Classified by Consul General John Kincannon for reasons 1.4 
(b) and (d). 
 
----------------------------------- 
Television Shows and Jaafari Courts 
----------------------------------- 
 
¶1.  (C) In separate meetings with PolOff and PAO on July 8, 
Hasawi Shi'a activists Sadeq Al-Ramadan and Mohammed 
Al-Jubran discussed Shi'a advocacy efforts with the SAG. 
Al-Ramadan mentioned that he was part of a small delegation 
that visited the Vice Minister of Information and several 
other ministry officials in June to protest a recent incident 
on an Al-Akhbaria television show.  The show's host, 
Al-Ramadan said, had invited a Sunni sheikh to discuss 
tolerance in Islam.  The sheikh apparently claimed that 
Muslims should be tolerant to Christians and members of other 
faiths, but not toward Shi'a, whom he described as "kuffar." 
The host, Al-Ramadan related, was startled and noted to his 
guest that the Shi'a were "our brothers," to which the sheikh 
responded, "only our companions, not our brothers."  The 
show's host, Al-Ramadan continued, called for a short break 
and then ended the program.  According to Al-Ramadan, the 
ministry officials were very apologetic, promising to be even 
more careful in vetting guests for the program and noting 
that they had already put the sheikh in question on a black 
list to prevent him from appearing on future programs. 
 
¶2.  (C) Mohammed Al-Jubran said that he was part of another 
small Shi'a delegation seeking a meeting with King Abdullah 
through one of his advisors.  The purpose of the meeting, 
Al-Jubran said, was "to ask the King to grant official status 
to the Shi'a (Jaafari) courts."  Al-Jubran noted that the 
request had both practical and symbolic significance.  The 
practical impact would be to put Shi'a courts on equal 
footing with their Shariah (Sunni) counterparts on issues of 
family law, taking away the final jurisdiction that the 
Shariah courts have over intra-Shi'a legal matters (ref B). 
The symbolic impact, according to Al-Jubran, would be an 
official "recognition of the Saudi Shi'a community."  The 
King's advisor recently told Al-Jubran's group that they 
would have to wait a month or more for an audience with the 
King. 
 
------------------------------------------ 
Forbidden Sweets on the Prophet's Birthday 
------------------------------------------ 
 
¶3.  (C) Al-Jubran, a member of the National Society for Human 
Rights (NSHR), described another of his current 
preoccupations, trying to resolve a case involving punishment 
of more than 10 Shi'a high school students accused of 
celebrating the Prophet's birthday.  "They brought in some 
sweets and handed them around during the break time," 
Al-Jubran explained.  "The teachers caught them and the 
principal decided to reduce their grades in each subject by 
10 percent and note in their files that they had disciplinary 
problems.  It is making it difficult for them to apply to 
university."  Showing ConOffs a petition submitted by the 
students' parents to the NSHR and disciplinary letters from 
the principal to the parents, Al-Jubran noted that he would 
send the file to the NSHR in Riyadh, which would then set up 
a meeting with officials from the Ministry of Education to 
seek a resolution, "or at least assurances that this 
treatment won't happen again." 
 
--------------------------------------------- ------- 
Prince Mohammed and the Politics of the King's Visit 
--------------------------------------------- ------- 
 
¶4.  (C) Asked if he had attended the recent festivities for 
King Abdullah in Al-Ahsa, Sadeq Al-Ramadan said that he had 
been abroad on a business trip but that he was disappointed 
by the outcome of the King's visit.  Hasawis, he noted, are 
chafing under the leadership of Eastern Province (EP) Emir 
Prince Mohammed bin Fahd (MbF) and would like to be a 
separate province.  (Note:  We have heard this sentiment from 
many Hasawis.  End note.)  The Emir's office, Al-Ramadan 
continued, took control over the arrangements for the King's 
visit to Al-Ahsa from a local committee to prevent Hasawis 
from having a chance to bring their request to be a separate 
province to the King.  Al-Ramadan was also disappointed that 
King Abdullah did not make any strong statements recognizing 
the Shi'a community during his trip to Qatif, despite strong 
hints from officials in the Ministry of Information that he 
would.  Al-Ramadan speculated that MbF might have quashed the 
possibility of a major address.  Despite a recent interview 
with Okaz in which he praised the Shi'a as loyal citizens, 
MbF's sentiments toward the Shi'a, Al-Ramadan speculated, 
were different.  "He had to say nice words about us in 
public.  But we know how he feels.  At a lunch at a Shi'a 
businessman's house several years ago, he noticed his 
father's picture was not on the wall.  He got upset and said, 
'Well, of course everyone knows you are loyal to Iran.'" 
 
-------------------------------- 
A Local Salafi Takes a Hard Line 
-------------------------------- 
 
¶5.  (C) Responding to a question from PolOff, Sadeq 
Al-Jubran, Mohammed's brother, said that he knew well one of 
the 61 people who signed the recent extremist petition titled 
"A Statement and A Warning (ref A)," namely Dr. Mohammed 
Al-Ali, a professor at the Al-Ahsa branch of the Imam 
University.  "He's well known locally as a hard-core Salafi," 
Al-Jubran explained, "but he has decent relations with Shi'a 
leaders here."  He characterized the petition as "extremely 
dangerous," noting that the drafters had modified extremist 
vocabulary without changing the extremist message.  For 
example, he said, the drafters used the concept of 
"takhween," or calling someone a betrayer, in place of 
"takfeer."  Asked why Dr. Al-Ali would have signed a petition 
that could incite extremists against Shi'a, among others, if 
he had decent relations with Hasawi Shi'a, Al-Jubran 
shrugged, speculating "Peer pressure?" 
 
------- 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶6.  (C) The Shi'a continue to advocate for their rights as 
citizens through all available means.  While they have sent 
delegations to the ministries and senior Al-Saud princes in 
Riyadh for some time, they appear to be gaining more 
confidence in this approach and accelerating the rate of this 
activity.  They clearly have no confidence that their 
concerns can be addressed at the provincial level, whether 
because of the centralized nature of the Saudi state or 
because of Prince Mohammed's alleged indifference to their 
grievances.  The NSHR offers a new channel through which the 
Shi'a are attempting to address specific cases, but it is too 
early to tell if it will be a successful channel.  These 
advocacy efforts also highlight the degree of cooperation 
between Shi'a in Al-Ahsa and Qatif, the two main population 
centers.  The Shi'a delegations to Riyadh generally seem to 
include Shi'a from both areas (and occasionally a Shi'a from 
Medina), and Mohammed Al-Jubran confirmed that Shi'a 
activists make a conscious effort to achieve this 
geographical representation.  In addition, the EP branch of 
the NSHR includes Shi'a from Al-Ahsa and Qatif, and we know 
these members are in frequent contact with one another.  End 
comment. 
OBERWETTER