Preserving Virtue and Preventing Vice

I
usually try to avoid religious topics in my blog, mainly because I don't want to offend or appear insensitive. So I just want to start off by saying that the intent of this post is not to offend anyone or any religion. The opinions expressed here are solely my personal feelings and beliefs. I realize that some people may not agree with me. I am comfortable with how I feel about this whole religion thing. But I am no expert in Islam or any other religion, so I apologize if I may get something technically wrong.

The Committee for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice (CPVPV) is a government agency here in Saudi Arabia that employs religious police, called Muttawa, to make sure that the citizens adhere strictly to the teachings of Islam, especially those pertaining to dress, socialization, morality, and prayer. Within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), this Commission is comprised of approximately 10,000 Muttawa and has nearly 500 centers within the country.

There are just so many things that keep getting in my way in my attempt to embrace and learn about this religion of Islam. And just the thought of the necessity and power of religious police here in Saudi Arabia is one of them. I have always believed in freedom of religion and also in the separation of church and state - blame it on my American upbringing. My respect for the religion is seriously undermined here in a country that requires actual enforcement of religious doctrine, such as monitoring people’s behavior, dress, and morals, and harsh penalties, like extended detentions, physical beatings, and even death, for those who don’t abide by these codes. Sheesh! Do I really WANT this in a religion?

Of the many religious laws that the Muttawa are charged with enforcing, the ones regarding sex and the sexes are the most alarming to me. The Muttawa have the clout to apprehend anyone who engages in prostitution, homosexual acts, or individuals having sex outside of marriage. Taking it a step further, any unrelated man and woman who are caught simply socializing can also be detained. Absolutely no dating or social interaction between the sexes is allowed here. So I can’t help but wonder that since there is no contact at all with the opposite sex permitted, doesn’t this unintentionally breed and encourage homosexuality here in the Kingdom, in reality? Of course they won't admit to this, but from what I have heard, this is what happens.

The Muttawa randomly patrol the malls seeking out women and girls who are not dressed modestly enough. Only the face and the hands are allowed to be visible, although the vast majority of women here cover their faces when out in public and many also wear gloves! The Muttawa also enforce proper moral conduct and make sure that youth behave themselves. The Quran does not specifically, to my knowledge, say that women must wear black floor length abayas, and indeed in other countries, Muslim women manage to dress modestly without wearing long black cloaks. I would love to wear other colors than black here in this brutally hot climate, but ALL the women here wear black. Even though I could wear a different color, I don’t want to stick out like a sore thumb, so I wear black too.

In addition, the religious police make sure that prayer times are properly adhered to, can shut businesses down for not closing for prayers, and apparently can command people to attend prayers at mosques. I read an account recently of a man who claimed that he was beaten by the Muttawa as he was on his way to the mosque for prayers, but the religious police didn't give him a chance to explain where he was going. They just beat him because he was out and about during prayer time. To me, this is scary.

You might recall that I did a post back in February about how the religious police had banned all things red for Valentine’s Day, in an attempt to thwart Muslim couples from exchanging “haram” (forbidden) gifts or cards for this holiday, which is not recognized in the KSA. They even go so far as to conduct inspections in hotels, restaurants, florists, gift shops, malls, and coffee houses to make sure that these places are devoid of all immoral red contraband, such as red flowers, red boxes of candy, red clothing, red balloons, red stuffed animals, red cards, red hearts, and red bows and ribbons. Any prohibited red items are confiscated and the business owners and employees are subject to arrest.

Back in 2004, the Muttawa even tried to have the sale of cell phones with cameras banned in the Kingdom. See, camera phones make it too easy for men and women to take photos of each other. Unfortunately for the Muttawa, this ban was immediately quashed. I even read that there was talk that the Muttawa wanted to prohibit the sale of ice cream cones to women because a woman licking an ice cream cone was just too sexual! What's next? Bananas? Hot dogs? Give me a break!

Recently the Muttawa have issued a decree banning the sale of puppies and kittens - dogs and cats - in the KSA. Apparently these cute little creatures are now considered as lethal “babe magnets,” an enticement used by boys to lure girls to talk to them. So, this MUST be stopped! Not only has the sale of these animals been declared illegal, if you already have one, you are forbidden from taking it out for a walk. If you do, your pet will be confiscated and you will never see it again. I wonder what happens to the fuzzy creatures once the Muttawa get them into their clutches!

But I’ve got to hand it to them - the Muttawa have the vision to see beyond all the normal excuses/reasons that people purport to have pets in the first place, like companionship, pure joy, or teaching children responsibility, and are able to see pet ownership for what it really is: just another way to promote immoral behavior between the opposite sexes. The Muttawa keep flexing their muscles to control the animalistic behavior and urges of males and females within the Kingdom. Men and women here in this society obviously cannot be trusted to behave or control themselves or to conduct themselves properly and morally without having rules and enforcement like this to ensure that they do.

Another of the Muttawa’s duties is to make sure that no other religion is practiced or promoted here in the KSA. I understand that the Kingdom is an Islamic country, but it makes me wonder exactly how insecure can a religion be in itself that it so strictly prohibits those foreigners of other faiths from practicing their own religion within the country? The religious police also oversee the enforcement of the banned sale of other prohibited products, like pork, porno, and alcohol, and exercise strict censorship of all media including books, magazines, art, DVDs, TV programming, and music. The CVPVP fervently take black markers to objectionable images of women’s bare arms, necks, or any other exposed skin and have even been known to black out images of Piglet in the popular children’s books of Winnie the Pooh. It’s one thing to forbid pork products, but to deny the existence of pigs altogether is a bit much! Using modern technology to their advantage, the CVPVP has even launched their own website where people can report violations of others' un-Islamic behavior.

Not surprisingly, many actions taken by the at-times over zealous Muttawa have come under fire and intense criticism. For example, less than two months ago, a Muttawa murdered his own daughter by cutting out her tongue and then burning her to death. Why? Because she supposedly rejected Islam and became a Christian. Every Saudi citizen is automatically born a Muslim. There is absolutely no choice. For a long time now, religious scholars have taken jabs at the Internet and satellite TV stations where Muslims can read and learn about other religions. The murdered girl apparently used the Internet to learn about Christianity and was a known presence in online religious chat rooms and a commenter on various spiritual blogs.

In my own personal experience, almost every day I am blocked by the CVPVP from entering a particular website online. Generally when I am Googling for images on the web, many of the websites containing the images have been blocked. And NO, I am NOT looking for porn! The blocked websites can include, among others, some religious websites, of course anti-Islamic websites, violent gaming websites, those that feature gossip or women not Islamically dressed. Of course the CVPVP is not able to ban every single "unacceptable" website from access in the Kingdom, as hard as they may try.

Mohammed, the founder of Islam, actually said, “Whoever leaves his religion, kill him.” Which brings me to a question: There are so many converts to Islam from other religions. What about them? They have left their original religion, haven’t they? Maybe someone would care to explain. Mohammed’s quote does not specifically say “Whoever leaves Islam, kill him.” Then why is it okay for someone else to leave their religion and become a Muslim, but someone should be put to death if they leave Islam for another religion? Isn't this being hypocritical? I would love to understand this because this is one of those areas of Islam that really turns me off.

So, this quote from Mohammed essentially justifies in the eyes of Islam the right of this father to kill his own daughter for espousing another religion – so I ask, do all Muslims really agree with this and think this is right? Why does there seem to be this fear that Islam cannot endure on its own merits and intrinsic worth, and why support such drastic and barbaric measures to ensure that it does? Muslims promote Islam as the religion of peace, but actions like this seem to seriously contradict its message. And it’s very confusing to someone like me who is trying to understand. Do I really want to belong to a religion that would have me killed should I renounce it?

Another example of the religious police exercising their frightening power over people’s morals here happened in 2007 when they beat a man who was caught with alcohol to death. And earlier this year, a married American Muslim woman on business in Riyadh was detained, threatened, called immoral, and strip searched by the Muttawa for conducting a business meeting in the family section of a Starbucks with a male colleague, not her husband. Do I really want to be in a religion that threatens me with bodily harm, insults, or detention if I don't follow it to a "T?" Another troubling event I mentioned in a recent post was about the fifteen school girls who perished in a fire at their school because the Muttawa prevented them from escaping since the girls did not have their hair covered. If I were a parent of one of those girls, I would seriously question my faith.

What I would like to know is - who exactly is in charge of policing the Mutawwa here and how much are they getting away with beyond their authority? I know they are only human and they make mistakes, but many of their mistakes are HUGE and only serve to further tarnish the image that much of the rest of the world has that Islam is radical and dangerous to them. What happens to the Muttawa who make these mistakes? And if these Muttawa can and do make mistakes themselves, why are they allowed to kill someone else, like the man with alcohol, for making a mistake?

My husband told me that the Muttawa were wrong to act as they did in the girls’ school fire incident, and that the Quran even says there are exceptional times when the religious teachings should be set aside. Like for example, even though eating pork is haram, if there is only a pig available to eat, then Muslims should eat it if their lives depend on it. But in actuality, I wonder how many Muslims would be able to bring themselves to eat pork in this case, since all their lives they have been told how bad it is? I know my husband could, but could others? Would others? When my son was little, my husband told my son that if he ate pork, he would die. How deeply is this ingrained into Muslims?

When I discussed the incident regarding the girl who was killed by her father for leaving Islam for Christianity, my husband immediately said that the man's own tongue should be cut out and he should be executed. Whew! My spouse went on to say that the man was wrong to take matters into his own hands like he did – that the girl should have been brought before a court and tried. Huh? And then, if she was found guilty of forsaking Islam, he said, the government should have been the ones to put her to death. Yikes! Even this explanation still baffles me. Knowing that my husband actually agrees with killing someone who leaves Islam just because Mohammed said it, makes me wonder a little about the man I married and even more about the religion itself. As I said before, I believe in freedom of religion. I do not think it is right to kill someone for rejecting a religion, so therefore I disagree with Mohammed on this issue. I am of the notion that what a person believes and feels in her heart, including religion, cannot and should not be controlled or dictated by a government or anyone. To do so minimizes the innate goodness of the religion itself.

The Muttawa here seem to be against anything that might be fun to do. They seem to be against people having a good time or enjoying life. And they really seem to be obsessed with SEX ALL THE TIME! It seems that the only articles I have managed to find in my research about the Muttawa are all very negative. What good have they done? What exactly does it say about a society that cannot be trusted to believe in and practise its own religion so much so that it has to be forced upon them by religious police? If the religion and its principles are THAT good and perfect, then why the need for religious police at all? I would love to wholeheartedly embrace a religion because I truly WANT to, not because I am forced to. I just don't think I really want to belong to this club...
 
For more information on the Muttawa:
Wikipedia - Mutaween
Women24.com - Religious Police Terror
American Bedu - Muttawa Observations

99 Messages in a Bottle:

Aalia said...

Hmm... another interesting post... Let me start by saying I that I have many Saudi friends and they don't refer to the religious police in Saudi as "Mutawwa" but actually as "Hedaya" or something similar in spelling. And surprisingly enough, they actually don't mind them roaming the streets. (They aren't supposed to be wondering around in areas, they are just to be in a mosque and if somoene needs help on a religius matter then they come out and help.) Anyways... to my Saudi girlfriends, it's actually comforting to know that there are still groups of people who want to make sure the Islamic term "Forbid evil and enjoin good" is still followed.

Susie, you mentioned a number of topics that can be easily explained by anyone with a history of fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence). Don't be afraid to step on toes when you have genuine questions. I had the same ones as you did before I became Muslim, but they were all explained to me and I realized that nothing is black or white. The Angel Jibreel (Gabriel)'s first words to Prophet Muhammad (peace & blessings be upon him) was "READ". SO I read the books from scholars dating back to the Prophet's time and all of my questions were answered.

Let me briefly explain some of your worries insha'Allah (God willing).

NUMBER ONE: Even though Saudi Arabia is the heartland of Islam, let's not forget that there is no such thing as a Muslim country ANYWHERE in the world today. Not even Saudi Arabia's government is recognizable Islamically as a caliphate -- there is no such thing as "Kings" or "Royalty".

NUMBER TWO: With Number One in mind, we have to understand that Islam is perfect, MUSLIMS ARE NOT. Many people take the ideas of Islam and twist them to their own benefit or pass them off as genuine Islamic morals. Remember honour killings? Supposedly it comes from Islam but in fact Islam is strongly against this transgression. Numerous Quran verses and ahadith (sayings of Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him) prove that honour killings gave no basis in Islam, but ignorant people (usually ones with minimal education or no knowledge of Shari`a) use Islam as a justification to commit crimes against humanity.

NUMBER THREE: Why do women in Saudi wear black anyways? After asking many of my Saudi girlfriends (born & raised citizens of KSA) they all agree that black is the most liked color to wear in public. BUT WHY BLACK? Back in the olden days, the normal color to wear in Arabia was black because that was the easiest dye to make for fabrics. In Islamic history, the wives of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) wore colors like green and the Ansari women (the Helpers) also wore black. The ABAYA (cloak) is worn overtop the clothes, because it gives the best coverage. My friends prefer to wear head abayas, as opposed to shoulder abayas. They also cover their faces our of religious reasons but they also do not want their fair skin to be darkened by the harsh sun. It should be important to note that foreign women, especially non-Muslim women, do not have to cover their hair OR face, it is left to their preference. They do however, need to wear an abaya since they are on the homeland of the birth of Islam, the land that contains the two holiest cities; Makkah and Madinah.

NUMBER THREE: Why do Muslim shopkeepers shut down their stores during prayer time? Because there should be no business while God is being worshipped. He deserves our glorifying him and He only Asks us to do this 5x a day. The Hedeya (religious police) go around making sure store owners respect this. About the Brother who was beaten on his way to prayer... Hmm, sounds strange and I wish I knew the whole story before I make a judgement.

NUMBER FOUR: All things to do with Valetines day are banned, and rightly so. Well, considering this holiday has pagan origins, I can see why *LOL* Muslims dont celebrate Christmas, Easter, Valentines Day, Halloween or any other holiday (except for the two `Eids, one being at the end of the fasting month and one to remember God's forgivness on Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) and not allowing him to sacrifice his son Ismail (peace be upon him). As I stated before, Saudi Arabia is the heartland of Islam and nothing celebrating paganism or having ties/history with acts of paganism are allowed.

NUMBER FIVE: Banning camera phones is not going to solve anything, though it may limit the fitnah (corruption) for a while. People have to change themselves, and those who are caught taking advantage of innocents by taking pictures of unsuspecting women and posting them for all to see should be punished. This is another reason why women cover their faces in KSA-- many Saudi women are exceptionally beautiful (masha'Allah) and men with no `ayb (shame) try to get their pictures with bad intentions. As for not letting women buy ice-cream cones, uhhhhmmmmm... *okay*

NUMBER SIX: Banning on selling cats or dogs. I do know that in Islam we are not allowed to sell dogs. There isn't any negative reason for this, but dogs are unclean and their saliva has very bad bacteria. Strangely enough, the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) declared that the only way to get rid of this bacteria if it gets on the skin or other item is to wash it 7 times with water and then once with earth. Scientists only now have proven this to be true. Why are Muslims not allowed to eat pork? In their fat there is another set of bacteria that is very harmful to humans -- again, scientists only now have come to this conclusion. Muslims dont hate dogs or pigs, and we are not taught to kill them or treat them badly. The only reason a Muslim can have a dog is for the purposes of sheparding, protection of property or if a person has a seeing-eye-dog (and other health related issues and the use of a dog is beneficial to them). My toddler son has a stuffed toy of Piglet, and we see no harm in this cute little toy.

NUMBER SEVEN: Policing inter-mingling men and women. Inter-mingling for social purposes is forbidden in Islam. We do not go to parties where there are men, and we are never alone with a man who is not our husband, father, son or other close male relative. I have yet to meet a Muslim woman who is willing to "hang out" with a strange man, and they keep their conversation purely work/school related. My Saudi girlfriends were shocked when male students at University came close to them and started asking questions -- they described it as "rude" and "uncomfortable". On another note, people are responsible for their own actions but if they spread their corruption to society and are responsible for breaking up homes, then they will be held to their account.

NUMBER EIGHT: A man murdering his daugher by cutting out her tongue and then burning her to death, because she became a Christian. La howla wa la quwwata illah billah (there is no higher power than God.) This phrase is commonly used when we hear something disturbing. A) Torture is strictly forbidden in Islam. B) There is no compulsion in religion, as stated in the Quran. C) This man had no right to carry a Hadd punishment on his daugther, he should've brought her to a Sharia court and been given the procedure handed down on an apostate. Maybe she was suffering from insanity or was deeply confused. Only God knows but unfortunately her father took away her life unjustly. As for the saying of Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), "Whoever leaves his religion, kill him." The Prophet was referring to Islam, as this narration is found in Sahih Bukhari #2794. Do we just kill people who turn from Islam just like that? The answer to that is NO. One of the reasons apostates were killed was back in the Prophet's day, there were people who claimed to have become Muslim, found out the Muslims' secrets 9such as safe spots, since the first Muslims were being persecuted) and renounced Islam and betrayed hundreds of people under protection. These people were consequently torured by the enemies of Islam, murdered and any survivors were forced to leave their homes. Let's not forget that currently the penalty for treason in the U.S. is death. If you wanna convert to Islam, you better think about it very carefully. Muslims take their faith seriously, and honestly if I woke up one day and said, "I reject Islam, instead I will start worshipping a man besides God" then honestly I would want someone to question me for three days to see if I am alright. I would also like to add that I have yet to hear an ex-Muslim being executed by in a actual Shari`a court. No, I'm not talking about the Mickey Mouse wannabe Shari`a courts they have in the middle of nowhere, I am talking about courts ruled by men who have studied and aquired all the knowledge needed to make such sentences. The regular lay-man Muslim is not allowed to carry out the Hadd punishment on his own thought or interpretation.

NUMBER NINE: Fear of being threatened with bodily harm or death for not following Islam to a "T". We are not given more than we can handle, and Allah t`ala mentioned numerous times that He is Most Merciful & Forgiving. As long as we establish the Five Pillars of Islam (Susie, I assume you are aware of what these are), and try our best to be good people while doing acts of worship to our God, this is all He asks of us! That picture you have of those people carrying signs to massacre people who insulted Islam clearly contradict what it says in the Quran : "And when they say things of insult to you, reply with a peaceful saying." The Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) had animal feces thrown on his head during prayer -- and what were his actions? -- nothing. No shoutin or going after the person with a sword. When all the villagers from Ta`if threw stones at him and drove him out, did he return with an army and murder them? No, he raised his hands and asked for their future generations to be Muslims. Learned men and women will not storm the streets chanting "DEATH TO INFIDELS" or "KILL ANYONE WHO INSULTS ALLAH OR HIS MESSENGER", just because so-and-so did something to insult them. Allah t`ala cannot be harmed, He is Lord of the Worlds! His Messenger cannot be insulted, he is in Paradise with all of the other Messengers such as Jesus, Ibrahim, John, Jonah, Lot, Job and various others. People can say whatever that wanna say, it will only come back to them when they are questioned on the Day of Judgement. We are hurt by their words and actions, since we love our Lord and Prophets more than anything!

Susie, if you have questions and wanna read for yourself on various issues such as women's right in Islam, non-Muslims, jihad, please go to www.islamtoday.com because Shaikh Salman Al-Oadah is a terrific scholar. He is Saudi, too! Read more about him here to see his background http://www.islamtoday.com/showme2.cfm?cat_id=26&sub_cat_id=452

Okay, I hope I did an okay job of briefly explaining things to you, Susie! If you have any more questions please stop by my Blog. Dont be shy, because I believe you are only asking sincere questions. However, I wont talk to someone who is knowingly attacking my religion, or by intentionally asking questions in a way that do insult OR just try to confuse the issue with other irrelevent questions.