tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6963508092996469398.post6205714749036380038..comments2024-03-11T08:42:35.330+01:00Comments on Nasir Khan blog: The Arab uprisings, democratic demands and the Saudi payrollNasir Khanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16981781828241865509noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6963508092996469398.post-53921632243792080442012-05-22T15:02:42.696+02:002012-05-22T15:02:42.696+02:00Saudi Arabia plays a key role in the Middle East a...Saudi Arabia plays a key role in the Middle East and in other Islamic countries as a close ally of the imperialist powers; it stands to uphold the power and privileges of a few thousand princes of the House of Saud in the kingdom and provide support to other reactionary Arab potentates. Rupen Savoulian in this timely article shows how the Saudi and imperialist powers cooperate in their common objectives. The main stream media may not be the best place for us to look for analyses because their wishy-washy views on the policies of the Saudi rulers pay scant attention to the fact that imperialist powers and Middle Eastern reactionaries have had the Saudi state as a bulwark of support against progressive and democratic movements and political struggles.<br /><br />In offering a brief sketch of the foundation of the Saudi state, Savoulian shows the nature of the repressive policies of its rulers. The Saudis have exploited the religion of Islam for their own ends by infusing Wahhabism which is a perversion and negation of the egalitarian and humanistic aspects of this world-religion. The fanatical creed of the ‘pure’ Islam propagated by this obscurantist cult has struck at the roots of Islam. The Wahhabi potentates have been busy uprooting the multi-cultural dimension of Islam and replacing it by an official mantra of ritual and forcible conformity that leaves no room for any independent interpretation or views. They have also erased hundred of monuments and cultural artefacts associated with the rise of Islam and its historically prominent individuals.Nasir Khanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16981781828241865509noreply@blogger.com