Breaking News: Saudis announce first elections

[Czar]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3188310.stm

Saudi Arabia, an absolute monarchy, has announced it will hold its first council elections in a move seen as the kingdom's first real political reform.
The government decided to "widen the participation of citizens in running local affairs through elections", the state news agency SPA reported.

Half the members of future councils will be elected under the reform.

The kingdom has never had any elections at any level since its creation under the Saud dynasty in 1932.

The council elections are to be held within a year, SPA added.

 

[charrison]

Originally posted by: Czar
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3188310.stm

Saudi Arabia, an absolute monarchy, has announced it will hold its first council elections in a move seen as the kingdom's first real political reform.
The government decided to "widen the participation of citizens in running local affairs through elections", the state news agency SPA reported.

Half the members of future councils will be elected under the reform.

The kingdom has never had any elections at any level since its creation under the Saud dynasty in 1932.

The council elections are to be held within a year, SPA added.

Interesting....

 

[ChrisIsBored]

Riiiiiiiiiiight.... this just in... 99.7% voted in the current political leaders back to power! The other 0.3% have mysteriously died of unknown causes.

 

[Bulk Beef]

Originally posted by: ChrisIsBored
Riiiiiiiiiiight.... this just in... 99.7% voted in the current political leaders back to power! The other 0.3% have mysteriously died of unknown causes.

O ye, of little faith.

This could work out very well (or very badly). Either way, it will be very interesting.

<insert Chinese curse here>

 

[ElFenix]

Originally posted by: ChrisIsBored
Riiiiiiiiiiight.... this just in... 99.7% voted in the current political leaders back to power! The other 0.3% have mysteriously died of unknown causes.

i dunno... the first elections in poland had about the same sort of arrangement, and the commies willingly left when not a single one of them was elected in the general election

 

[kage69]

Riiiiiiiiiiight.... this just in... 99.7% voted in the current political leaders back to power! The other 0.3% have mysteriously died of unknown causes

I'm willing to give the Saudis more credit than that - they're not completely brainwashed like the North Koreans. For the record, this election is very different than the sham Saddam orchestrated awhile ago. The House of Saud has no intentions of relinquishing control over it's kingdom, but if it says it's willing to allow others to reign at a local level than I say bravo, it's a step in the right direction for them.

 

[rjain]

Yeah, the important distinction between this and the Polish elections is that the Saudi elections are local ones, not national.

 

[zephyrprime]

This is amazing. I would have never thought this could happen. I thought it likely that the saudi royal family would be toppled in an islamic revolution. I hope this works well for them because, let's face it, saudi arabia is the nexus of wellspring of terrorism, not Iraq.

 

[0roo0roo]

elections by itself doesn't mean much, after all, hitler was elected.

 

[JackStorm]

Originally posted by: 0roo0roo
elections by itself doesn't mean much, after all, hitler was elected.

True, but it's a good start. Even if it's just at a local level. And to be honest, doing things like this at a local level is usuly the best (although not the fastest) way for reform or change.

 

[Moonbeam]

Originally posted by: 0roo0roo
elections by itself doesn't mean much, after all, hitler was elected.

It's a great saving grace that Bush wasn't.

 

[dpm]

Originally posted by: rjain
Yeah, the important distinction between this and the Polish elections is that the Saudi elections are local ones, not national.

True, but its a start. The first pebble in a landslide?

 

[prontospyder]

It's a good start.

 

[xxxxxJohnGaltxxxxx]

Saddam held elections every year, too....these are equally important.

 

[tk149]

It's a good start, but only the Royal Family knows whether this is just lip service or the start of a real shift in power.