Saudi Arabia and Austria are launching a Vienna-based inter-faith and tolerance center with the goal of promoting tolerance in Saudi Arabia. Many critics of the initiative have pointed out that the Gulf kingdom prohibits any religion from practicing in the country besides Islam and say the center is a futile attempt to support the country's radical views. “Saudi Arabia is willing to financially participate in this project, and to place all its moral and political resources behind such a center, without infringing … on its autonomy or independence from any political interference,” King Abdullah told officials and reporters on the project. He warned against “extremist minorities within every religious and cultural community … seeking … to propagate notions of intolerance, exclusion, racism and hatred. “These tiny minorities,” he said, “are trying to hijack and disrupt the legitimate identities and aspirations of people of all cultures and faiths.” The founding document cites principles enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human rights, “in particular, the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion.” It emphasizes “human rights and fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language or religion.” Its board will consist of three Christians, three Muslims, a Jew, a Buddhist and a Hindu. But in London, Saudi-born sheikh turned plumber told Bikyamasr.com that Riyadh is simply giving lip service to what the west wants to hear in order to push a conservative view of Islam that “most Muslims” disagree with. “We are constantly struggling to deal with the repercussions of what the conservatives do in Saudi and while on the surface it looks like a good idea, it is more of the Kingdom trying to appeal to western sensibilities over tolerance,” said Omar Abdel-Latif, who added that “there is no tolerance in Saudi so why should we expect this to be any different.” BM
