Thunder and Helicopters

Saudi Arabia as a country pretty much believes itself to be paradise on Earth, a place where Muslims are free to practice as they were meant to. Since so many people believe this, it's hard to imagine very much happening here as far as anti-government protests are concerned, especially when the government binds itself so tightly to Islam.

I was surprised when I first heard of Saudi Arabia's planned "Day of Rage," which was set for Friday, March 11 and planned through Facebook and Twitter. As the day crept closer, anything political or religious about any of the Middle Eastern countries became an off-limits topic in our academic circles. This caused great speculation and curiosity on the part of all the teachers, but we honestly weren't expecting too much, especially considering the general admiration of the king that abounds here. As a case in point, Josh's students told him that the greatest honor they could imagine would be the king coming their house.

As if to counter the effects of the planned event, Misha's kindergarten had a big celebration in honor of King Abdullah. Huge posters like this one were plastered everywhere in his school:

Children were encouraged to wear green and white (the colors of the flag), T-shirts with the king on them, or traditional costumes, like this classmate of Misha's who is passing out cupcakes.


The cupcakes, of course, had green frosting and little pictures of the king on them! After this, all the kids had green-smeared faces (and hands, and shirts ...)

The children sat in a circle on the carpet to eat their cupcakes, and when they finished, their teachers encouraged them to come up to the front of the class to sing a song of their choice. Several children did and were rewarded with doughnuts! Misha even sang a song for the class - his favorite Arabic song about the numbers. The teachers gazed at him with complete adoration in their eyes while he sang. Since I managed to pop into his class briefly during their party, I got to enjoy seeing his class and his teachers. I was especially happy to see how his teachers spoke Arabic to everyone, including Misha, and Misha understood just fine.


By Wednesday night, we noticed that police cars had already stationed themselves in several locations in the city center. They continued their patrol on Thursday (the first weekend day), and by Friday, the supposed day of the event, police were everywhere. We could spot five from our balcony alone. Several were roaming the streets while others were stationary in intersections. On King Fahd Road, the main North-South street in Riyadh, the streets were full of police with flashing lights. To add to the strange feel of the day, Friday arrived with haze and fog. The unusual quietness of the city was broken only by the sound of helicopters flying overhead, making the day even more eerie. In the afternoon, five huge military buses unloaded in the parking lot just down the street from us, and we watched the camouflage-outfitted soldiers mill around the area, stopping for prayer break to kneel on their mats.

A police car mans the quiet, foggy side-street near our balcony. Kingdom Tower shimmers in distance.

Military buses patrol the lot.

By late afternoon, a storm was definitely in the air, matching the general uneasy atmosphere of the day. Rumbles of thunder tried to produce rain for what seemed like hours until finally, a few drops started to fall. Suddenly, the wind came alive and whipped sand into our mouths and eyes as the rain started to pour down. Since we were at the compound playground, we grabbed our toys and headed for home, trying to carry everything and cover our faces at the same time. Once at home, we watched the storm from our balcony and were amazed when little pieces of hail plinked onto our patio. The sudden storm created such a fog mixed with dust that we couldn't see beyond the buildings across the street. But as suddenly as the storm had started, it ended, and within five minutes, the view was once again clear.

The huge show of police and military was enough to deter any protesting on March 11. There was a statement just prior to that day threatening to cut off the fingers of anyone who took to the streets in the March 11th protest. The day before, protests occurred in Qatif in eastern Saudi Arabia, mainly by the small Shia population (about 10 percent in the Sunni-dominated country) demanding the release of political prisoners held without trial. The Qatif protest resulted in harsh action, namely, police opening fire on protesters and beating them with batons, injuring three. Two days after March 11, police flooded the streets of Riyadh again, and we later learned that there was a small protest here, also demanding the release of prisoners. On March 14, one thousand Saudi troops entered Bahrain to help their fellow Sunni leaders violently quell protests against the government. Bahrain's population is actually 70% Shia, in contrast to its ruling elite. The island of Bahrain has seen incredible damage since Josh last visited its beautiful palm-lined streets.

Though we couldn't ask any questions, I got the feeling that people were relieved that nothing happened on the 11th. My students mentioned that the weekend felt "strange" and "scary" and that they were frightened by the helicopters. I don't see protests gaining momentum in Saudi Arabia - at least not now. Last week, the king announced a second huge benefits package for his people totaling 300 billion Riyal ($93 billion), plus another national day for all government employees. (Another day off from teaching!) Unlike in Libya and Egypt, the leaders of Saudi Arabia share their wealth with their people, giving them free education (in fact, the students earn a stipend if they attend university), substantial housing help, and study abroad opportunities. However, the very fact that the government and/or conservative religious elements don't want certain things discussed limits people in a fundamental way, and maybe someday that will matter to them.