Al-Jazirah newspaper

IN the past two weeks several articles have been published on the issue of granting citizenship to children of Saudi women born to non-Saudi men. I have noticed a number of factual errors and inaccurate information in those articles. Some of them highlighted the issue of human rights while others spoke about the rights of women and children.

There were articles that raised the banner of justice and equality. Some writers accused those having opposite views as racists, close-minded, ignorant, misogynists and usurpers of women's rights. By doing so, these writers were actually attacking the citizenship system of the country and were practicing intellectual terrorism against those who opposed their views.

This is like an organized media campaign with the participation of prominent writers. Perhaps some of them may be have got involved in the debate in good faith and with noble intentions. However, I would like to point out that many of them have approached the issue superficially relying on wrong information fed to them.

By launching this campaign — if it can be described so — these writers wanted to give the impression that the Saudi public opinion wants the Ministry of Interior to amend the citizenship law in order to automatically grant citizenship to the children of Saudi women born to non-Saudi husbands.

However, the reality is quite the opposite. The Saudi public opinion stands by the law that regulates the process and mechanism of naturalization, including the granting of citizenship to individuals having outstanding qualifications and non-Saudi children of Saudi women.

The campaign coincided with the Shoura Council debate on a proposal by some members to table a draft amendment to the citizenship law, in preparation to submit it to the experts committee in the Council of Ministers.

It appears that the newspaper articles were published to influence the decision-making, which is usually done by pressure groups and those having vested interests. Those who read these articles would mistakenly believe that the country's regulations prohibit granting nationality to any children born to Saudi women and non-Saudi husbands.

Many non-Saudi children of Saudi women have been granted citizenship in the past like non-Saudi children of Saudi men in accordance with regulations and conditions laid down in the law, taking into account the public interest as well as the security and safety of the homeland because preservation of the country's vital and supreme interests in both short and long run is the paramount responsibility of the state.

These conditions include a woman who applies for citizenship of her non-Saudi children should be of Saudi origin and the children should have at least secondary education. A point system has been introduced to facilitate the process and consider each case separately.

Moreover, the non-Saudi children of Saudi women have been granted all the rights enjoyed by Saudi citizens in terms of education, medical treatment, and job opportunities. The state bears expenses of their residency documents and other service fees. They also benefit from social security support given to Saudi divorcees and widows.

This malicious campaign has become a public opinion issue, creating polarization of the Saudi street into two extreme camps. It has developed into a state of conflict between citizens, especially as the majority of Saudis do not support the idea of leaving the door wide open when it comes to such sensitive matters as Saudi citizenship. A lack of essential update on the issue was evident in the writings of some of the columnists.

This campaign has created two factions, each accusing the other of nullifying their right to disagree. According to the first group, those who oppose their views on this issue are either racists, narrow-minded or misogynists. On the other hand, the other group considers their opponents as traitors having an external agenda to undermine the country's security, stability and the future of its children.

I would like to emphasize two points here. First, there is a need for an extensive study on the issue since one of the parties involved is a Saudi woman. We should know that the government strives to ensure the comfort and happiness of all its citizens without causing any harm or damage to anyone else.

Secondly, there are already fears that cannot be ignored because some foreigners may get married to Saudi women to gain certain privileges. There are proven cases that have confirmed this trend. Some people may exploit such marriages to undermine the Kingdom's security and integrity.

Some groups, on the other hand, intend to change the country's demographic structure and this has occurred in some countries where a few generations later people demanded separate statehood under the pretext of right to self-determination. Again there is a possibility of this issue being exploited by people having external agenda like the agents of the so-called Arab Spring.

Because of such possibilities that threaten the nation's security and integrity, we have to discuss the issue of citizenship from a wider perspective considering all aspects. We have full confidence in the leadership of this country and its decision-makers, and we believe in their ability to move forward keeping balance while realizing the people's aspirations and removing their fears.

The Saudi citizenship law was developed following extensive studies and research that dealt with all aspects and implications. The Kingdom has placed certain controls and mechanisms to protect the interests of its people, like any other sovereign country has done.

It is true that the state constantly reviews and develops its systems and laws but this does not give anybody the right to brand the Kingdom's citizenship law as racist or backward, which are simply ridiculous accusations. Saudi Arabia has the right to defend its national security and its supreme interests in ways it deems appropriate.