We are governed by laws, not sentiments

By Yousef Al-QablanAl-Riyadh newspaperCan nationality be used as proof or evidence in court? Why does the general public pass legal judgments on the basis of nationality and identity and not wait for the courts to issue a verdict? How can a criminal be a hero in the eyes of some of his compatriots? Why has a single criminal case turned into a full-blown crisis? Each and every person is respected in his country and has dignity and rights but if he violates laws, he will be held responsible for his actions. The same thing will happen to him if he violates laws in another country. He will stand trial and there will be no exception no matter how much media coverage he gets in his country! Belonging to a certain country does not make a person above the law. Usually, relations between countries do not get affected by individual cases.In the case of Al-Jizawee, his country Egypt cannot be blamed for current events. There are certain individuals who think by displaying their sentiments in front of the media, they are serving their country but they are in fact doing the opposite and harming their country. They may be doing this for their party’s interests or election campaigns or some other ulterior motives but in their eyes, personal interests come before the country. Such people need to realize that national interests cannot be achieved by slogans and protests.Saudi-Egyptian relations are deep and represent a historical and strategic relationship that cannot be affected by a small group of rabble-rousers. These relations have political, economic and cultural dimensions but some extremists want to take advantage of Al-Jizawee’s case to cause a rift in the two countries’ relations and achieve political motives under the guise of sentiments, dignity, revolution and human rights. This group, whether operating from inside or outside of Egypt, will not succeed.How can someone who is lessening the worth of his country, harm the dignity of another country and make accusations without thinking logically about the circumstances surrounding the case?There are some people who know how to take small incidents and blow them out of proportion. However, the impact of the actions of these people does not last for long because the relations between the two countries are not based on the actions of such extremists but on the actions of the wise leaders who work for the overall interests of their respective countries.