Saudi Arabia’s illusory press freedom
A Ministry of Information official said that if he could look at the one tape in my camera, I would be free to leave.And this from the government that was going to broker an Israeli-Arab peace plan? "Each promise they made, they broke." A capsule review of Mid-East politics.
He looked through the footage on my digital video camera and spied pictures I had filmed of a vehement anti-Arab e-mail received by the Arab News newspaper. One contained an animated cartoon of a man relieving himself on the Saudi flag.
"This is a very serious offense," said the official, a "capital offense."
The official then ordered everyone on the flight off the airplane. Some passengers were in tears, others were angry.
They sat for more than five hours as officials bargained with me for my freedom. Each promise they made, they broke. I called the Information Ministry and asked what the problem was.
The response: “This is being handled at a much higher level than mine.”
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