RIYADH
\nSaudi Arabia\u2019s top religious authority has called cinemas and singing concerts harmful and corrupting, in a move that could complicate government efforts to introduce cultural reforms to the conservative kingdom.
\nThe comments by Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdulaziz Al al-Sheikh, published on his website, said cinemas and round-the-clock entertainment could open the door to \u201catheistic or rotten\u201d foreign films and encourage the mixing of the sexes.
\nCinemas and public concerts are already banned in the conservative Islamic kingdom. But the government promised a shake-up of the cultural scene with a set of \u201cVision 2030\u201d reforms announced by Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz last year.
\nThe head of the government\u2019s General Authority for Entertainment, Amr al-Madani, stirred debate last week when he raised the possibility of opening cinemas and staging concerts this year.
\nThe Saudi Gazette quoted Madani as saying Saudi singer Mohammed Abdo would perform in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah very soon. Up to now, singers have been limited to performing for private gatherings.
\n\u201cI hope those in charge of the Entertainment Authority are guided to turn it from bad to good and not to open doors to evil,\u201d Al al-Sheikh said on his weekly television program, according to a transcript of his comments on his website.
\n\u201cMotion pictures may broadcast shameless, immoral, atheistic or rotten films,\u201d Al al-Sheikh said.
\n\u201cThe Mufti…also stressed that there is nothing good in song parties, for entertainment day and night and opening of movie houses at all times is an invitation to mixing of sexes,\u201d he added.
\nThe \u201cVision 2030\u201d initiative is meant to jumpstart the private sector, provide jobs for a growing population and open up Saudis\u2019 cloistered lifestyles.
\nThe plan\u2019s said it considers culture and entertainment \u201cindispensable to our quality of life\u201d.
\nIn remarks carried by Foreign Affairs magazine last week, Prince Mohammed said he believed only a small percentage of clerics were too dogmatic to be reasoned with while more than half could be persuaded through engagement and dialogue to support the plan.
\nIn a country that adheres to an austere brand of Wahhabi Sunni Islam, where gender segregation is mandatory and concerts and cinemas are banned, the plan\u2019s seemingly anodyne goals to empower women, promote sports and invest in entertainment are controversial.
\nSaudi Arabia\u2019s clerics offer legitimacy and public support to a king who styles himself the guardian of Islam\u2019s holiest sites. They retain control of the justice system but leave most other matters of governance to him, so long as his edicts do not contradict their interpretation of Islamic law.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
RIYADH Saudi Arabia\u2019s top religious authority has called cinemas and singing concerts harmful and corrupting, in a move that could complicate government efforts to introduce cultural reforms to the conservative kingdom. The comments by Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdulaziz Al al-Sheikh, published on his website, said cinemas and round-the-clock entertainment could open the door to \u201catheistic […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-9920","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-top-news"},"yoast_head":"\n