We are sick and tired of the status quo; we want change and we want it now. The demands are clear and simple: a constitutional monarchy, the rule of law, justice, equality, freedom, elections, and respect of basic human rights. Is this too much to ask in this age and time?
I have become very pessimistic about the prospects of reform for my country. The huge age gap between the young population and the ruling elite makes it nearly impossible for the ruled and the rulers to communicate and understand each other. We practically speak two different languages, and I don't see how the government can keep up with our aspirations.
We are sick and tired of the status quo; we want change and we want it now. The demands are clear and simple: a constitutional monarchy, the rule of law, justice, equality, freedom, elections, and respect of basic human rights. Is this too much to ask in this age and time?
Everyone now is waiting to see what is going to happen on Friday. In the past few weeks, two Facebook groups have called for protests around the kingdom on 11 March. The two groups have more than 17,000 members, but it is almost impossible to predict how many of these will take to the street. While I think we might see some protests in the Eastern Province, and smaller ones in Riyadh and Jeddah, I remain very sceptical that we will see large-scale street action.
However, the situation will be really interesting to watch and to see how the government reacts. It seems to me that the government is in a lose-lose situation. If they do not stop people from protesting, the people will feel empowered to repeat it and continue protesting, defying the government's ban in a way that makes it difficult for authorities to restore it again. But if the government uses violence to crack down on protesters, this will fuel their anger and push them to protest even more and in larger numbers in the future.
Let us wait and see.
