|
Press
Conference Transcript
The
following is the text of Adel Al-Jubeir’s
opening remarks the March 7, 2005 press conference
held at the Saudi Embassy in Washington, DC :
"Welcome.
Thank you for joining us today.
“During
the last several years the Kingdom of Saudi
Arabia, in cooperation with our global partners,
has been engaged in a program to eradicate the
roots of terrorism. This effort is being conducted
on three fronts simultaneously: We have gone after
terrorists, those who support them, and those who
condone their actions.
“First,
we have gone after the terrorists. We have pursued
them relentlessly, killing or capturing their
leaders, seizing their weapons, uncovering their
arms caches. We have over 700 terrorist suspects
in custody and have severely diminished the
terrorists’ will and capability to attack inside
Saudi Arabia. Of the 26 most-wanted terrorists in
Saudi Arabia, 18 have been captured or killed. But
we still have a long way to go to eliminate this
scourge from our midst.
“We
have beefed up our security forces, we have
acquired new methods and technologies to track and
pursue terrorist cells, and we have increased
international cooperation to unprecedented levels.
“No one
can doubt the tenacity of our hunt for the
terrorists or our effectiveness in bringing them
to justice.
“Second,
we have gone after the financial support for
terrorism. We have made great efforts to identify
and shut down the financial sources that may
support terrorism. We have enacted world class
financial controls and have implemented the 40
recommendations on money laundering and 8
recommendations on terror financing of the
Financial Action Task Force of the G-8. The
controls and mechanisms Saudi Arabia has enacted
are among the strictest in the world.
“These
restrictions include effective new controls on
charities, recognizing that charitable giving is a
central tenet of our faith and an important part
of Saudi culture. Today, no Saudi charity can send
any funds abroad without government oversight and
control. I doubt that any country has come close
to this kind of regulation.
“Third,
and perhaps most importantly, Saudi Arabia has
taken steps to combat the mindset that instills
and justifies acts of terror, hatred and violence.
Islam is a religion of peace, benevolence and
tolerance, and we will not allow deviants to
corrupt our faith. We are revitalizing our
educational system to instill the true values of
our faith: compassion, moderation, love and peace,
while improving critical thinking. In our mosques,
imams who have preached hatred and violence have
been taken to task. An example has been set, and
our religious scholars are working to bring those
who have deviated back to the peaceful and
tolerant precepts of Islam.
“As a
part of the effort to change the mindset, I would
like to introduce to you another step in our
campaign against extremism.
“As a
means to clearly communicate our message of
tolerance and peace, Saudi Arabia has been
carrying out an unprecedented public service
campaign inside our own country designed to
educate and inform the Saudi people about the
evils and effects of terrorism and extremism.
“The
campaign includes public service announcements,
special television programming and in-school
education programs. This campaign began with the
hosting of the Counter-Terrorism International
Conference that took place in Riyadh from February
5-8, and continues as we speak.
“For
example, over a two-week period, schools and
mosques in the Kingdom are devoting time to
lectures promoting moderation and tolerance, and
highlighting the evils of terrorism.
“The
size and scope of this campaign is unprecedented.
These messages are being displayed on billboards,
ATMs, local advertisements and television.
“The
advertisements, all of which are in Arabic, foster
concepts to destroy the mindset of hate and
violence and appeal to the values that all Saudis
share, to work for a better society without
extremism. These ads are being shown on a number
of Arabic satellite networks including Al-Arabiya,
MBC and Future Television, as well as on Saudi TV
channels.
“The
bottom line is that no Saudi citizen will be able
to escape the clear message that intolerance,
violence and extremism are not part of our Islamic
faith or Saudi culture or traditions.
“To
demonstrate to you what the Saudi people are
seeing, we have prepared subtitled versions of a
few of the advertisements.
“There
are three phases to the campaign. The first is
designed to personify and humanize the victims of
terrorism. As you know, over the past two years,
more than 500 people been killed or injured by
acts of terrorism in the Kingdom, including over
35 brave security officers who gave their lives in
the line of duty and over 200 who were injured.
“This
first spot depicts a father who lost a son through
terrorism.
[Video -
0:52]
“Phase
II of the campaign is designed to make clear that
terrorism and extremism are not part of our faith,
culture or society.
[Video -
0:53]
“The
final phase is designed to promote values and
feelings of national pride. The Saudi people have
been galvanized in opposition to Al-Qaeda and
terrorism in general, and this message is meant to
continue to reinforce and mobilize national
opinion.
[Video -
1:02]
“In
addition to the advertising campaign, we have also
developed a series of special programming, some of
which is designed to reach a younger audience. We
will be showing you excerpts from two of them.
“We
have a multi-series program called “The
Discourse of Mind and Logic,” a series of
documentaries that addresses how terrorist
ideology was spread in the region and in the
Kingdom and the effect it has had on Saudi Arabia.
In this example, the narrator relates these
effects on society and family, and you will meet
children whose innocence and future have been
altered by terrorism.
[Video -
0:48]
“This
next program is from another series of
documentaries, entitled “Why?” You will see
members of families grieving because of acts of
terrorism that have killed or injured their loved
ones. The goal of this program is to reinforce the
importance of the true ideals of Islam –
tolerance and peace. By relying on faith, it will
help them overcome such tragedy.
[Video -
1:33]
“This
national multimedia public service campaign is
similar to, but more intense than, the “Just Say
No” or “Friends Don’t Let Friends Drink and
Drive” campaigns in the United States. We are
using different forms of communication to send a
clear and powerful message, and we are taking
serious actions to undermine the strength of those
that try to misguide our young people.
“God
willing, this campaign will help educate our
public, especially our young people, about the
dangers of extremism, and contribute to the war
against terrorism.”
Source:
Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia, Washington
|
