<p>After Greta Thunberg's pro-Palestine post 'Stand with Gaza,' Israel swiftly hit back by removing all of her references from the Israeli textbooks included in the school curriculum, media reports said.&nbsp;The Israeli education ministry said that her stance on the Israel-Hamas war "disqualifies her from being an educational and moral role model, and she is no longer eligible to serve as an inspiration and educator for Israeli students.”</p>

<p>“Hamas is a terrorist organisation responsible for the murder of 1,400 innocent Israelis, including children, women, and the elderly, and it has abducted over 200 people to Gaza,” the ministry added while announcing its move against Thunberg.</p>

<p>Swedish Climate activist Greta Thunberg landed herself in a controversy when on Friday (Oct 20) she shared a post along with a picture of her and three other activists.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Also Read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/soul-stirring-survival-story-of-a-9-day-old-whose-house-was-set-ablaze-by-hamas-650979">Soul-stirring survival story of a 9-day-old whose house was set ablaze by Hamas</a></p>

<p>In the picture, all of them can be seen holding pro-Palestine signs like "Free Palestine", "This Jew Stands With Palestine" and "Stand With Gaza."</p>

<p>"Week 270. Today we strike in solidarity with Palestine and Gaza. The world needs to speak up and call for an immediate ceasefire, justice, and freedom for Palestinians and all civilians affected," the climate activist wrote on X social media platform.&nbsp;</p>

<p>"It goes without saying - or so I thought - that I’m against the horrific attacks by Hamas. As I said, 'the world needs to speak up and call for an immediate ceasefire, justice and freedom for Palestinians and all civilians affected'," she added in the post.&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Week 270. Today we strike in solidarity with Palestine and Gaza. The world needs to speak up and call for an immediate ceasefire, justice and freedom for Palestinians and all civilians affected.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FreePalestine?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FreePalestine</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IStandWithPalestine?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#IStandWithPalestine</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/StandWithGaza?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#StandWithGaza</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FridaysForFuture?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FridaysForFuture</a><br />
Thread🧵 <a href="https://t.co/0hVtya0yWO">pic.twitter.com/0hVtya0yWO</a></p>
— Greta Thunberg (@GretaThunberg) <a href="https://twitter.com/GretaThunberg/status/1715355502337499332?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 20, 2023</a></blockquote>
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<h2><strong>'One-sided, ill-informed'</strong></h2>

<p>The environmental activist was condemned by over 100 Israeli activists for what they called her "one-sided" and "ill-informed" knowledge of the war.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Also Read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/israel-vs-hamas-mother-of-6-year-old-hate-crime-victim-asks-world-to-pray-for-peace-650965">Israel vs Hamas | Mother of 6-year-old hate crime victim asks world to 'pray for peace'</a></p>

<p>These activists in an open letter said that the statements made by Thunberg "are in complete contrast to your ability to deep dive into details and get to the bottom of complex issues.”</p>

<p>“Do you think Hamas represents human rights and freedom? Think again!” the letter read, adding, “On Saturday, October 7th a brutal massacre took place in Israel. So far, we have counted 1,400 bodies of babies, children, women and men. All brutally murdered, shot, burned alive, molested before their deaths, raided by terrorists in their homes, in a music festival and randomly on the streets."</p>

<p><strong>Watch |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/videos/un-chief-says-clear-violations-of-international-humanitarian-law-in-gaza-latest-news-650990">UN chief says ‘clear violations of international humanitarian law’ in Gaza | Latest News</a></strong></p>

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<p>“Hundreds of people were kidnapped to Gaza, ages ranging from 9 months to 90 years old, including babies and people with severe illnesses (like cancer, heart failure, Parkinson's) without their medication, and people with special needs such as autism and dementia, and many more are still missing,” the signatories said.</p>

<p><em>(With inputs from agencies)</em></p>

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After Greta Thunberg's pro-Palestine post 'Stand with Gaza,' Israel swiftly hit back by removing all of her references from the Israeli textbooks included in the school curriculum, media reports said.

After Greta Thunberg's pro-Palestine post 'Stand with Gaza,' Israel swiftly hit back by removing all of her references from the Israeli textbooks included in the school curriculum, media reports said. The Israeli education ministry said that her stance on the Israel-Hamas war "disqualifies her from being an educational and moral role model, and she is no longer eligible to serve as an inspiration and educator for Israeli students.” “Hamas is a terrorist organisation responsible for the murder of 1,400 innocent Israelis, including children, women, and the elderly, and it has abducted over 200 people to Gaza,” the ministry added while announcing its move against Thunberg. Swedish Climate activist Greta Thunberg landed herself in a controversy when on Friday (Oct 20) she shared a post along with a picture of her and three other activists. Also Read | Soul-stirring survival story of a 9-day-old whose house was set ablaze by Hamas In the picture, all of them can be seen holding pro-Palestine signs like "Free Palestine", "This Jew Stands With Palestine" and "Stand With Gaza." "Week 270. Today we strike in solidarity with Palestine and Gaza. The world needs to speak up and call for an immediate ceasefire, justice, and freedom for Palestinians and all civilians affected," the climate activist wrote on X social media platform. "It goes without saying - or so I thought - that I’m against the horrific attacks by Hamas. As I said, 'the world needs to speak up and call for an immediate ceasefire, justice and freedom for Palestinians and all civilians affected'," she added in the post. Week 270. Today we strike in solidarity with Palestine and Gaza. The world needs to speak up and call for an immediate ceasefire, justice and freedom for Palestinians and all civilians affected.#FreePalestine #IStandWithPalestine #StandWithGaza #FridaysForFuture Thread🧵 pic.twitter.com/0hVtya0yWO — Greta Thunberg (@GretaThunberg) October 20, 2023 × 'One-sided, ill-informed' The environmental activist was condemned by over 100 Israeli activists for what they called her "one-sided" and "ill-informed" knowledge of the war. Also Read | Israel vs Hamas | Mother of 6-year-old hate crime victim asks world to 'pray for peace' These activists in an open letter said that the statements made by Thunberg "are in complete contrast to your ability to deep dive into details and get to the bottom of complex issues.” “Do you think Hamas represents human rights and freedom? Think again!” the letter read, adding, “On Saturday, October 7th a brutal massacre took place in Israel. So far, we have counted 1,400 bodies of babies, children, women and men. All brutally murdered, shot, burned alive, molested before their deaths, raided by terrorists in their homes, in a music festival and randomly on the streets." Watch | UN chief says ‘clear violations of international humanitarian law’ in Gaza | Latest News × “Hundreds of people were kidnapped to Gaza, ages ranging from 9 months to 90 years old, including babies and people with severe illnesses (like cancer, heart failure, Parkinson's) without their medication, and people with special needs such as autism and dementia, and many more are still missing,” the signatories said. (With inputs from agencies) WATCH WION LIVE HERE You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here. ×

Greta Thunberg kicked out of Israeli textbooks after 'stand with Gaza' row

<p>A group of 33 academicians, who were part of the development committee of National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) textbooks, have expressed concerns about the significant changes made to the original texts. They have requested the council to remove their names from the current textbooks. This request follows the recent dissociation of two former NCERT advisors, Yogendra Yadav and Suhas Palshikar, from the revised political science textbooks.</p>

<p>Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/roger-payne-biologist-who-discovered-whales-could-sing-passes-away-at-88-604714">Roger Payne, biologist who discovered whales could sing, passes away at 88</a></p>

<p>In a letter addressed to the NCERT director Dinesh Prasad Saklani, the 33 political scientists, who were members of the textbook development committee in 2006-07, expressed dissatisfaction with the recent rationalisation exercise conducted by NCERT. They stated that these changes have undermined their collective effort and raised concerns about the lack of transparency and academic contestation in the decision-making process.</p>

<p>“NCERT is now making changes to the textbooks. These involve deletions of sentences and removal of some sections (even chapters) considered unacceptable with emphasis given to others considered desirable. The decision of who decides what is unacceptable and what is desirable has been kept rather opaque, violating the core principles of transparency and contestation that, we believe, underlies academic knowledge production.” read the letter.</p>

<p><strong>Also Read | </strong><a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/at-least-26-including-six-children-killed-in-fresh-fighting-between-army-and-resistance-fighters-604760">At least 26 including six children killed in fresh fighting between army and resistance fighters</a></p>

<p>The academicians found it difficult to associate their names with the revised textbooks, as the substantive revisions have allegedly transformed them into different books. They emphasised that these revisions have “jeopardised their creative collective effort” of the original texts, making it challenging for them to claim ownership of the revised versions.</p>

<p>“Since there are several substantive revisions of the original texts, making them thereby different books, we find it difficult to claim that these are the books we produced and to associate our names with them,” the academicians added.</p>

<p><strong>Watch | UK MPs publish Partygate report | English Latest news</strong></p>

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<p>The signatories of the letter include notable figures such as Pratap Bhanu Mehta, former vice-chancellor of Ashoka University, Radhika Menon from Delhi University, Nivedita Menon from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Kanti Prasad Bajpai, Vice-Dean of the National University Singapore, and Rajeev Bhargava, former professor at JNU.</p>

<p>Yogendra Yadav and Suhas Palshikar had previously written to NCERT, accusing the rationalisation exercise of mutilating the textbooks beyond recognition and rendering them academically dysfunctional.</p>

<p>The controversy surrounding the removal of various topics from the syllabus in 2022, including references to the theory of evolution, the Cold War, the industrial revolution, the 2002 Gujarat riots, the contribution of agriculture to the Indian economy, the Mughal courts, and challenges to democracy, further fueled their concerns.</p>

<p>In response, NCERT stated that the council has the right to make changes based on copyright ownership and rejected the possibility of any member withdrawing their association. NCERT clarified that textbook development committees were dissolved once the textbooks were published, and the copyright remained with NCERT, independent of the committee.</p>

<p>The 33 academicians sought clarification on the issue of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR), accepting that NCERT has the IPR on the textbooks. However, they argued that while NCERT could publish the original texts as many times as it wished, it was not at liberty to make substantive changes, minor or major, and still attribute the revised texts to the same contributors and chief advisors.</p>

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A group of 33 academicians, who were part of the development committee of National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) textbooks, have expressed concerns about the significant changes made to the original texts.

A group of 33 academicians, who were part of the development committee of National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) textbooks, have expressed concerns about the significant changes made to the original texts. They have requested the council to remove their names from the current textbooks. This request follows the recent dissociation of two former NCERT advisors, Yogendra Yadav and Suhas Palshikar, from the revised political science textbooks. Also Read | Roger Payne, biologist who discovered whales could sing, passes away at 88 In a letter addressed to the NCERT director Dinesh Prasad Saklani, the 33 political scientists, who were members of the textbook development committee in 2006-07, expressed dissatisfaction with the recent rationalisation exercise conducted by NCERT. They stated that these changes have undermined their collective effort and raised concerns about the lack of transparency and academic contestation in the decision-making process. “NCERT is now making changes to the textbooks. These involve deletions of sentences and removal of some sections (even chapters) considered unacceptable with emphasis given to others considered desirable. The decision of who decides what is unacceptable and what is desirable has been kept rather opaque, violating the core principles of transparency and contestation that, we believe, underlies academic knowledge production.” read the letter. Also Read | At least 26 including six children killed in fresh fighting between army and resistance fighters The academicians found it difficult to associate their names with the revised textbooks, as the substantive revisions have allegedly transformed them into different books. They emphasised that these revisions have “jeopardised their creative collective effort” of the original texts, making it challenging for them to claim ownership of the revised versions. “Since there are several substantive revisions of the original texts, making them thereby different books, we find it difficult to claim that these are the books we produced and to associate our names with them,” the academicians added. Watch | UK MPs publish Partygate report | English Latest news × The signatories of the letter include notable figures such as Pratap Bhanu Mehta, former vice-chancellor of Ashoka University, Radhika Menon from Delhi University, Nivedita Menon from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Kanti Prasad Bajpai, Vice-Dean of the National University Singapore, and Rajeev Bhargava, former professor at JNU. Yogendra Yadav and Suhas Palshikar had previously written to NCERT, accusing the rationalisation exercise of mutilating the textbooks beyond recognition and rendering them academically dysfunctional. The controversy surrounding the removal of various topics from the syllabus in 2022, including references to the theory of evolution, the Cold War, the industrial revolution, the 2002 Gujarat riots, the contribution of agriculture to the Indian economy, the Mughal courts, and challenges to democracy, further fueled their concerns. In response, NCERT stated that the council has the right to make changes based on copyright ownership and rejected the possibility of any member withdrawing their association. NCERT clarified that textbook development committees were dissolved once the textbooks were published, and the copyright remained with NCERT, independent of the committee. The 33 academicians sought clarification on the issue of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR), accepting that NCERT has the IPR on the textbooks. However, they argued that while NCERT could publish the original texts as many times as it wished, it was not at liberty to make substantive changes, minor or major, and still attribute the revised texts to the same contributors and chief advisors. WATCH WION LIVE HERE You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here. ×

India: 33 academicians demand removal of names from 'rationalised' NCERT textbooks

<p>New textbooks of liberal studies in secondary schools in China say that Hong Kong was not a British colony, says a report in South China Morning Post. The textbooks are of revamped curriculum. The reasoning behind such an assertion, as the textbooks reportedly say, is that China had not recognised the unequal treaties through which Hong Kong was ceded to the British.</p>

<p>In addition to this, the book also makes assertions on pro-democracy protests that took place in the year 2019. The textbooks reportedly say that 2019 protests were a threat to China's national security. The books also say that external forces were behind these protests.</p>

<p>The report notes that the textbooks are "still being vetted by" the Education Bureau.</p>

<p>Hong Kong was returned by the UK to China in 1997 under promises from the latter that nature of Hong Kong's government system based on democratic values will be preserved.</p>

<p>Events in last three years have seen China's departure from this promises. The National Security Law has been used to curb many freedoms previously granted to citizens in Hong Kong. The city has seen independent media outlets including the popular and influential Apple Daily, shut down for good. In the run up to such closures, Hong Kong police &nbsp;have been seen swarming to media offices in hundreds.</p>


New textbooks of liberal studies in secondary schools in China say that Hong Kong was not a British colony, says a report in South China Morning Post. The textbooks are of revamped curriculum.

New textbooks of liberal studies in secondary schools in China say that Hong Kong was not a British colony, says a report in South China Morning Post. The textbooks are of revamped curriculum. The reasoning behind such an assertion, as the textbooks reportedly say, is that China had not recognised the unequal treaties through which Hong Kong was ceded to the British. In addition to this, the book also makes assertions on pro-democracy protests that took place in the year 2019. The textbooks reportedly say that 2019 protests were a threat to China's national security. The books also say that external forces were behind these protests. The report notes that the textbooks are "still being vetted by" the Education Bureau. Hong Kong was returned by the UK to China in 1997 under promises from the latter that nature of Hong Kong's government system based on democratic values will be preserved. Events in last three years have seen China's departure from this promises. The National Security Law has been used to curb many freedoms previously granted to citizens in Hong Kong. The city has seen independent media outlets including the popular and influential Apple Daily, shut down for good. In the run up to such closures, Hong Kong police have been seen swarming to media offices in hundreds.

New Chinese textbooks say Hong Kong was not a British colony: Report

<p>Two decades of snail pace revisions of Saudi schoolbooks aimed at removing supremacist references to Jews, Christians, and Shiites suggest a willingness to delete offensive language while keeping in place fundamental concepts of an ultra-conservative, anti-pluralistic, and intolerant interpretation of Islam.</p>

<p>In a break with the past, Human Rights Watch and Impact-se, an education-focused Israeli research group, reported for the first time in two decades of post-9/11 pressure on Saudi Arabia that the kingdom had made significant progress in revising textbooks.</p>

<p>The reports focussed on explicit references to other religions but noted that further revisions were needed to eliminate language that disparages practices associated with religious minorities, particularly Shiite Muslims and Sufis, sects viewed as heretic by ultra-conservatives.</p>

<p>“As long as the texts continue to disparage religious beliefs and practices of minority groups, including those of fellow Saudi citizens, it will contribute to the culture of discrimination that these groups face,” said Michael Page, Human Rights Watch’s deputy Middle East director.</p>

<p>“They removed some of the more offensive stuff like pictures of Shiite shrines that were called shirk (polytheistic) and they removed some offensive language, but the kernel is still there... They are trying to make the language less offensive but the whole idea is offensive,” added Human Rights Watch Middle East researcher Adam Coogle.</p>

<p>Implicit in the two reports’ conclusions, but at best only summarily mentioned, was the fact that the ultra-conservative interpretation of basic religious concepts as promoted by Saudi Arabia until the rise of King Salman and his son, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, remain unaltered in the schoolbooks.</p>

<p>These interpretations relate to the ban on bida’a or religious innovation and shirk or polytheism as well as the rejection of supplication, a thinly veiled reference to the Shia practice of intercession.</p>

<p>Critics, including prominent Muslim scholars, argue that Saudi Arabia’s failure to address problematic concepts of Islam, that constitute the basis for ultra-conservative rejection of religious pluralism and supremacist and intolerant interpretations of the faith, call into question the kingdom’s projection of itself as a paragon of religious moderation and leader of the Islamic world.</p>

<p>The critics assert that the significant progress reported by Human Rights Watch and Impact-se constitutes part of Saudi Arabia’s effort to pre-empt pressure from the Biden administration as it recalibrates its relationship with the kingdom.</p>

<p>They also charge that the progress is designed to make Saudi Arabia, whose image has been tarnished by human rights abuse and the 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, palatable to foreign direct investors as well as boost pressure on international companies to shift their regional operations from Dubai to the kingdom.</p>

<p>Scholars in Saudi Arabia took issue with the Human Rights Watch report. “I do not know why the world is so busy with us. Although their countries are full of things that need attention, revision, arrangement, and organization,” said political sociologist Widad al-Jarwan, adding that “even their curricula in the West are full of mistakes against” Muslims.</p>

<p>Indonesian Muslim scholars argue that the Saudi interpretation of ibadah, the rules governing worship, constitute an innovation by defining aspects of worship practised by a majority of Muslims in ways that are viewed by ultra-conservatives as beyond the pale.</p>

<p>“What matters is how the Saudis interpret the teachings related to how Muslims should treat anybody of a different sect or faith. The problem is how they believe the other should be treated. It doesn’t matter what they call me. It doesn’t matter if they call me a kafir, an infidel, as long as they truly believe that I should be treated equally. The problem is that the Saudis don’t really want to change their established system of beliefs,” said Yahya Cholil Staquf, a prominent Islamic scholar and secretary-general of Indonesia’s Nahdlatul Ulama, the world’s largest Muslim movement.</p>

<p>Mr. Staquf was one of the major forces behind Nahdlatul Ulama’s charter of Humanitarian Islam that embraces the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights and calls for reform of problematic or obsolete religious legal concepts that negate equal rights for all.</p>

<p>Ali al-Ahmad, director of the Washington-based Institute of Gulf Affairs that has long highlighted problems with Saudi textbooks, contended that “when it comes to bida’a and shirk, the Wahhabis are more guilty than other Muslims. Saudi Arabia will not be able to move forward with Wahhabism as its state religion. The concept of a state religion must be abolished before the country can move into the modern age.”</p>

<p>Mr Al-Ahmed’s comment goes to the core of the debate about religious reform in the Muslim world and whether states like Saudi Arabia without the lead and buy-in of civil society can achieve real and lasting change.</p>

<p>“There’s no civil society. There’s no dialogue. Zero,” Mr Coogle said.</p>

<p>Significant social reforms in recent years were primarily designed to cater to youth aspirations, enable economic diversification, attract foreign direct investment, and shore up the country’s tarnished image while ensuring state-control on the principle of absolute obedience to the ruler. They were not rooted in a recognition that the kingdom’s ultra-conservative mores were problematic in and of themselves.</p>

<p>Discussing the textbook revisions, Mr. Coogle noted that “it’s not like the Saudis looked at their textbooks and saw a problem. Other people didn’t like it and the Saudis are trying to quell those concerns.”</p>

<p>The stepped-up Saudi revision of schoolbooks was in part spurred by a draft bill in the US Congress that would require the Secretary of State to report annually “on religious intolerance in Saudi Arabian educational materials.” The draft was initially introduced in 2017 by a Republican sponsor who has since retired and reintroduced in 2019.</p>

<p>The Human Rights Watch report noted that although the revised schoolbooks no longer contain explicit references to Shia Islam, they still included harsh criticism of Shia practices and traditions, labelling them evidence of polytheism that threatens the existence of Islam.</p>

<p>A schoolbook for 4th-grade nine-year olds advised that adherence to such practices would lead to the cancellation of a person’s good deeds, God’s rejection of their repentance, and eternal damnation.</p>

<p>The practices include praying to saints and visiting tombs and shrines of prominent religious figures that are rejected by Wahhabism as a form of idolatry. They also involve the Shiite supplication to God via intermediaries as well as kneeling to anyone other than God, building mosques and shrines on top of graves, and wailing over the dead.</p>

<p>“Any Saudi who reads this will understand what it means,” Mr. Coogle said.</p>

<p>Saudi Shiites noted that all Muslim students, including Shiites, were required to use these textbooks even if they were perceived as offensive.</p>

<p>“The textbooks are written under the close supervision of leading Wahhabi clerics led by Sheikh Saleh Al-Fawzan,” one of Saudi Arabia’s most senior ultra-conservative clerics, Mr. Al-Ahmad said.</p>

<p>Mr. Al-Fawzan “views Islam as a Wahhabi-only religion. This vision is what is reflected in Saudi textbooks and other religious literature. This means that Shia Muslims, Sufis, other Sunni Muslims –are polytheists and deviants,” Mr. Al-Ahmad added.</p>

<p>Mr. Page cautioned that “as long as disparaging references to religious minorities remain in the text it will continue to stoke controversy and condemnation.”</p>

<p>By the same token, Saudi Arabia’s failure to address ultra-conservative interpretations of religious concepts that justify a rejection of pluralism and religious tolerance challenge the kingdom’s claim to be a leading voice of moderation – a pillar of the country’s quest to be recognized as a, if not the leader of the Muslim world in a new world order.</p>

<p><strong>(Disclaimer: The views of the writer do not represent the views of WION or ZMCL. Nor does WION or ZMCL endorse the views of the writer.)</strong></p>


Two decades of snail pace revisions of Saudi schoolbooks aimed at removing supremacist references to Jews, Christians, and Shiites suggest a willingness to delete offensive language while keeping in place fundamental concepts of an ultra-conservative, anti-pluralistic, and intolerant interpretation of Islam.

Two decades of snail pace revisions of Saudi schoolbooks aimed at removing supremacist references to Jews, Christians, and Shiites suggest a willingness to delete offensive language while keeping in place fundamental concepts of an ultra-conservative, anti-pluralistic, and intolerant interpretation of Islam. In a break with the past, Human Rights Watch and Impact-se, an education-focused Israeli research group, reported for the first time in two decades of post-9/11 pressure on Saudi Arabia that the kingdom had made significant progress in revising textbooks. The reports focussed on explicit references to other religions but noted that further revisions were needed to eliminate language that disparages practices associated with religious minorities, particularly Shiite Muslims and Sufis, sects viewed as heretic by ultra-conservatives. “As long as the texts continue to disparage religious beliefs and practices of minority groups, including those of fellow Saudi citizens, it will contribute to the culture of discrimination that these groups face,” said Michael Page, Human Rights Watch’s deputy Middle East director. “They removed some of the more offensive stuff like pictures of Shiite shrines that were called shirk (polytheistic) and they removed some offensive language, but the kernel is still there... They are trying to make the language less offensive but the whole idea is offensive,” added Human Rights Watch Middle East researcher Adam Coogle. Implicit in the two reports’ conclusions, but at best only summarily mentioned, was the fact that the ultra-conservative interpretation of basic religious concepts as promoted by Saudi Arabia until the rise of King Salman and his son, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, remain unaltered in the schoolbooks. These interpretations relate to the ban on bida’a or religious innovation and shirk or polytheism as well as the rejection of supplication, a thinly veiled reference to the Shia practice of intercession. Critics, including prominent Muslim scholars, argue that Saudi Arabia’s failure to address problematic concepts of Islam, that constitute the basis for ultra-conservative rejection of religious pluralism and supremacist and intolerant interpretations of the faith, call into question the kingdom’s projection of itself as a paragon of religious moderation and leader of the Islamic world. The critics assert that the significant progress reported by Human Rights Watch and Impact-se constitutes part of Saudi Arabia’s effort to pre-empt pressure from the Biden administration as it recalibrates its relationship with the kingdom. They also charge that the progress is designed to make Saudi Arabia, whose image has been tarnished by human rights abuse and the 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, palatable to foreign direct investors as well as boost pressure on international companies to shift their regional operations from Dubai to the kingdom. Scholars in Saudi Arabia took issue with the Human Rights Watch report. “I do not know why the world is so busy with us. Although their countries are full of things that need attention, revision, arrangement, and organization,” said political sociologist Widad al-Jarwan, adding that “even their curricula in the West are full of mistakes against” Muslims. Indonesian Muslim scholars argue that the Saudi interpretation of ibadah, the rules governing worship, constitute an innovation by defining aspects of worship practised by a majority of Muslims in ways that are viewed by ultra-conservatives as beyond the pale. “What matters is how the Saudis interpret the teachings related to how Muslims should treat anybody of a different sect or faith. The problem is how they believe the other should be treated. It doesn’t matter what they call me. It doesn’t matter if they call me a kafir, an infidel, as long as they truly believe that I should be treated equally. The problem is that the Saudis don’t really want to change their established system of beliefs,” said Yahya Cholil Staquf, a prominent Islamic scholar and secretary-general of Indonesia’s Nahdlatul Ulama, the world’s largest Muslim movement. Mr. Staquf was one of the major forces behind Nahdlatul Ulama’s charter of Humanitarian Islam that embraces the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights and calls for reform of problematic or obsolete religious legal concepts that negate equal rights for all. Ali al-Ahmad, director of the Washington-based Institute of Gulf Affairs that has long highlighted problems with Saudi textbooks, contended that “when it comes to bida’a and shirk, the Wahhabis are more guilty than other Muslims. Saudi Arabia will not be able to move forward with Wahhabism as its state religion. The concept of a state religion must be abolished before the country can move into the modern age.” Mr Al-Ahmed’s comment goes to the core of the debate about religious reform in the Muslim world and whether states like Saudi Arabia without the lead and buy-in of civil society can achieve real and lasting change. “There’s no civil society. There’s no dialogue. Zero,” Mr Coogle said. Significant social reforms in recent years were primarily designed to cater to youth aspirations, enable economic diversification, attract foreign direct investment, and shore up the country’s tarnished image while ensuring state-control on the principle of absolute obedience to the ruler. They were not rooted in a recognition that the kingdom’s ultra-conservative mores were problematic in and of themselves. Discussing the textbook revisions, Mr. Coogle noted that “it’s not like the Saudis looked at their textbooks and saw a problem. Other people didn’t like it and the Saudis are trying to quell those concerns.” The stepped-up Saudi revision of schoolbooks was in part spurred by a draft bill in the US Congress that would require the Secretary of State to report annually “on religious intolerance in Saudi Arabian educational materials.” The draft was initially introduced in 2017 by a Republican sponsor who has since retired and reintroduced in 2019. The Human Rights Watch report noted that although the revised schoolbooks no longer contain explicit references to Shia Islam, they still included harsh criticism of Shia practices and traditions, labelling them evidence of polytheism that threatens the existence of Islam. A schoolbook for 4th-grade nine-year olds advised that adherence to such practices would lead to the cancellation of a person’s good deeds, God’s rejection of their repentance, and eternal damnation. The practices include praying to saints and visiting tombs and shrines of prominent religious figures that are rejected by Wahhabism as a form of idolatry. They also involve the Shiite supplication to God via intermediaries as well as kneeling to anyone other than God, building mosques and shrines on top of graves, and wailing over the dead. “Any Saudi who reads this will understand what it means,” Mr. Coogle said. Saudi Shiites noted that all Muslim students, including Shiites, were required to use these textbooks even if they were perceived as offensive. “The textbooks are written under the close supervision of leading Wahhabi clerics led by Sheikh Saleh Al-Fawzan,” one of Saudi Arabia’s most senior ultra-conservative clerics, Mr. Al-Ahmad said. Mr. Al-Fawzan “views Islam as a Wahhabi-only religion. This vision is what is reflected in Saudi textbooks and other religious literature. This means that Shia Muslims, Sufis, other Sunni Muslims –are polytheists and deviants,” Mr. Al-Ahmad added. Mr. Page cautioned that “as long as disparaging references to religious minorities remain in the text it will continue to stoke controversy and condemnation.” By the same token, Saudi Arabia’s failure to address ultra-conservative interpretations of religious concepts that justify a rejection of pluralism and religious tolerance challenge the kingdom’s claim to be a leading voice of moderation – a pillar of the country’s quest to be recognized as a, if not the leader of the Muslim world in a new world order. (Disclaimer: The views of the writer do not represent the views of WION or ZMCL. Nor does WION or ZMCL endorse the views of the writer.)

Opinion: What does it take to recontextualise Islam in Saudi schoolbooks?

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