November 6, 2003	Thursday	Ramazan 10, 1424

RIYADH, Nov 5: Saudi Arabia’s interior minister said the absolute monarchy would proceed with reforms that conform with Sharia and dismissed charges that a lack of democracy was spurring militancy in the kingdom.

Interior Minister Prince Nayef told the London-based Al Hayat daily in an interview published on Wednesday that the Gulf state was not against political reform but could not import Western-style democracy either.

“The meaning of reform must be defined according to our foundations and needs,” he said.

“Some use reform as a means to achieve aims which may oppose national interests and this is not logical. Others see reform as abandoning our Islamic values and foundations and this is rejected. And it is also unacceptable for some to believe that reform is about resisting development and confronting others.”

Saudi Arabia took its first real steps towards reform last month with the announcement of its first polls to vote for municipal councils.

But Saudi reformists have called for more, including an elected parliament.

Following the announcement of municipal elections, some Saudis staged illegal demonstrations to call for more freedom and were arrested.

“Violence in all its forms has occurred and occurs in Western democracies, so how can we say that terrorism results from lack of democracy?” Prince Nayef asked.

The minister said Riyadh’s fight against terrorism has been “fruitful” and that cooperation with Washington was going well. —Reuters