Diplomats at Work

Anyone who has spent time in Saudi Arabia will have a story to tell about the crude antics of the muttawa, or religious police: Western women who might have felt the sharp prod of a stick if they forgot to cover their hair and shoulders with shawls or scarves; expatriate workers suffering the dread of being arrested for carrying the taint of alcohol on the breath; or foreign visitors accosted for attempting to converse with a Saudi woman. But this is as nothing compared with the impact on the lives of Saudi citizens, where charges of sedition, adultery or apostasy by the religious police can lead to death by beheading.

The United States urged sceptical Arab and Muslim nations to embrace vigorous and speedy reforms without using the Middle East conflict as an excuse to delay political and economic liberalisation. But the call was greeted with demands for a final and just settlement to the Israeli-Palestinian crisis and complaints about Washington's policies in the region which top Arab officials said were a major impediment to change.