RIYADH (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia’s King Salman has ordered protection for employees who report financial and administrative corruption, Al Arabiya TV reported on Sunday, as part of an effort to combat graft that saw dozens of royals and top businessmen detained last year.
Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud is seen during the 29th Arab Summit in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia April 15, 2018. Bandar Algaloud/Courtesy of Saudi Royal Court/Handout via REUTERS
The decree shields whistleblowers from “violation of their privileges or rights”, the Saudi-run broadcaster said in an online report, without providing details.
Most of the people detained in the anti-corruption drive, including global investor Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, were released from Riyadh’s Ritz-Carlton hotel after being exonerated or reaching financial settlements with the government. The government said such deals brought in more than $100 billion.
The Ritz was cleared out and reopened to the public in February, though 56 people who had not reached settlements by then remained in custody and could face trial.
The anti-corruption campaign is part of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s push to transform an oil-dependent economy, long plagued by graft, that must now cope with lower crude prices. But it remains shrouded in secrecy, with few details of the allegations or the financial settlements disclosed.
King Salman in March ordered the establishment of specialized departments in the public prosecutor’s office in order to accelerate the investigation and prosecution of corruption cases, and the public prosecutor said last month that the campaign would work its way through lower-level offences.
Actionbronslam on May 6th, 2018 at 18:49 UTC »
Reads comment section of any article about Saudi Arabia
Long sigh
WhiteRun on May 6th, 2018 at 16:52 UTC »
While this sounds good, the Saudi King is pulling a lot of moves that Putin used to gain his power. The King will cripple the powerful and rich and pull them into line with what he wants. They'll still be corrupt but under his banner and his rules. Making him far more powerful. These orders are obviously good but I think the end goal isn't as friendly and warm welcoming as some think.
TheTNGentleman on May 6th, 2018 at 16:19 UTC »
People aren't paying enough attention to what's going on in Saudi Arabia. They have an enormous influence over what happens in the Middle East. If they can keep their reforms going and keep the hardliners at bay long enough for the younger generation to fully appreciate what is happening, we could be witnessing the single biggest world change of the last 2 generations.
I say this because if Saudi Arabia modernizes their culture and economy, it's likely to spread to other countries in the Middle East.