SAUDI ARABIA - Saudi Justice System Improving.

In a move widely welcomed in Saudi Arabia and abroad, King Abdullah early this month decreed an overhaul of the country's archaic judicial system and an allocation of $2 bn for building court-houses and training judges. This was immediately hailed by Saudi reformers, businessmen and lawyers as the beginning of a new cycle of reforms repeatedly called for in the kingdom.

The Saudi system, hitherto run by conservative Wahhabi judges trained in strict Sunni Islamic law, has long been criticised as opaque, lacking in some of the safeguards of justice and unable to deal with the modern world. The FT on Oct. 5 quoted Saudi lawyer Abdul-Aziz al-Fahd as saying: "Since the establishment of the modern Saudi state in the 1930s, there has been a struggle over what to do with the judiciary which refused modern legislation as a matter of principle. But now the reforms will make us compatible with the requirements of a modern and thriving economy".

Supporters say the changes will reinforce the rule of law, help to avert miscarriages of justice and improve the business environment. They say the reforms do not undermine the centrality of Islamic law to the justice system, but seek to bring order and oversight to a sector in which defendants often lack legal representation and judges have enormous discretion to rule according to their own arbitrary interpretation of uncodified laws.

The decree will see the introduction of appeal courts which can over-rule the decisions of lower courts after holding fresh hearings. This will apply to both the general justice system and to the administrative justice system which deals with cases in which the state or one of its agencies is party. A new supreme court, its president and some of its officials appointed by the king will top the general judicial system and act as a final recourse.

Saudi experts anticipate that King Abdullah will appoint people with a modernising bent. Former judge Abdul-Aziz al-Qasem says: "This will reduce the scope for archaic and calcified ideas. In any other country this would be seen as interference, but here in Saudi Arabia it is a step towards modernisation".

The supreme court will take many of the powers currently exercised by the Higher Judicial Council, which is led by conservative Wahhabi religious figures. The reforms envisage the creation of specialised courts to deal with labour and trade issues to fulfill the kingdom's World Trade Organisation (WTO) obligations.

At the moment employment and commercial disputes are heard by committees established by ministries. But there are complaints that their decisions are not always enforceable and they can be challenged in the courts. Prominent Jeddah businessman Hussein al-Shobokshi says: "The judicial system has long been a source of complaints and misgivings".

King Abdullah has signalled repeatedly that reform and social justice are to remain the dominant themes of Saudi politics for quite sometime. But he has a proven track record in this respect. Abdel Rahman al-Zamil, a leading industrialist and member of the Shura Council, was in 2005 quoted as saying: "What we are seeing is simply the continuation of many years of change".

Considerable emphasis has been placed on diversifying the economy and encouraging the private sector to take a more pro-active role, particularly in the provision of jobs and in education and training. The doors to foreign investment are opening ever wider. The Foreign Ministry in September 2005 instructed its missions abroad to prioritise trade visas and streamline the general visa application process - one of the biggest problems for foreign nationals trying to do business in the kingdom.

The relentless campaign waged by the security forces in the last four years, led by Prince Muhammad ibn Nayef - the son of the interior minister - has paid off. Clashes with al-Qaeda militants remain frequent: hundreds of Qaeda militants have been killed or captured in recent years. Greater supervision of local mosques and more scrutiny of curricula are helping Riyadh to keep a rein on extremist teachings (see background in omt17SaudiWhoOct24-05).

Princess Hissa al-Sha'lan, one of King Abdullah's wives, is active in the society. She has been patronising many events in the kingdom. Reform advocates in the royal family include Prince Talal ibn Abdul-Aziz, who in the early 1960s was one of the "free princes" that rebelled against then King Saud. King Abdullah listens to Prince Talal, whose billionaire son al-Waleed is a grandson of Riad Al-Solh - the first prime minister of Lebanon after independence (see omt17SaudiWhoOct24-05 - see also gmt17SaudiWhoOct22-07).