Abdulrahman bin Abdullah Al-Sanad

The police would always accompany members of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice (Haia) in the field, said Abdulrahman bin Abdullah Al-Sanad, the organization’s president, according to a local media report recently.

Al-Sanad said these were part of the regulations approved by the Cabinet recently and that further executive rules governing the body’s work, in relation to other parties, would be issued soon by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman.

“Field tasks for the Haia include encouraging people to answer the call for prayer, ensuring stores are closed during prayer times, watching markets and public areas, fighting sorcery and tackling crimes related to drugs, alcohol and morality, which conforms with Islamic law,” he said.

He said the Kingdom has been committed to the Qur’an and Sunnah since the nation was established by the late King Abdulaziz, and supports the work of the Haia.

Meanwhile, the Riyadh police department recently arrested 36 people of various nationalities based on information given to them from the Haia office in the city, and approved by the governor.

There were 25 people nabbed for closing stores late in King Fahad neighborhood, Naseem, Badieha and Dirab. Ten Saudi youth, all in their twenties, were arrested for harassing young women in the northern and eastern parts of Riyadh.

In addition, a young Saudi was arrested for blackmailing a young Saudi woman and threatening to post her photographs on social media, while two Yemeni expatriates were also arrested for threatening and blackmailing a Saudi woman.

The Cabinet recently passed new regulations banning members of the Haia from questioning, asking for identification, pursuing, arresting and detaining any person suspected of a crime, with these duties falling to police and anti-narcotics officers.

However, they will continue to help enforce strict segregation of the sexes, an absolute prohibition on the sale and consumption of alcohol, a ban on women driving and other social restrictions.

The regulations now ensure that the Haia president is appointed as a minister, with the authority to appoint staff members. The president is responsible for enforcing these new regulations and reports directly to the king’s office.

All Haia members are now obliged to clearly display their identification cards, showing their names, posts, jurisdictions and official working hours. They are also required to be of good character and should not have been jailed for any crime exceeding one year.

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