A TORRENT of criticisms and anger has continued to trail the decision by Saudi Arabia to allow alcohol sales to non-Muslim diplomats.
According to two sources, Its one of a series of reforms aimed at projecting a more open, moderate image by the Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud.
Alcohol “will be sold to non-Muslim diplomats” who previously had to import alcohol via a diplomatic pouch, one of the sources told AFP.
Prohibition of alcohol has been the law of the land in Saudi Arabia since 1902.
Under the current Saudi law, penalties for consumption or possession of alcohol can include big jail time, public flogging and deportation for foreigners.
But rumours have swirled for years that alcohol would become available in the Gulf kingdom amid a wave of social reforms introduced as part of Crown Prince’s Vision 2030 reform agenda, among them the introduction of cinemas and mixed-gender music festivals.
A Saudi government statement late Wednesday said authorities were introducing “a new regulatory framework… to counter the illicit trade of alcohol goods and products received by diplomatic missions”.
The statement added: “The new process will focus on allocating specific quantities of alcohol goods when entering the Kingdom to put an end to the previous unregulated process that caused an uncontrolled exchange of such goods in the Kingdom.”
The rules in place until now leave most of Saudi Arabia’s 32 million people with few ways to imbibe.
Beyond attending diplomatic receptions, they can make homemade wine or turn to the black market, where bottles of whiskey can go for hundreds of dollars ahead of holidays like New Year’s Eve.
It is unclear whether the alcohol flow will include the two holy cities of Makkah and Madinah.
A lot of countries and muslim leaders across the globe have openly condemned this move by the Saudi govt.
