| NEW YORK TIMES Mecca Journal The Price of Progress: Transforming Islam's Holiest Site By HASSAN M. FATTAH Published: March 8, 2007 http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/08/world/middleeast/08mecca.html?em&ex=1173502800&en=d9788514cd7c0c08&ei=5087 MECCA, Saudi Arabia - Five times a day across the globe devout Muslims face this city in prayer, focused on a site where they believe Abraham built a temple to God. The spot is also the place Muslims are expected to visit at least once in their lives. Now as they make the pilgrimage clothed in simple white cotton wraps, they will see something other than the stark black cube known as the Kaaba, which is literally the centre of the Muslim world. They will also see Starbucks. And Cartier and Tiffany. And H&M and Topshop. The Abraj al Bait Mall - one of the largest in Saudi Arabia, outfitted with flat-panel monitors with advertisements and announcements, neon lights, an amusement park ride, fast-food restaurants and a lingerie shop - has been built directly across from Islam's holiest site. Not everyone considers this progress. 'Mecca is becoming like Las Vegas, and that is a disaster,' said Ali al-Ahmed, director of the Institute for Gulf Affairs in Washington, a Saudi opposition research organization. 'It will have a disastrous effect on Muslims because going to Mecca will have no feeling. There is no charm anymore. All you see is glass and cement.' The mall, which opened a week before the annual pilgrimage, called the hajj, in December, is the first phase in a $13 billion construction boom in Mecca that promises to change how this city, forbidden to everyone but Muslims, looks and feels. The Abraj al Bait housing and hotel complex, a 1.5-million-square-yard development that will include a towering hotel, has begun to redraw the skyline of this ancient religious city. When the project is completed in 2009, it will include the seventh tallest building in the world, its developers say, with a hospital, hotels and prayer halls. A public-announcement system pipes in prayers from the Grand Mosque across the way, and worshipers can join the masses simply by opening their draperies. In nearby Jabal Omar, an entire mountain is being flattened to make way for a huge hotel and high-rise complex. And elsewhere, cranes dot the skyline with up to 130 new high-rise towers planned for the area. 'This is the end of Mecca,' said Dr. Irfan Ahmed in London. He has formed the Islamic Heritage Foundation to try to preserve the Islamic history of Mecca and Medina, the second holiest city, and other important religious sites in Saudi Arabia. 'Before, even in the days of the Ottomans, none of the buildings in Mecca towered higher than the Grand Mosque. Now these are much higher and more disrespectful.' Money is certainly one of the motivators in the building boom. Every year, up to four million people descend on this city during the pilgrimage, while a stream continues to flow through here during the year, spending an average $2,000 to $3,000 to stay, eat and shop. Billboards along the way to Mecca remind investors of the potential earnings from owning an apartment here; some claim a 25 percent return on investment. Advertisements on Arab satellite television channels remind viewers that 'you, too, can have the opportunity to enjoy this blessed view.' Muhammad al-Abboud, a real estate agent, recounts tales of Pakistani businessmen plunking down $15 million to buy several apartments at a time. Saudi princes own entire floors. A three-bedroom apartment here runs about $3 million, Mr. Abboud said. One directly overlooking the Grand Mosque can reach $5 million. Critics of the development complain that the result is gated communities where worshipers can separate themselves from the crowds, thereby violating the spirit of the hajj, where all stand equal before God. 'All of Mecca is a sanctuary,' Mr. Abboud said. 'So how could something like this not be snapped up?' But some groups say the building boom also has religious motives. They accuse the archconservative Salafi, who hold great sway in Saudi Arabia, of seeking to eliminate historic spots, fearing that these sites would become objects of worship themselves. Dr. Ahmed of London has catalogued the destruction of more than 300 separate antiquity sites, including cemeteries and mosques. He says the house where the Prophet Muhammad lived was razed and today a dilapidated library, with its windows and doors shuttered, stands in its place. 'It is not respecting the Kaaba, not respecting the house of God or the environment of the sanctuary,' Sami Angawi, a Saudi architect who wants to preserve Mecca's heritage, said of the development. 'You are not supposed to even cut a tree in this city, so how could you blow up a mountain? The Islamic laws have been broken.' Progress has exacted a heavy price in Mecca. More pilgrims than ever can come here, thanks to billions spent on tunnels and infrastructure to accommodate them. But in exchange, the city's once famed night market, where pilgrims brought their wares to sell, is gone. The Meccan homes and buildings that filled the area near the mosque were demolished in the 1970s to enlarge the mosque. The neighbourhoods and families who lived near the mosque and welcomed pilgrims have long since moved away. Mecca has long been a commercial as well as a religious centre, but increasingly global brands dominate here. Mr. Angawi, the Saudi architect, has led a lonely campaign within the kingdom to bring attention to the destruction of the historic sites. Dr. Ahmed has worked to lobby Asian and Arab governments to press the Saudis to stop such demolitions. And Mr. Ahmed, in Washington, has built a database of the historic spots now destroyed. Many Muslims inside and outside Saudi Arabia have remained silent about the issues, they say, fearing the loss of financing from Saudi Arabia for religious institutions and projects. Saudi officials say they have been painstakingly preserving the Islamic artefacts they find, and operate two small museums in Mecca . In all, they say, more than $19 billion has been spent on preserving the country's Muslim heritage. They dismiss their critics as cranks who have no following. Developers and real estate agents, meanwhile, say the construction makes room for even more Muslims to take part in the hajj, and therefore serves the greater good. That suggests that the changes are far from over. 'Mecca has never been changed like it has now,' Mr. Angawi said. 'What you see now is only 10 percent of what's to come. What is coming is much, much worse.' RELATED ARTICLES Date: Mon, 17 Mar 2008 19:34:35 +0900 From: "Summissus Veritas" <summissus.veritas@gmail.com> Subject: A piece of railway history Assalamu Alaikom Dear Brothers and Sisters Alhamdulillah, we have been fortunate enough to have recently performed Hajj. Although the trip was exhausting and tiring, we feel humbled and eager to return again and again, and hope that we can, insha'Allah. The spiritual aspect of Hajj is not simple to describe in a few lines and it is not really the intent of this introduction. Although it has been months since our return from Hajj, we are still in a state of disbelief to have witnessed the level of poverty in Al-Madina, Makkah and the surrounding areas. It was not easy to miss the slums, which are not very far from the Harams. Unfortunately, we were unable to witness any evidence of high-level, sophisticated infrastructure such as decent railway networks or an underground system. Please don't misjudge the intention of this introduction. Many individuals in Arabia have established large agricultural project and heavy industries such as steel. Those individuals are a credit to all Muslims and are investing their wealth in Muslim lands for the benefits of the Ummah (may Allah reward them) rather than investing in non-Islamic interests such as Citibank and the Monte Carlo Grand Hotel. Some would say that managing millions of pilgrims moving at certain times from one place to another is not an easy task. Indeed, it is a hugely complicated task, especially as the pilgrims come from a multitude of cultures, habits and customs. However, pilgrims coming from any technically sophisticated countries would appreciate the above claim regarding the lack of infrastructure in Al-Hejaz. Remember, Hajj is not something new. The relevant people in charge have had plenty of time to put efficient systems in place to facilitate the smooth transition of pilgrims, and to allow them to have a healthier and safer Hajj, instead of subjecting them to excessive levels of diesel fumes, vulnerable to other hazards and inferior levels of hygiene. It is not easy to facilitate adequate restrooms/toilets for the large volume of people during the Hajj journey. This would be a big challenge. However, considering that cleanliness is a basic Islamic principle, and with the understanding that the Oil price is all but controlled from this land (i.e. financial aspects should not be an issue), one would expect that pilgrims should enjoy clean and sufficient ablution and toilet facilities throughout Hajj. Of course, there are huge amount of money spent in maintaining Al-Haram Al-Nabawi and Al-Haram Al-Makki. However, one needs to remember that many wealthy Muslims are more than happy to totally maintain and provide for them. Many are already doing that. Also, one needs to acknowledge the huge financial income that is brought in to Al-Hejaz during Hajj and Umrah. Masha'Allah, Al-Haram An-Nabawi in Al-Madina, is managed efficiently and is immaculately clean, unlike the disorganization of the facilities at Al-Haram in Makkah. Our group stayed in the Hilton in Makkah. During the prayer time, one can switch to the in-house TV channel within the hotel, and join the prayer at Al-Haram lead by the Imam there, whilst still in the Hilton. This is strange! Has the Hilton become part of the Haram or has the Haram become part of the Hilton? It is a very strange feeling indeed! Why are the Hilton Towers built so close to Al-Haram Al-Makki? How can such prominent American enterprises be allowed to have front row seats at the Ka'aba? This is absolutely ridiculous! However, the more outrageous is allowing the likes of Starbucks to have another front seat within another huge tower directly across from our holiest site. Have the people responsible decided that the courtyard surrounding the area of Al-Haram Al-Makki must be constraint to only a couple of hundred metres? Well, if the rulers are convinced that they are eligible to name some of the entrances of the Harams in both Makkah and Madina after their family names, then surely it seems that they feel that the Harams are their own personal property, and they are behaving accordingly. Or, have they finished naming all the entrances of Al-Harams with all the beautiful names of Allah (sobhana wa ta'ala), and all the Sahaba (companions of the Prophet peace and blessings be upon him)? What amazing arrogance! However, although the distances between the sites for Hajj and between Makkah and Madina are relatively short, there is no efficient transportation system, or replacement of the railway that the forefathers of the rulers of Arabia and their allies destroyed a hundred years ago! Thought the article below might be of interest. A piece of railway history By Malcolm Billings BBC News, Damascus http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/4609450.stm The Hejaz Railway was built 100 years ago to carry pilgrims from Istanbul to Medina but was blown up by Lawrence of Arabia during World War I. Stretches of the line are still used today by passenger and goods trains with engines and carriages from another era. My first encounter with the Hejaz Railway was in clouds of steam along with a pungent smell of hot grease, at Kadem station in Damascus. A veteran steam locomotive built in 1914 chuffed past, hauling a goods train towards the Jordan border. From the driver's cab, two soot streaked faces leaned out to see the iron road ahead. It was like stepping back a century in railway history. But I had to remind myself that this was not history, this was now! The engineer in charge of the 100-year-old maintenance sheds (two huge stone buildings full of rolling stock and engines) pointed to the oldest locomotive in service, built in Germany in 1898. "Just one of 11 steam locomotives in service," he told me with obvious pride. "If the 60-year-old diesels break down," he added, "we use steam for the passenger services as well as goods trains." Armour-plated carriage I walked through a graveyard of abandoned rolling stock and a number of locomotives that were gently falling apart in sidings overgrown with grass and shrubs. And what I was looking at were the original carriages and engines that made up the first pilgrim trains in 1908. One carriage was armour-plated. It had rifle slits in the sides from which guards on the train could ward off attacks from Bedouin tribesmen on the train's four-day journey through the desert to Medina in what is now Saudi Arabia. National differences In southern Jordan it is a very different railway. Robbed of its rails and sleepers, the embankment stands proud of the desert, like some sort of natural sculpture that has always been there. The embankment makes a good road until it stops abruptly at a yawning gap where a bridge was washed away by a flash flood perhaps decades ago. On the Saudi stretch of the line there are steam engines that were abandoned after the end of World War I. One was in Medain Saleh, a big station along the line in Saudi. The locomotive, stripped of every moveable part by the Bedouin, was still in its engine shed waiting for maintenance that should have been done 80 or 90 years ago. The last station in Jordan before the Saudi border is Mudarrawra. Station dwellers Peeping out from behind the pillars in front of the ticket office were eight little children, seven girls and one boy who, in the absence of his father, was the spokesman. He recited all the names of his siblings and told me through an interpreter that they had lived in the station for 10 years and that very few people like us stopped to ask about the railway. I could not find any stations on a branch line in southern Jordan, closer to Amman. The Ottomans had sided with Germany in World War I, so the good quality British coal they used in the locomotives from the mines in Wales was cut off. At one stage fuel was so scarce that the engines were being fed furniture and floor boards just to keep running. As the railway had to burn wood instead of coal, they built this 25-mile-long (40km) branch line into a forest near the Crusader castle of Shubak to collect it. A local farmer confirmed that we were at the forest of Hisseth - or what was left of it. People really do believe that the retreating Ottoman soldiers buried gold around the stations - Ueli Bellwader, archaeologist. "Over there," the farmer pointed to higher ground some distance away, "you can see tree stumps left by the Ottoman troops." Then the Jordanian farmer accused my interpreter and me of treasure hunting. "We couldn't even find the railway, let alone any treasure," I protested. But the farmer insisted that we open the boot of the car to see if we had spades, shovels and any other incriminating kit. Puzzled, I later consulted an archaeologist in Amman who put his head in his hands and said: "Treasure hunting is destroying long sections of the railway." Ueli Bellwader explained that the holes all around the stations we saw in the desert were not World War I bomb craters but deep holes dug by treasure hunters. "It may sound crazy," he said, "but people really do believe that the retreating Ottoman soldiers buried gold around the stations. "In their frenzy to find it," he said, "they have mechanical earth-moving equipment that is demolishing buildings and stretches of the embankment." And the hunt for the treasure has spawned another profitable sideline for shops in faraway Istanbul. Maps of the railway sell for serious money along with a guarantee that the cross on the map is definitely the place to dig for an Ottoman pot of gold. |
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