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Saudi Arabia
STRUCTURE OF GOVERNMENT
Saudi Arabia was an absolute monarchy in 1992. The king was not
constrained by a written constitution, a legislative assembly,
or elections. Since 1962, Saudi kings periodically promised to
establish a majlis ash shura, or consultative council,
to advise them on governmental matters, but none of them undertook
practical steps to establish such a body. In March 1992, King
Fahd once again announced that a majlis ash shura would
be appointed and specified its responsibilities. Fahd proposed
a majlis of sixty-one members, all appointed by the king. The
majlis would have limited authority to question ministers and
propose legislation. The majlis would not have actual legislative
powers but rather would serve as an advisory body that could make
recommendations to the king.
As of the end of 1992, King Fahd had named only a single individual
to the majlis ash shura that he had proposed ten months
earlier. In appointing the speaker, the king made no promises
as to when Saudi citizens could expect the convening of the full
majlis. The International Committee for Human Rights in the Gulf
and the Arabian Peninsula issued a public statement advising Saudis
that the government had promised consistently for thirty years
to establish a consultative council but never had fulfilled these
promises.
Saudis considered the Quran, the holy book of Islam, their country's
constitution. The Quran is the primary source of the sharia. Because
the sharia does not specifically address the conduct of most governmental
matters, Saudi rulers, beginning with Abd al Aziz, have promulgated
numerous regulations pertaining to the functions of government.
In early 1992, King Fahd became the first Saudi monarch to compile
these regulations into a single document called the main code
(nizam). Promulgated as a royal decree, this document
codified bureaucratic procedures and prohibited government agencies
from arbitrarily arresting citizens or violating their privacy.
Although the main code was not a formal constitution, it fulfilled
some of the same purposes of such a document. However, the main
code lacked any explicit clause guaranteeing the basic rights
of citizens to freedom of belief, expression, assembly, or political
participation.
Data as of December 1992
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