Royals

I was reading about prince al Waleed bin Talal topping once again the list of the most important Arabs, in the Arabian business annual chart .
And that reminded me, that very many years ago, while chatting with a friend in Saudia, he spoke about him in quite raw terms : with all the money he has, yet cannot find the right cure to keep under control his Alzheimer, he said .
Back then I was pretty shocked, because this person is a very religious and moderate one, respectful of traditions and ranks .
Then when I started visiting the Gulf, I realised how complex, is the relation between the average citizen and the ruler or the entire family .

First of all, we must acknowledge that there is different generations nowadays, within the ruling families, and same as commoners they belong to tribes having their ethics and codes and their little rivalries .
Moreover they are human beings who are capable to make mistakes .
All this, is very well known to people ruled by them .

There are three generations of royals actually in place : the founding fathers, their sons and nephews, and of course the youngest one .
To the first category,belong personalities like Sheikh Zayed and King Fahd, who are not alive anymore .
But still we have King Abdullah and Sultan Qaboos.
This generation is a source of inspiration for their people, who are well aware of the fact that countries of those areas, were built by such great men .
If today the desert has left lot of its extension to houses, schools, industries, hospitals and much more, this is due to the wise government run and key alliances hold by the founding fathers .
There is a special relation between the people and these rulers, which goes beyond fear or respect .
It is something which shapes from the heart .
Then there is the middle generation, to which respect is due, depending on how much, they follow their fathers or uncles footsteps, or if and how, they keep themselves humble same as them .
And last, we have the rampant youth, who like their fathers, are western educated (Harvard or Sandhurst) and still must conquer their space on the main scene .
So for now they are known for their love affairs, marriages, entrepreneurial activities .

The reason why my friend was pretty harsh with prince al Waleed, is because he is not fully a Saudi, he is a pure businessman who according to some, was too much lucky , if true he started with only 30000 rials, and he is very Western oriented .
These are characteristics that a traditional Arab, considers as faults .

The Arab spring did not take place yet in the Gulf area, and I don't think it will, precisely because of the special bond between the people and their rulers, and because people know, that despite living in luxury, having extramarital affairs and not always being fair in their business, the main preoccupation of kings, sultans or emirs, is still their fellow citizens .
They are not providing jobs now because of the fear of revolts .
This is something they always did .
They are just adjusting schemes and pushing their people to be more responsible, by changing their mentality .
They want the best for them and people want to live in peace, for still long time .
So unlike us westerners, they are more inclined to search for dialogue and understanding despite differences .

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