DAMMAM — Interior Minister Prince Muhammad Bin Naif has said prisoners can be appointed imams, muezzins and preachers of mosques inside prisons and get paid for it. He said the aim is to rehabilitate the inmates and make them good citizens. Brig. Abdul Mohsen Al-Taweel, director of the department of religious affairs in the general directorate of prisons, said the minister has noted that many of the prisoners were behaving well. Speaking after a visit to the Al-Baseera (foresight) office for call and guidance at Dammam Prison, he said: “The minister's directives will be implemented in the two coming weeks. We will conduct a competition to choose the most suitable prisoners.” Al-Taweel said his department is currently organizing about 300 Holy Qur'an memorization rings in prisons all over the Kingdom. Under royal instructions, any prisoner who memorizes the entire Qur'an or many chapters of it could be released except those imprisoned for drug-related offenses and major crimes. He said: “So far, about 6,000 prisoners have benefited from these royal instructions. Last year alone, a total of 180 inmates were released after memorizing the entire holy book.” Al-Taweel said Saudi women prisoners represent only about 5 percent of total prisoners. “About 80 percent of all women prisoners are expatriates,” he added. Ahmed Al-Shihri, director of the Al-Baseera office, said according to studies about 60 percent of the ex-cons will reoffend. “For this very reason we have intensified our efforts to enlighten the prisoners religiously so they become good citizens and discourage them from committing new crimes,” he said. Al-Shihri also said cultural camps would soon be organized in the Eastern Province's prisons to raise religious awareness for about 2,400 prisoners.
