Riyadh Bloggers Meetup

This is an invitation for all bloggers in Riyadh to attend the coming meetup that will be held this weekend. Be there.

Time: Thursday March 2, 2006. Starting at 20:00.
Place: Dr. Cafe, King Abdullah Road.

Bloggers Meetup in Jeddah

After the first Saudi bloggers meetup that Al-Mohareb organized in Riyadh last week, Fouad Al-Farhan is calling for a meetup in Jeddah. If you are interested in attending the meetup, leave a comment at Al-Farhan's weblog. The date and place to be decided later.

On a related note, I was thinking about a meetup for the eastern province bloggers, but only a little number of bloggers said they would come, so the idea was delayed for now. Happy Eid, everyone.

Calls for First Saudi Bloggers Meet Up

To tell the truth, I have been thinking about this for some time, but being the lazy person that I am; I have been procrastinating and delaying it. However, some one has to do it, and thank God this one is a person that we all like and respect.

Fahad Al-Mohareb, one of the first Saudi bloggers, has called for the first Saudi bloggers meet up. The meet up will be held in Riyadh, and several bloggers have confirmed to come. The time and location will be announced later, and according to the Saudi style, it will be for males only. There are speculations about different meet ups in different parts of the kingdom, and about having a similar event for female bloggers.

What This Was All About

When ISU blocked Blogger last week, I was not the only angry one. However, this time, I have decided that it won't be like the previous times. In the past, when they blocked the Blogger and BlogSpot domains, we could not do much because there were not many Saudi bloggers. It is different this time. Now, we have a growing community, and we would not remain silent. This time, I've decided that I won't let them get away with it.

I was going to break the news to international organizations and media outlets. A dear friend of mine asked me to wait because it could be a mistake. I waited for 24 hours, and then, when I could not take it anymore, posted about it to the Global Voices blog. Soon after that post, I received emails from around the world confirming the news and offering help. I want, btw, to thank all those who emailed me.

So, it was a mistake, they realized their mistake, and they unblocked Blogger. I did not expect them to respond this fast, but for me, it was not only about the blockage; it was about making a stand for Saudi bloggers, making ourselves heard. I wanted to let them know that they cannot shut us, and they cannot stop us. This is our freedom, these are our rights, and we will never give them up.

Welcome Back, Abduh

Abduh, a computer sciences student at KFUPM, is back after a month and a half of absence. He says, he finally discovered what does it mean to have a "writer's block." During his absence, he moved to one of the fancy buildings of KFUPM dorms (probably to a room like the one I'm blogging from right now), and he also purchased a new mobile phone. He intends to start a Flickr account to express his new hobby: phone photography. Good luck, and welcome back!

Roba Does Saudi Blogs

The Jordanian blogger Roba has been touring the Saudi blogosphere in the past few days, and she says she was "surprised at the difference in mentalities and ideas of the different Saudi bloggers." I'm glad that this blog is giving the chance to explore the diversity of the Saudi community. And maybe sometimes I'm not so comfortable with the language and level of the conversation taking place in some Saudi blogs, but I think it is quite normal to find such things in any community.

Proud 2 Be Saudi

This Saudi girl says you will read this sentence everwhere in her blog. "I want to write so that I correct the idea. The Saudi women have all of their rights they do not need anyone of defend their rights," she added. We are all proud to be Saudis, and we are looking forward to read more.