Building the City of Tomorrow by Killing People Today
Saudi Arabia shows how to handle naysayers
Imagine a gleaming, sci-fi-style city, enclosed on all sides by mirrored walls, emerging like a giant ribbon from a re-greened and re-wilded desert on the shore of the Red Sea. That's the vision embraced by the Saudi Arabian government, and they're happy to execute anybody who disagrees.
The city is called The Line, and it is the heart of Neom, a Belgium-sized master-planned development in the northwest corner of Saudi Arabia.
According to the beautiful promotional materials and inspirational marketing videos that promote Neom to potential investors (click on the links - the website really is gorgeous), the development includes several different elements:
Oxagon - an advanced manufacturing and freight hub.
Trojena - a mountain resort (think Aspen, but high-tech).
Sindalah - an island resort featuring yachting, golf and luxury accommodations.
The Line - a high-concept city intended to accommodate 9 million people with no cars or roads. Everything a resident needs is a five-minute walk away from his or her apartment, which is convenient since it’s not clear whether people will actually be allowed to go anywhere else.
The Line is the heart of Neom, and it promises a high-tech, nature-connected experience with unparalleled quality of life and zero emissions. It’s a utopian Tomorrowland with a vertical-living vibe reminiscent of movies like The Fifth Element and Blade Runner.
There’s only one problem: not everyone is on board with this project - especially the people who already live in the area where the government wants to build it. However, since this is Saudi Arabia we’re talking about, the answer is simple: just kill them.
According to a press release by the UN’s Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, three members of the Howeitat tribe (known primarily for their depiction as fierce but honorable nomadic warriors in the 1962 film Lawrence of Arabia) have been arrested, tortured, and sentenced to death, while three other tribesmen were given prison sentences ranging from 27 to 50 years. At least one other tribesman never made it to trial because he was killed by Saudi soldiers.
What crime did these men commit? They protested the forcible eviction of their families and the demolition of their homes without compensation. Neom is progress, and you can’t stand in the way of progress.
To anyone who follows Middle-Eastern politics, the staggering hypocrisy of this action is obvious. For decades, Saudi Arabia and the other Arab League countries have been harshly critical of Israel for evicting Palestinians from their homes to make room for various initiatives. Apparently, when Israel does it, it’s an atrocity. When the Kingdom does it, it’s no biggie.
Given that an estimated 20,000 people will be forcibly relocated to make room for Neom, one wonders how many disgruntled residents the Saudi government will need to permanently silence in order to turn the Prince's futuristic dream into reality. Beyond that, once the city is finished, it’s anyone’s guess whether it will truly be a shining example of the post-commuter lifestyle, or (contrary to the impression given by the lovely promotional photos) more like a giant prison that controls every aspect of its residents’ lives.
Even more troubling is the fact that other nations (as well as influential NGOs like the World Economic Forum) are closely watching Neom’s progress, and are exciting about incorporating “15-minute cities” and similar restricted-movement concepts into their urban planning.
If Neom’s audacious dream becomes reality, the experiences of the Howeitat tribesmen may well provide a troubling glimpse of what the rest of us can expect as these programs roll out globally.