05 January 2012
RIYADH -- The Ministry of Culture and Information will be ready to support the opening of cinemas in the country if the government gives the go-ahead, Dr. Abdul Aziz Khoja, Minister of Culture and Information, has said.
Khoja made the remark in the presence of media representatives while visiting King Saud University here Tuesday.
"When Prince Dr. Abdul Aziz Bin Ayyaf, Mayor of Riyadh, said we are in the process of setting up cinemas, he would not have said this unless he has definite information in this regard. At the Ministry of Culture and Information we are ready to cooperate," the minister said.
In statements earlier, the Riyadh mayor said: "About 230,000 tourists from the Kingdom went to the United Arab Emirates in the summer of 2010 simply for the sake of watching movies. It shows that cinemas in the Kingdom have become important."
He said that there should be rules governing the process, which has to be overseen by the Ministry of Culture and Information.
The mayor's support for the cinema comes in the face of strong reservations about the same from some influential quarters.
Several film festivals are organized on the premises of the consulates and embassies of many countries. Many Saudis travel abroad for short periods of time to nearby countries such as Bahrain to watch movies in cinemas.
RIYADH -- The Ministry of Culture and Information will be ready to support the opening of cinemas in the country if the government gives the go-ahead, Dr. Abdul Aziz Khoja, Minister of Culture and Information, has said.
Khoja made the remark in the presence of media representatives while visiting King Saud University here Tuesday.
"When Prince Dr. Abdul Aziz Bin Ayyaf, Mayor of Riyadh, said we are in the process of setting up cinemas, he would not have said this unless he has definite information in this regard. At the Ministry of Culture and Information we are ready to cooperate," the minister said.
In statements earlier, the Riyadh mayor said: "About 230,000 tourists from the Kingdom went to the United Arab Emirates in the summer of 2010 simply for the sake of watching movies. It shows that cinemas in the Kingdom have become important."
He said that there should be rules governing the process, which has to be overseen by the Ministry of Culture and Information.
The mayor's support for the cinema comes in the face of strong reservations about the same from some influential quarters.
Several film festivals are organized on the premises of the consulates and embassies of many countries. Many Saudis travel abroad for short periods of time to nearby countries such as Bahrain to watch movies in cinemas.
© The Saudi Gazette 2012
