Our nation’s safety is about individual integrity 
Perhaps we can all agree that feeling safe and secure is the most important need of all people. We want to have a decent standard of living, a common trait among civilized communities that distinguish the best from the rest. To use a rather simple analogy, there is a significant difference between being considered “attractive” on the one hand, and “looking good” on the other.
Quality of life: Advanced societies care enough to allocate considerable resources to create an impressive and safe living environment. In this regard, it is important to reflect on King Salman’s correct decision to implement regulations for the activation of security cameras throughout the Kingdom, to be managed and controlled by the Ministry of Interior.
Smart Cities: Modern nations are marked by the deployment of the most advanced technology available to protect their citizens and residents, which then makes them the most desired places to live.
Crime and punishment: Having robust security measures such as cameras will help reduce crime rates, particularly all forms of harassment. With the authorities in charge of all footage, action can be taken while protecting the privacy of people. These videos can also serve to educate children, especially those at school, on dangers lurking out in the community.
Cost-effective monitoring: Security cameras allow for monitoring without deploying large numbers of people out into the community. It is then less about the numbers but more about the integrity of people placed in these positions of trust to do the work of securing our communities.
Saudi Arabia is one of the safest countries in the world: The Interior Ministry oversees an effective 911 emergency number, a Unified Security Operations Center, and has the Standing Committee for Legal Assistance Requests that cooperates with other countries on transnational crime. I was fortunate to visit the ministry’s center in Riyadh during a media tour and was proud to witness the remarkable technology being used.
We should not forget that security cameras are tools, not complete solutions. At the heart of every nation’s safety is the moral behavior of people. It is commendable that the leadership of our country places considerable trust in the people. This is something we should always cherish.
• Noor A. Al-Naboud is a writer, marketing and external communication and insurance expert.
