Country updates - Saudi Arabia
Latest update: 30 June 2013
There was no significant change in the human rights situation in Saudi Arabia between April and June. On 17 April, the Deputy Head of Mission at our Embassy in Riyadh discussed with the Deputy Chairman of the Saudi Human Rights Commission the section on Saudi Arabia in the FCO’s Annual Human Rights Report 2012. Among other matters, the discussion covered the death penalty, freedom of expression and assembly, the rights of migrant workers and security operations in the Eastern Province. The head of the FCO’s Human Rights and Democracy Department, Louise de Sousa, visited Saudi Arabia in May. She met with His Highness Dr Prince Turki bin Mohammed bin Saud al-Kebir, the minister responsible for human rights at the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Ms de Sousa also met members of the Majlis Ash-Shura’s Human Rights Committee, the National Society for Human Rights; and the Human Rights Commission. It was encouraging to hear about the national human rights plan and we encouraged the Shura’s Human Rights Committee to consider visiting Parliament to discuss the work of the Joint Committee on Human Rights in the UK.
The case of Mr Ali al Khawaher, was highlighted in April. In 2003, Mr al-Khawaher, who was 14 at the time, stabbed his 16 year old neighbour in the neck leaving him paralysed from the waist down, brain damaged and requiring one foot to be amputated. Mr al-Khawaher was initially sentenced to surgical paralysis at the request of the victim’s family. The FCO expressed deep concern and urged the authorities to ensure the punishment was not carried out. The Saudi authorities subsequently confirmed that the paralysis sentence would not be carried out and that al Khawaher would be released on the payment of one million Saudi Riyals. It was reported in the Saudi press that Mr al Khawaher had been released from prison, following a campaign by local businessmen to raise the necessary money.
Freedom of assembly and access to justice were also highlighted during this period. In April, influential Saudi cleric, Sheikh Salman al-Awdah, wrote an open letter to the government calling for reforms and the fair treatment of detainees. In mid-June, a series of peaceful protests were held across Saudi Arabia by women and children calling for jailed relatives to be freed or given a public and fair trial. Dozens of men were also arrested in Buraidah, Qassim Province, for protesting at the imprisonment of relatives on security charges. Some of those detained were later released. The Ministry of Interior has now launched a website, www.nafethah.gov.sa, designed to increase transparency on detainee issues by allowing a virtual meeting service, visitor requests and monetary assistance for inmates. It also allows trials to be monitored as they progress through the justice system.
One consequence of the slow judicial process is the holding of large numbers of people in Saudi jails. There are frequent delays in releasing inmates who have completed their sentences. Recent reports indicate that prisons are now experiencing overcrowding. The number of people executed in Saudi Arabia stood at 45 by the end of May. As is the usual practice, they were beheaded, mostly in public. Saudi Arabia was the world’s fourth most prolific death penalty user in 2012, behind China, Iran and Iraq.
The one year anniversary of the detention of Raif Badawi in June drew attention to limitations on freedom of expression online He is still awaiting trial for setting up a website that allegedly undermined security and ridiculed religious figures.
The treatment of Human Rights Defenders by the Saudi authorities in this period was not encouraging. The court appeal by Mohammad al-Qahtani and Dr Abdullah al-Hamid began on 28 May. In March, the two men were sentenced to 11years and 10 years respectively in their roles as co-founders of the Saudi Civil and Political Rights Organisation. Similarly, four founding members of the independent human rights NGO, Union for Human Rights, were charged with founding and publicising an unlicensed organisation, as well as launching websites without authorisation. On the other hand, it was encouraging to hear the Saudi Justice Minister, Dr Mohammed al-Issa, inform the European Parliament in April that there are plans underway to establish a national body for transparency and integrity, which would support the work of NGOs.
Further Information
Read and comment on the country of concern - Saudi Arabia
Read and comment on the Human Rights and Democracy Report 2012 in full