Proposed Saudi Law Would Allow Indefinite Detention

By Tyler Yates
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — A proposed Saudi Arabian law would allow the kingdom to detain security suspects indefinitely and without trial.   It indicates that peaceful acts of dissent could in the future be prosecuted as a “terrorist crime.”

Tightened security in Saudi Arabia (Photo courtesy of al Jazeera)

A copy of the law leaked to Amnesty International earlier this year.

Amnesty included commentary on the proposed law in a report released on Thursday about the state of freedom of expression in Saudi Arabia, in which it called the situation “dire.”

It criticized the Saudi “vague and broad” definitions of terrorism, which range from “destabilizing society” to “harming the reputation of the state.”

“The formulation of a new anti-terror law is another apparent sign of the authorities to use the law to silence dissent,” Amnesty International said.

“This opaqueness could be exploited to charge peaceful meetings of a group of people who make political demands or even engage in academic discussions with a ‘terrorist crime’ under this draft law.”

Saudi Arabia has thus far avoided the popular uprisings of the Arab Spring that have consumed much of the region, but it appears they are proactively attempting to repress any future opposition.

Amnesty has called on the Saudi government to release all prisoners of conscience, denouncing the “extremely weak” protection of human rights in Saudi Arabia. It says hundreds of people have been arrested in the east, many without charge or trial.

Detained prisoners are often held for months without trial or access to a lawyer.  Confessions are extracted under duress, including beatings with sticks, punching, suspension from the ceiling by the ankles or wrists, and sleep deprivation.

When cases are brought to trial, the proceedings are often held behind closed doors, and fail to live up to the international standards for judicial fairness and transparency.

Saudi Arabia is an absolute monarchy that doesn’t have a written criminal code.  Their law is instead based upon an uncodified version of Islamic Shari’a law as interpreted by judges.

The Saudi embassy in London claims that the report is based upon “inaccurate information” taken from a law that has been circulating for years and that is still subject to changes.

“The kingdom of Saudi Arabia is committed to and respects human rights in accordance with Islamic sharia, which is the foundation of our legal system,” Saudi Ambassador Prince Mohammed bin Nawaf Al Saud said in a statement.

The embassy says that all those detained were endangering the lives of others.  Most of them were released without charge after questioning. It denied any human rights violations against the detainees.

For more information, please see:

Al Jazeera — Draft Saudi security law faces criticism — 01 Dec. 2011

BBC — Saudi Arabia rejects Amnesty repression claims — 01 Dec. 2011

MSNBC — Report: Saudi draft terror law legalizes repression — 01 Dec. 2011

Voice of America — Report Charges Saudis with “New Wave of Repression” — 01 Dec. 2011

Author: Impunity Watch Archive