Category Human Rights

More Women Demonstrate in Qassim

Blogger Khalid al-Nassir has been following the news since today’s afternoon regarding a second women’s demonstration in Qassim. The women were shortly moved to the governate headquarters for negotiation, which ended by detaining the mother of one the detainees. Reuters ran this story about the demonstration and reports that participants in the protest said the women carried placards bearing the image of King Abdullah and others saying “Ministry of Interior, try the detainees legally and openly”.

This is getting more and more intense. In a country where public demonstrations are illegal, two demonstrations during a short period like this should indicate that a significant change is probably taking place. Moreover, both demonstrations occurred in the most ultra-conservative part of the Kingdom. Some argue that these detainees deserve to be where they are, but I think that whether they were innocent or not, they have the right to a public fair trial immediately.

More Statements

dostor_logoFollowing the statement issued about ten days ago asking the Human Rights Commission to act regarding the reformists who were detained last February, another group of activists who call for an Islamic constitution and civil society have issued another statement that they plan to send to King Abdullah on September 13th.

The statement has repeated the call to release the reformists or grant them a public trial. It also detailed the justifications for the call, saying these reformists have been involved in peaceful civil action for more than 15 years, which challenges the allegations behind their detention earlier this year.

Moreover, the statement has included some very harsh criticism to the ministry of interior and its approach of dealing with the case. “If MOI possess of evidence that they [the jailed activists] were supporting and financing violence, why do they hesitate to present them for a fair public trial?” the statement asked.

More than 30 persons have signed the statement so far, and and it is now circulating in the hope that more people will sign it before they send it to the King. The current list of signatories included many well-known reformists such as Abdullah al-Hamid, Matruk al-Faleh and Khlaid al-Umrair. Fellow blogger Khalid al-Nassir, one of the signatories, has more on his blog (Arabic).

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Activists Release New Statement

A group of political and human rights activists in Saudi Arabia have sent an open letter to the head of Human Rights Commission (HRC), the government body concerned with human rights, asking the commission to act according to its responsibilities regarding the reformists who were detained last February.

The letter, which was also sent to the head of Shoura Council, the minister of justice and the head of NSHR, asked HRC to handle the case of the detainees and ensure to grant them their lawful rights which were violated upon their detention. It also pointed out to the arrests of other activists known for their social status and contributions who also underwent the same violations.

“These actions by some bodies violate basic human rights, and do not go well with the reforming steps led by King Abdullah,” the letter read, but it does not go as far as naming these bodies. It does not, however, take much thinking to realize that the letter talks about the Ministry of Interior, which said the arrest were related to allegation of financing terrorism.

The letter was signed by 76 activists, including many well-known reform figures such as Ali al-Domaini, Matruk al-Faleh and Khalid al-Umair. The list of signatories also included many Shiite activists such as Najib al-Khonaizi, Mohammed al-Ali and Jaafar al-Shayeb.

However, as Abu-Joori pointed out, the list reveals the absence of any prominent religious leaders. “It indicates the ignorance in which the leaders of Sahwa and Islamists in Saudi Arabia are plagued with when it comes to human rights issues.” On the other hand, many of the so-called liberals are absent from this list, he added.

I believe all the demands in the letter are fair and the detainees should be granted their rights according to the law immediately. But it is anyone’s guess if the receivers of this letter would actually respond to it. Let’s wait and see, but my advice is not to get your hopes too hight. I, for one, again, is not holding my breath.

Kuwaiti Bloggers Abducted

Some very sad and disturbing news coming from Kuwait:

At Saturday 8pm Kuwait State Police abducted 2 Kuwaiti bloggers Bashar Al-Sayegh from Al-Ohmmah.org and Jassem Al-Qamis without the due protection of the Kuwait Constitution while leaving work. The reason being that an anonymous commenter wrote something criticizing the Emir yet even though it was removed immediately by Al-Sayegh they are still holding him responsible.

You can keep up with the latest updates from the Kuwaiti blogosphere through Safat.

NSHR Asks CITC to Unblock Website

Saudi Arabia’s Communication and Information Technology Commission (CITC), which recently took over the responsibility of internet filtering from the much-loathed ISU of KACST, blocked a website called Menber al-Hewar wa al-Ebda’a (the name can be translated to Forum of Dialogue and Creativity).

The man behind this website is Saudi poet Ali al-Dumaini, one of three so-called “Constitutional Reformists” who were jailed and later pardoned by King Abdullah soon after he ascended the throne. Following the blockage, al-Dumaini issued a statement expressing his disappointment at the approach the government have taken when dealing with forums of peaceful expression.

In a country like this, blocking a website is hardly big news, so what makes this particular case different? The answer is because it is the first time that the National Society for Human Rights (NSHR) get involved demanding unblocking the website. According to al-Riyadh daily, NSHR have contacted CITC and asked them to unblock the website. NSHR said this blockage violates the press law as well as Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

It is very interesting to see NSHR weigh in and make such a bold statement like this one. They have impressed many observers earlier this year when they published their first report on the state of human rights in the Kingdom, but I honestly did not expect them to move far beyond that.

However, their involvement in this case raises some interesting questions. Are they going to ask CITC to unblock other websites such as Elaph, al-Sahat and Rasid, to mention a few examples? Moreover, are they going to move to left the ban on some writers such as Khalid al-Dakhil and Iman al-Qahtani? I really doubt it, but I have to admit that what they did here is a step in the right direction.

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Support Abdul-Rahman Seddiq

Fouad al-Farhan suggests making Thursday August 9, 2007 a day to support Abdul-Rahman Seddiq, one of the ten men who were unfairly arrested in February based on allegations linking them to terrorism. Seddiq, 67, has worked in different parts in the government and later retired and devoted most of his time to work as a consultant for several organizations and charities.

On Thursday, Fouad will visit Seddiq’s house in Jeddah along with his wife and kids to show their support to the man’s family, and invites all those who know Seddiq and believe that he is innocent to do the same.

If you were unable to make it, please consider supporting Abdul-Rahman Seddiq in any way that you see helpful. Here is some suggestions:

  • Talk to your family and friends about Seddiq. Encourage them to read more about the case and ask them to support his cause.
  • Write a letter of support and send it to Fouad (fouad at smartinfo.com.sa) and he will deliver it to the family.
  • Use one of the banners posted here on your blog or website. You can also use them for your signature in forums.
  • Contact the family directly using one of these numbers: Um Raed (his wife) 0504308644; Abdul-Qader (his brother) 0506613443; Anas (his son) 0555660954.

Fouad has written a long post in Arabic about Abdul-Rahman Seddiq. It would be great if someone could translate it or at least parts of it to post it here. I wish I had time to do that but I’m still busy and will be traveling on Thursday, so if someone would be kind enough to translate it I would be glad to publish it.