SAU 001
/ 0118 / OBS 012.1
Arbitrary detention /
Judicial
harassment
Saudi
Arabia
October 18, 2019
The
Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a partnership of FIDH
and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), has received new information
and requests your urgent intervention in the following situation in Saudi
Arabia.
New information:
The
Observatory has been informed by reliable sources about the ongoing arbitrary
detention and judicial harassment of Mr. Mohamed Al-Otaibi, co-founder
of the Union for Human Rights[1].
According
to the information received, on October 15, 2019, Mr. Mohamed Al-Otaibi
appeared before Riyadh’s Specialised Criminal Court[2]
over charges of "fleeing justice", "going to
Qatar", "communicating with foreign entities", and
"interfering in public affairs”. A fifth charge, “participating in ACPRA[3]”
was added, which Mr. Al-Otaibi rejected because he was a member and
administrator of another NGO, namely the Union for Human Rights. However, the
Prosecution said they had evidences of Mr. Al-Otaibi’s participation in ACPRA,
that they will bring during the next hearing. The charge sheet was handed to
him, and Mr. Mohamed Al-Otaibi has until the next hearing (which date was not
scheduled yet) to respond to it. No international observers were present for
this new hearing in the trial against Mr. Al-Otaibi, which started on July 25,
2019.
The Observatory recalls that this is
not the first time Mr. Mohamed Al-Otaibi is being judicially harassed by the
Saudi authorities, and that Mr. Mohamed Al-Otaibi, who was sentenced to 14
years in jail in January 2018, remains detained at the Intelligence Prison in
Al-Damam since May 2017 (see background information).
The
Observatory strongly condemns the ongoing arbitrary detention and judicial
harassment of Mr. Mohamed Al-Otaibi, which seem to be only aimed at punishing
him for his legitimate human rights activities. The Observatory calls on the
Saudi authorities to immediately and unconditionally release Mr. Al-Otaibi and
put an end to any acts of harassment, including at the judicial level, against
him and all the human rights defenders in Saudi Arabia.
Background
information:
Mr. Mohamed Al-Otaibi was first arrested on
January 1, 2009, charged with “attempting to initiate a peaceful demonstration”
to protest the Gaza war and subsequently sentenced on these charges to three
years in prison. He served three years and seven months in prison before he was
finally released on June 10, 2012.
In
April 2013, Messrs. Mohamed Al-Otaibi and Abdullah Al-Attawi co-founded
the Union for Human Rights in Riyadh and applied for registration. Less than a
month after the first position papers[4]
of the organisation were published on social networks by the Union for Human
Rights, a criminal enquiry was launched against them. In May 2013, Saudi
authorities rejected the application for registration of the Union for Human
Rights and sought undertakings from the founders that they would dissolve the
association and desist from carrying on its activities.
In
March 2014, Messrs. Mohamed Al-Otaibi and Abdullah Al-Attawi were summoned by
Saudi authorities and as a result both pledged to stop issuing statements,
reports, or participating in TV interviews. Their case was then closed.
In
2015, following the publication of the Law on Associations and Foundations,
Messrs. Mohamed Al-Otaibi and Abdullah Al-Attawi filed an application to
register the Union for Human Rights. Their application was rejected and proceedings
and general harassment by the Ministry of Social Affairs to dissolve the
organisation continued.
On
October 30, 2016, the case was re-opened and the trial of Messrs. Mohamed
Al-Otaibi and Abdullah Al-Attawi opened before the Specialised Criminal Court on
the basis of the charges related to their application to establish their NGO, brought
against them in 2013.
In
February 2017, Mr. Mohamed Al-Otaibi managed nonetheless to flee to Qatar.
On May 24, 2017, on his way to Norway where he had been granted refugee status,
he was arrested at Hamad International Airport in Doha and deported to Saudi
Arabia the following day. He has been in prison ever since.
A
hearing scheduled to take place on July 12, 2017 was postponed to August 8,
2017 and further to January 25, 2018.
On January 25, 2018, Section 12 of the Specialised
Criminal Court sentenced Messrs. Mohamed Al-Otaibi and Abdullah Al-Attawi to
fourteen and seven years in prison respectively, under a series of charges,
including: “participating in setting up an organisation and announcing it
before getting an authorisation”, “dividing national unity”, “spreading chaos
and inciting public opinion by preparing, drafting and publishing statements
that are harmful to the reputation of the Kingdom and its judicial and security
institutions”, “opposing judicial decisions”, “formulating data aimed at
disrupting security”, “participating in a hunger strike”, and “publishing
information about their interrogations despite signing pledges to refrain from
doing so”.
Mr. Mohamed Al-Otaibi was facing additional charges of “disseminating information about an investigation”, “abusing the Kingdom via Twitter”, “calling to change the basic system of governance” as well as “spreading harmful information about Saudi Arabia via a satellite channel”.
Actions
requested:
Please
write to the authorities in Saudi Arabia, urging them to:
i. Guarantee in all
circumstances the physical integrity and psychological well-being of Mr. Mohamed Al-Otaibi, as well as of all human
rights defenders in Saudi Arabia;
ii. Immediately and
unconditionally release Mr. Mohamed Al-Otaibi and all detained human rights
defenders in Saudi Arabia, as
their detention is arbitrary since it only seems to aim at punishing them for
their legitimate human rights activities;
iii. Respect in all circumstances Mr. Mohamed
Al-Otaibi’s right to a fair trial;
iv. Put an end to all
forms of harassment, including at the judicial level, against him and all human
rights defenders in Saudi Arabia, and ensure that they are able to carry out their
activities without hindrance;
v. Comply in all circumstances with all the
provisions of the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, in
particular its Articles 1 and 12.2;
vi. More generally, ensure in all circumstances
the respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms in accordance with
international human rights standards and instruments ratified by Saudi Arabia.
Addresses:
• His
Majesty, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, King of Saudi Arabia and Custodian
of the two Holy Mosques, Fax: (via Ministry of the Interior) +966 11 403 3125;
Email: info@moi.gov.sa; Twitter: @KingSalman
• His
Excellency, Mohammad Bin Salman Al Saud, Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Fax:
(via Ministry of the Interior) +966 11 403 3125; Email: info@moi.gov.sa
• H.E.
Waleed bin Mohammad Al Samaani, Minister of Justice, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,
Fax: + 966 11 405 7777; Email: info@moj.gov.sa
• His Royal
Highness Prince Abdulaziz Bin Saud Bin Naif Bin Abdulaziz, Minister of
Interior, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Fax: + 966 11 401 1111 / + 966 11 401 1944 /
+ 966 11 403 1125; Email: info@moi.gov.sa
• H.E. Adel
bin Ahmed El Jubeir, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Fax: + 966 11 403 0645 ;
Email: info@mofa.gov.sa
• H.E. Abdulaziz Alwasil, Ambassador, Permanent Mission of the Kingdom of Saudi
Arabia to the United Nations Office in Geneva, Switzerland. Fax: +41 22 758 00
00. Email: saudiamission@bluewin.ch
• H.E. Abdulrahman bin Soliman Al-Ahmed, Ambassador, Embassy of Saudi Arabia in
Brussels, Belgium. Fax: +32 2 6468538. Email: beemb@mofa.gov.sa
Please also write to the diplomatic missions or embassies of Saudi Arabia in
your respective country as well as to the EU diplomatic missions or embassies
in Saudi Arabia.
***
Paris-Geneva,
October 18, 2019
Kindly inform us of
any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.
The Observatory for
the Protection of Human Rights Defenders (the Observatory) was created in 1997
by FIDH and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT). The objective of
this programme is to intervene to prevent or remedy situations of repression
against human rights defenders. FIDH and OMCT are both members of ProtectDefenders.eu, the European Union
Human Rights Defenders Mechanism implemented by international civil society.
[1]
Founded in 2013, the Union for Human
Rights’ main objectives were to defend the rights of citizens, spread the
culture of human rights, abolish the death penalty, and to strengthen the role
of women in society. In 2015, the application to have the NGO officially
registered under the Law on Associations and Foundations was rejected. While it
was operating, the Union for Human Rights monitored trials of human rights
defenders, released explanatory statements about the hearings, documented and
published appeals on human rights violations.
[2]
Set up in 2003, the Specialised Criminal
Court was originally tasked with trying terrorism and national security cases
in accordance with Sharia. However, the Court has been used as a tool to
repress human rights defenders tried on charges affecting national security in
the broadest sense. For more information, see Observatory Mission Report, Saudi
Arabia: Condemned to Silence, the situation of women human rights defenders,
January 2018.
[3] The Saudi Association for Civil and Political Rights (ACPRA) was created in 2009 by 11 human rights defenders and academics, with the mandate to promote and protect fundamental rights and freedoms in Saudi Arabia. While ACPRA was never legally recognised by the government, it was formally banned as an organisation in 2013. As of May 2016, all of its 11 members had been prosecuted and subjected to severe treatment by Saudi authorities for their human rights activism and cooperation with the United Nations human rights mechanisms. See Observatory Joint Open Letter, published on October 11, 2019 : https://www.omct.org/human-rights-defenders/urgent-interventions/saudi-arabia/2019/10/d25541/
[4]
The position papers were detailing the
objectives of the Union for Human Rights.
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