Every June 26, the world celebrates the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, the day the United Nations Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment entered into force in 1987. The Convention is one of the main tools in the fight against torture, and in 1997 the Kingdom ratified it. However, this practice is still rooted in the regime’s tools, without a real attempt to limit it or hold the perpetrators accountable.
Saudi Arabia denies the practice of torture in prisons and reiterates that its laws prohibit and criminalize it. The European Saudi Organization for Human Rights monitoring confirms that the authorities use various forms of torture and ill-treatment on a large scale, starting from the moment of arrest, through the investigation stage. In many cases, it does not end even after making judgments. According to international law, the practice of torture on a regular and widespread basis constitutes a “crime against humanity.”
Monitoring and documenting several cases shows the involvement of various institutions, from the Public Prosecution Office to the Presidency of State Security, to the judiciary, in practising and covering up torture and ill-treatment. Follow-up also confirms that confessions extracted under torture are used to issue sentences like the death penalty.
Examination of legal instruments clearly shows this practice and confirms the Saudi government’s violation of its obligations, especially Article 12 of the Convention against Torture, which states that “Each State Party shall ensure that its competent authorities proceed to a prompt and impartial investigation, wherever there is reasonable ground to believe that an act of torture has been committed in any territory under its jurisdiction."
Judgment documents, both past and present, show that judges ignore victims' assertions that they have been tortured and extract confessions from them, which leads to arbitrary rulings based on these confessions. Here, ESOHR is trying to show the extent of this practice in the Saudi judiciary and the lack of any real means of accountability.
Executed death sentences:
- Mustafa al-Darwish:
On June 16, 2021, the Saudi government announced the killing of the minor, Mustafa Al Darwish. Al-Darwish had confirmed before the judge that he had been subjected to severe torture. In his response to the Public Prosecution, Mustafa wrote: “I was coerced by beatings and physical and psychological torture to sign the declaration, as I was threatened and insulted by the interrogator, kept up, deprived of sleep, beaten with sticks and electric wires, insulted by slapping my face, and forced to raise my hands and stand for a long time like this.” Most of the beatings I was subjected to were in sensitive areas of my body, and I adhere to your honour in my response to the lawsuit by arguing that there was coercion that led to signing the declaration.”
In his demands, Mustafa said: “I ask for a fair request, which is to summon the investigator and discuss with him about the investigation and confession, and the coercion that I was subjected to, and enable me to confront him with that.”
The judgment document later confirms that the judge did not pay any attention to Mustafa Al-Darwish’s request, and relied on confessions extracted from him under torture to issue the death sentence and execute it later without any investigation.
Threatened with execution::
- Saud al-Faraj:
On January 23, 2023, the Specialized Criminal Court of Appeal ratified Saud Al-Faraj's death sentence. Saud submitted complaints to the Royal Court, the Court of the Crown Prince, the Human Rights Commission, and the Public Prosecutor, to talk about the violations and torture he was subjected to. His demands were not met, and the prison officers proceeded to punish him for the complaint.
In his response to the Public Prosecution’s demands, Saud said: “The case was based on violations that were legally prohibited and committed against my family, as my wife was arrested with me to be used as a hostage by the investigation authority in the Investigation Department, and I was threatened with rape during the period of her detention and because of the sexual harassment she was subjected to, and because of the physical abuse I was subjected to.” And morally and torturing me, which necessitated my transfer to the hospital several times, directly from the interrogation rooms, and I spent 625 days continuously in a solitary cell, with countless violations. I was stripped naked several times and sexually harassed.”
Al-Faraj, Judge B, requested: “Bringing audio and video documentation from the Mabahith prison administration in Dammam, which proves the physical abuse she was subjected to that amounted to abuse.” And “the medical report was brought from the hospital in the detective prison administration in Dammam, which proves that I was transferred to an ambulance as a result of torture.”
The judge did not respond to Al-Faraj's demands, and the verdict shows that no confessions were extracted from him, the death sentence was issued and he was approved without any review of his legality.
- Youssef Al-Manasef:
On March 15, 2023, the Specialized Criminal Court of Appeal ratified the death sentence against Youssef Al-Manasef on charges that occurred when he was a minor.
In his response to the Public Prosecution, Al-Manasef affirmed: “Psychological and physical torture was practised on me, degrading the dignity that God commanded to preserve, by severe beating with electric cables and military boots, all over my body, cursing me and cursing my father, threatening to bring my father and mother, increasing accusations and cases against me, and putting me in a solitary confinement for six months, and as a result of the torture, I was put in the prison hospital for four years.”
Youssef asked the judge: my medical report and a video that proves that I was tortured, and a medical report that proves my psychological state.
The judgment document confirms that the trial continued without investigating any of Youssef's claims, and the verdict was issued based on confessions extracted from it.
Arbitrary provisions:
- Muhammad Essam al-Faraj:
The Specialized Criminal Court sentenced the young man, Muhammad Essam Al-Faraj, to 10 years in prison, which is the maximum possible sentence against minors according to the Juvenile Law. Al-Faraj was charged with non-serious charges, including participating in gatherings when he was 9 years old.
Al-Faraj affirmed before the judge, during his response to the Public Prosecution, that he: “was deaf under duress (material and moral) such as beating, humiliation, threatening to use means of torture that may lead to death, as well as sometimes being deceived because he is a juvenile, coercion practiced on him, and solitary confinement for a long time.”
The Public Prosecution changed its demands for the death penalty and filed a new lawsuit against Al-Faraj, but the judgment document confirms that Al-Faraj's assertion that he was tortured was not taken into consideration.
- Essam Koshak:
In February 2018, the Specialized Criminal Court sentenced human rights defender Essam Koshak to four years in prison.
During his response to the allegations of the Public Prosecutor, Koshak said: "I spent 5 months in solitary confinement during which I was subjected to what contradicts the system of criminal procedures, which stipulates the prohibition of harming the arrested person, physically or morally, and subjecting him to torture or degrading treatment of dignity. I was taken twice to the court during my arrest, and in both of them I made observations." The objections were verbal to His Eminence, the notary, but he indicated that any observation required a re-investigation, so I had nothing but acceptance for fear of repeating the series of solitary confinement with all its horrors and the psychological and material harm I was subjected to.”
Despite Koshak's assertion that he confessed under threat and fear, the judgment document indicated that the Public Prosecutor considered that this was intended to evade declarations. The judge did not investigate Koshak's allegations and issued a ruling against him.
ESOHR indicates that the examples cited in the report confirm the absence of any realistic means to hold the perpetrators of the crime of torture to account, also show the involvement of all official agencies in it, and that judges do not care to ascertain whether or not the crime of torture occurred, in issuing sentences that may reach to executions.
ESOHR believes that the failure of judges to investigate allegations of torture and ill-treatment and to simply ignore all allegations and issue sentences against their will is a flagrant violation of the Convention against Torture. It also considers that measuring the cases that the organization follows up despite official attempts to obscure it, shows that torture is practised on a large scale and may constitute a described crime against humanity, in the absence of any clear ways to work to reduce it.