Independent experts at the United Nations expressed their deep concern about Saudi Arabia’s use of “a pattern of large-scale arbitrary arrests” of individuals, including human rights defenders, in Saudi Arabia, in light of their peaceful exercise of their legitimate rights of expression, belief, assembly and association. They also expressed their concerns about the ill-treatment of defenders and activists while in detention.
The Special Rapporteurs emphasized that nonviolent criticism of state policies or institutions, including the judiciary, cannot be considered a criminal offense in any society governed by law and committed to human rights principles and obligations.
The Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, and the Special Rapporteur on torture and other forms of cruel treatment have signed a letter sent to the Saudi government on 30 November 2021.
The letter referred to information received by the rapporteurs regarding the arbitrary arrest and raid of the homes of women human rights defenders: Ms. Asma Al-Subaie and Ms. Maha Al-Rafidi, and the arbitrary detention of human rights defenders Dr. Muhammad Al-Qahtani, Mr. Fawzan Mohsen Awad Al-Harbi, Mr. Issa Al-Nukhaifi and Mr. Khaled Al-Omair:
Asmaa Al-Subaie's case
On 1 June 2021, officers allegedly affiliated with the Presidency of State Security raided the home of Ms. Al-Subai'i without a court order, reportedly confiscating her personal electronic devices and taking her to an unknown location. According to the letter, her arbitrary arrest and detention came in response to her posts on Twitter, in which she expressed her views in defending women's rights and supporting women who are subjected to domestic violence. Al-Subaiy also published on her Twitter account an advocate for the rights of detainees, calling for their trials to be public, criticizing the sentences handed down against them as a result of their peaceful expression on the Internet, and calling for the release of all prisoners of conscience.
Maha Al-Rafidi’s case
On September 28, 2019, Al-Rafidi was arbitrarily detained without a warrant, after approximately thirty people, including armed and masked men and those in military uniform, raided the home of a member of Ms. Al-Rafidi’s family where she was staying, they confiscated her electronic devices. She was reportedly held in solitary confinement in Shaar prison for two months after her arrest, after which she was beaten and ill-treated, before being transferred to the general ward without charge.
According to the information, Al-Rafidi's arrest and arbitrary detention are linked to her Twitter activity, where she tweeted in support of human rights, including the release of prisoners of conscience, but she did not face any charges.
Dr. Muhammad Al-Qahtani, Fawzan Al-Harbi and Issa Al-Nukhaifi case
On August 15, 2021, Dr. Al-Qahtani announced a hunger strike to protest the mistreatment of prisoners by the Al-Ha'ir prison administration, the confiscation of his books, and their unwillingness to transfer a number of inmates suffering from mental illnesses. –
Al-Nakhifi and a number of prisoners of conscience joined Dr. Al-Qahtani in his hunger strike, who were reported to be in poor health in the ward of Al-Ha'ir Reformatory Prison in Riyadh. Reportedly, information regarding conditions of detention in this ward has been severely restricted by the authorities, by monitoring phone calls with families and preventing discussion of matters related to the hunger strike or their demands.
Khaled Al-Omair’s case
On 6 July 2018, Al-Omair was arrested without charge, after he lodged a complaint with the Saudi Royal Court (the King's Office) against an officer in the General Investigation Department, who reportedly tortured Mr. Al-Omair during his imprisonment from December 2008 to April 2017.
On October 24, 2019, Al-Omair was told that there would be no further hearings for his case, and he was not given the list of charges. However, in April 2021, another hearing of Mr. Al-Omair was held before the Specialized Criminal Court in Riyadh, and he was subsequently sentenced to seven years in prison, on the charge that he was “leading activities aimed at harming the security of the Kingdom.”
On July 30, 2021, Al-Omair was also subjected to an attempted murder by another prisoner and the murderer has not been identified since the attempt, and no protective measures have been provided to Al-Omair by the authorities since this attempt.
On August 16, 2021, the Court of Appeal sentenced Al-Omair to an additional two years in prison, bringing his total sentence to nine years in prison. An order was also issued against him to prevent him from traveling for a similar period after the end of his sentence.
The Special Rapporteurs expressed their concerns about the systematic arrests carried out by the Saudi government, and indicated that a number of cases were the subject of previous correspondence, but that no steps were taken to correct the legal situation and protect the detainees. The Special Rapporteurs requested the Saudi government to protect the rights of the individuals mentioned in the letter from any irreparable harm.
The European Saudi Organization for Human Rights asserts that the Saudi government is constantly trying to mislead the international community in letters or respond to messages and complaints, through a false information market. The organization explains that the Saudi government, by targeting activists, is trying to impose silence on whats happening in the reality inside, and the systematic violations against individuals, especially large-scale arbitrary arrests, torture and ill-treatment.