Several girls in the Social Education House in the Khamis Mushait area in Saudi Arabia were violently beaten by masked men and security men.
Video clips on social media showed the use of tools, including batons and sticks, in addition to beating and hair pulling against girls in the home, that are primarily responsible for taking care of orphans. The clips also showed the men threatening the girls who were documenting and filming the assault.
According to information shared by activists on social media, several girls had previously filed complaints against the home's director. Additionally, several girls had demanded their rights and expressed their refusal of rampant administrative corruption. When their demands were not met, they announced a strike, prompting the home's management to resort to violence with the sponsorship and participation of security men. Twitter users also confirmed that the girls had been subjected to continuous violations in the past, including verbal abuse and psychological harm.
The European Saudi Organization for Human Rights indicates that this incident comes in the context of the use of violence against women by official authorities in Saudi Arabia on more than one level, including domestic violence, torture in prisons and ill-treatment in official institutions. ESOHR considers that despite the announcement by the governor of the Asir region to open an investigation into the incident, it is not possible to trust that the violators will be held accountable in light of the flaws in the judicial system and the lack of effective accountability. ESOHR explains that several battered women have previously reported similar violations in official institutions, including care homes, and the violators have not been held accountable.
In addition, ESOHR had documented the shortcomings of the official systems that the Saudi government said protect women for several reasons, including the lack of trust in official agencies, and a lack of awareness of rights and these laws.
While many activists indicated that the girls who documented the assault were prosecuted, ESOHR expresses its fears for their safety and freedom, as it previously monitored the prosecution of female activists on charges of distorting the image of official institutions and the state after publishing similar information.
ESOHR asserts that the prosecution of individuals who speak about or depict violations indicates the possibility that similar incidents occur on a large scale without documenting and publishing them. Accordingly, ESOHR believes that this incident is a prediction of other similar incidents in the absence of oversight, lack of transparency and the spread of impunity policy. ESOHR considers that women are still victims of violence in Saudi Arabia on more than one level, and their rights are still hostage to political propaganda.
The legal director of ESOHR Taha al-Hajji: “These clips violate Saudi laws that the government uses for propaganda without implementation, and the policy of impunity that appeared clearly in Saudi Arabia after the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi confirms that it cannot be trusted that any investigation will lead to bring the abusers to justice."