The European Saudi Organisation for Human Rights held its third annual conference entitled: Whitewashing and manipulation are Saudi tools to cover up violations.
The conference was held remotely in conjunction with International Human Rights Day, and for two days, December 9 and 10, 2022, hosted several experts, specialists, and victims, and concluded with many recommendations.
The presenter of the conference, a researcher in Saudi affairs, Amin al-Nimr, indicated that the conference comes in light of the widening range of violations in Saudi Arabia. In addition to the multiplication of execution numbers, Saudi Arabia has increased arbitrary sentences against male and female activists against the background of exercising legitimate rights, in light of the continued torture and ill-treatment in prisons and the deepening of imperfections in the judicial system.
Al-Nimr indicated that the conference is trying this year, through the sharing of testimonies and experiences, to form a clearer picture of the ways Saudi Arabia is pursuing to cover up its violations, as, over the past years, it has spent millions of dollars to wash away its violations.
First day:
Duaa Dhainy, Head of the Documentation and Research Department at the European Saudi Organisation for Human Rights, delivered the first speech at the conference, where she spoke about the methods Saudi Arabia is using to polish its image before the United Nations for human rights. Dhainy indicated that Saudi Arabia has changed its method of dealing with United Nations mechanisms, and is now responding to the letters of the rapporteurs, but reading the responses indicates that they are mere denials and recitations of laws.
Dhainy explained that Saudi Arabia turned over human rights rapporteurs in an unprecedented way in 2017, but later it pursued individuals who communicated with the rapporteur, including Issa al-Nukhaifi, who is still detained today despite the end of his sentence. The speech indicated that Saudi Arabia had talked about qualitative leaps in human rights, especially in the cases of women and children, to arrest women human rights defenders during the same period, and then execute 6 minors.
Dhainy ended the speech by warning that the participation of Saudis in the Human Rights Council is not possible because human rights defenders are prohibited from travelling and expressing themselves, stressing that reliance is now on opponents abroad.
Elias Geoffroy, Director of the Middle East Project and Advocacy at ACAT, spoke in his intervention about France's role in the washing practised by Saudi Arabia and indicated that France was involved with Saudi Arabia in more than one economic project, especially with the launch of Vision 2030, and French companies obtain many commercial deals with it, especially exporting weapons.
Geoffroy considered that French President Emmanuel Macron was the first to break the diplomatic ban on Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman after the killing of Khashoggi, and this is one of the indications of the French role in whitening the image of Saudi Arabia.
He asked if France is not satisfied with Qatar and the World Cup and expresses that, then what about Saudi Arabia? Geoffroy stressed that France is a partner in the strategy of whitewashing, and polishing, which Saudi Arabia is practising, and it is one of its supportive circles, and the results of this support are clear on the human rights situation, such as executions.
The conference hosted several testimonies from families of victims of Saudi violations. The intervention was by the son of a victim of enforced disappearance in Saudi Arabia, the Lebanese Ali Maziad, Dr Ahmed Maziad. He indicated that since August 2021, the family had not been able to communicate with him, even through the Saudi embassy in Beirut and the Lebanese embassy in Riyadh, and that they had failed to obtain any information about him.
Maziad confirmed that his father is diabetic and suffers from prostate cancer and that the family does not know if he is still alive. More wondered how Saudi Arabia could brag about its achievements in sports and entertainment while arresting people without giving them any of their rights. Mazyad expressed his regret that the Lebanese government and all official authorities were unable to reach his father's whereabouts or any information about him.
Zaki Saraf, a researcher on the execution team at Reprieve, confirmed in his intervention that neither Muhammad bin Salman nor his regime can be trusted, as they promised to stop the execution of children and then executed them again, like Mustafa Al-Darwish, and now some children are threatened with execution. Zaki enumerated the promises that bin Salman had made, indicating that Saudi Arabia had recently returned to implementing death sentences for drug crimes, two years after stopping them.
Researcher Zena al-Issa clarified in her intervention that she is discussing, in her doctoral research, the role played by companies in Saudi Arabia and its impact on politics and human rights. Al-Issa explained that the companies and investments within the 2030 plan, from her position, affect attempts at change in Saudi Arabia.
Zena considered that talking about business companies means talking about deep work in supporting the narrative of the Saudi government that it is a modern and exemplary country. She explained that, for example, the work that is carried out within the NEOM project is linked to the forced displacement of many tribes and when we think about investing in these projects, it must be raised these issues must be alerted to the violations that take place on the sidelines.
Al-Issa stressed that there is a gap between civil society organisations and the business world. Attention must be paid to this because these companies can contribute to mitigating and increasing violations in Saudi Arabia.
For his part, the Director of Advocacy at the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Freedoms, Mr Ahmed Al-Wadaei, considered the March massacre a historic day, as 81 were executed on the same day. However, what happened was that days later, despite the British parliamentarians' request to back down, Boris Johnson visited Saudi Arabia. In addition, days after the massacre, the Formula One race began, as Saudi Arabia wanted this race to be held to legitimize the ruling and its crimes. Al-Wadaei indicated that, contrary to what Saudi Arabia wanted, one of the most important Formula drivers, Lewis Hamilton, criticized Saudi Arabia from inside Saudi Arabia and during the race in a harsh manner and said that he did not feel comfortable in the Kingdom.
Al-Wadaei considered that Saudi Arabia's goal in buying Newcastle United is the influence and that many are collapsing in the face of the money challenge, and this is what happened even in the British Parliament, where reports confirmed that the second man in Britain had received money from the Saudi government. Al-Wadaei believed that in return for buying sports and politics, human rights defenders should change and strengthen their methods of dealing. He stressed that in exchange for billions, the voice of truth will remain stronger.
Second Day:
Professor Madawi Al-Rasheed opened the second day of the conference by pointing out that the Saudi regime's interest in changing its reputation in the West comes within the framework of protecting the throne. As there was confusion in the West about the nature of the relationship between Saudi Arabia and the United States after the assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
Al-Rasheed believed that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman tried to change the cultural discourse, and this is done by reading what is issued by Western universities regarding Saudi Arabia. She explained that researchers in Western research centres pay visits to Saudi Arabia to conduct interviews with specific people in power and return to write reports about the qualitative shift from the previous negative image associated with extremism and terrorism. Since articles and books are sometimes published with government funding and support, the impact on academic discourse becomes direct.
Al-Rasheed explained that in the university where she is studying, there is a hall in the name of bin Zayed, in which talks about democracy took place, and this was ironic. Here the financing came to make the whitewash and the dilemma. Although the universities were reassuring their audience that, despite the Saudi funding, they would maintain non-alignment with this country, the problem is that the flow of money is linked to positions. And Al-Rasheed considered that Saudi Arabia used other methods, as it tried to use academics through the means of communication, just like what happened in the tourism sector, where influencers are recruited.
Dr Al-Rasheed confirmed that the Saudi regime wants to use soft power to penetrate Western civil society. Because Western public opinion has turned against Saudi Arabia in recent years, considering that the regime now wants to delude international public opinion that there is a better future under the current regime.
Al-Rasheed stressed that we should not lose hope of the impact of human rights work on the balance of global public opinion so that it does not succumb to the press, universities and academic influencers who want to humanize the Saudi regime without talking about arrest and execution.
Nidal Marzougui, the brother of the Tunisian nurse who was sentenced to 15 years in prison in Saudi Arabia, Mahdia Marzougui, spoke in his intervention about the course of his sister’s case, who was arrested in Saudi Arabia because of a tweet that the regime in Saudi Arabia did not like. Marzouki stressed that the verdict against his sister is illogical and unjust, and he also stressed that had it not been for the efforts of human rights organisations and public speaking about the case, no one would have intervened on the part of the Tunisian government.
The former detainee in Saudi Arabia, Pakistani nationality, Maytham Al-Tamar, talked about his experience in detention in Saudi Arabia and conveyed what he witnessed. Al-Tamar referred to the case of Saud al-Faraj, who shared a cell with him during his arrest. He explained that he witnessed the torture of Saud and the violations against him because of his demand for his natural rights in prison. He explained that Saud, despite the torture he was subjected to, did not obtain his right to treatment, and retaliation increased against him for submitting an official complaint, and he is currently facing the threat of execution. Al-Tamar confirmed that Saud continued to claim his rights.
Activist Ali al-Ashtar read a letter written by the family of a victim facing the death penalty in Saudi Arabia. The letter made it clear that Saudi Arabia criminalizes talking about violations, detainees, and their stories, and threatens their families with more reprisals, which puts families between two fires. The letter indicated that her son faces the risk of execution on non-violent charges, related to his brother's peaceful activity, and emphasized that the trial lacked justice conditions, as the detainee was subjected to torture. The victim's family confirmed that Saudi Arabia pays billions to reflect an unreal picture of the interior.
Executive Director at the Middle East Crisis Committee, Stanley Heller, gave a presentation in which he talked about the campaign that took place in the state of Connecticut and was carried out by the Crisis Committee against the University of New Haven, which had a relationship with the Saudi security forces through the King Fahd Security College. Heller explained that the main concerns were against the background of the violations committed by Saudi Arabia in Yemen.
Heller pointed out that the University of Connecticut had a relationship with the King Fahd Security College, which trains the Saudi police, which prompted the committee to send a letter of complaint to the university from 40 writers and academics to stop cooperation. During the time of the campaign, Saudi Arabia killed journalist Jamal Khashoggi, and it became clear later that the one who killed him was the forensic doctor, Salah al-Tubaigy, who had a relationship with an academic at the university. Heller called on human rights defenders to benefit from this experience and to make sure that nothing is impossible and that standing up to violations must continue.
In addition, a message from the family of the Pakistani, Muhammad Shabeer, who was detained in Saudi Arabia, was presented at the conference. The letter, in which his wife, Tahira, and his two children appeared, confirmed that Shabeer had been subjected to widespread abuse and that he was a victim of fraud that made him a criminal, as he was threatened with his family if he refused to transport drugs to Saudi Arabia. The family confirmed that they currently do not know anything about Shabir's whereabouts or fate, although the last information they received is that he is sentenced to 15 years in prison.
The Newcastle fan, John Hird, spoke about the No Saudi Toon campaign, which includes hundreds of fans of the Newcastle club that Saudi Arabia bought. Hird pointed out that the Saudi dictators work through the means of communication and attend Newcastle matches to polish their image, and they are currently using public relations companies for the same purpose. Hird pointed out that since the purchase of Newcastle, the media remained silent, although, in the same week that the team went to play in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia bombed the Yemeni people. He explained that on the second day of one of the Newcastle matches, Saudi Arabia killed 81 people. Hird explained that the campaign has begun to expand because Saudi Arabia's threat to hundreds of executions, including minors, should not be tolerated. Hurd finished by noting that the campaign would be a pioneer in standing up to sports washing and that even though they do not have billions, the belief in the idea of fighting for rights could change something.
Director of the Institute for Gulf Affairs, Ali al-Ahmad, considered that it is important to realise that the American system is a system of interests and that there is a major cultural crisis centred on ignoring issues at the expense of others. Al-Ahmad explained that, for example, Muhammad al-Qahtani is the most important political prisoner in the country today and the first to establish human rights associations. His case is ignored even though he is the father of 4 American citizens.
Al-Ahmad pointed out that the Middle East Institute receives funding from Saudi Arabia in the millions. Therefore you do not find academic coverage of the situation there, leading to the falsification of facts. In addition, there is information about journalists receiving the money to write articles about Mohammed bin Salman, and even US ambassadors returning from Riyadh as if they were Saudis because of the money.
Duaa Dhainy, Head of the Documentation and Research Department at the European Saudi Organisation for Human Rights, delivered the closing speech of the conference, and some recommendations based on the interventions and testimonies delivered at the conference:
- Develop cooperation between local and international organisations to raise the voice of Saudi civil society at home before the United Nations' human rights mechanisms.
- In light of the increasing difficulty of reaching victims at home, work to reach victims of Saudi violations in other countries, document their cases and seek to protect them.
- Monitor all Saudi official promises by the Crown Prince and other official authorities and clarify their manipulation and deception.
- Take a more serious approach to reach out to companies that invest with the Saudi government.
- Monitoring the political parties that support Saudi Arabia and demonstrating the relationship between the increase in support and the increase in the severity of violations.
- Work with universities and research centres in Western countries to find a balance in light of the funding policies adopted by Saudi Arabia.
- Activating cooperation between Saudi activists, researchers and dissidents residing abroad.
- eek to reach civil and civil societies in countries that support Saudi Arabia to provide them with information about violations, cooperate in advocating for victims, and seek to stand against this support.
- Work to reach the decision-making centres in the sports clubs that Saudi Arabia uses in sports washing.