United Nations special rapporteurs sent three letters to each of the Saudi government, the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the NEOM Company, and the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, in which they expressed their grave concern about violations related to the NEOM project implementation.
The letter was sent on April 23, 2023, and was signed by the Special Rapporteur on adequate housing, the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary killings, and the Special Rapporteur on the promotion of and protection of human rights while combating terrorism, and the Special Rapporteur on Torture.
The three letters referred to information the experts had received regarding death sentences against three people and lengthy sentences against three others. This was in the context of the persecution of al-Huwaitat tribe members, who were convicted under terrorism law for opposing forced evictions. The messages indicated that the evacuation was part of the NEOM project. This is part of Saudi Vision 2030 and is owned by the Saudi Public Investment Fund, while several international companies participate in its work.
The letters indicated that information confirmed that the project is being implemented without civil consultations, free, prior and informed consent and access to effective remedies for the al-Huwaitat tribe. According to reports, since 2017, 47 tribe members have been arrested, and many are on trial under terrorism law. The Special Rapporteurs had expressed their concern about the forced eviction of the al-Huwaitat tribe in previous communications in January and March 2020.
The letter explained the information received by the Special Rapporteurs:
Shadly al-Hwaiti
On October 24, 2020, Shazly Al-Hwaiti was arrested at his family's farm by the General Directorate of Investigation and the Special Emergency Forces. He was not presented with an arrest warrant or with any information regarding the reasons for his arrest. After his arrest, he was transferred to al-Tarfiya Prison in al-Qassim, and then charged with "seeking to destabilize society and the state's security and stability, and supporting people with terrorist ideologies who seek to disturb public order and endanger its national unity."
He was then transferred to Dhahban Prison in Jeddah, where he was subjected to torture and ill-treatment as a confession. This included beatings, electric shocks, and being forced to stand on one leg in the sun all day. It also included sleep deprivation, denial of medical care access, and prolonged solitary confinement.
In addition, al-Hwaiti was denied legal representation for three months and contact with his family for four months. On August 5, 202, he was sentenced to death by the Specialized Criminal Court. The ruling was upheld by the Specialized Criminal Court of Appeal on January 23, 2023.
Ibrahim al-Hwaiti
Ibrahim al-Hwaiti was arrested in October 2020 and charged with seeking to destabilize the stability and security of society and the state and using social media to harm national unity. On August 5, 2022, the Specialized Criminal Court sentenced him to death, and the sentence was ratified in January 2023.
Atallah al-Hwaiti
On January 4, 2021, after receiving news that some al-Huwaitat protesters had been classified as "terrorists" by the government, Atallah turned himself into the Investigation Bureau in Jeddah. He was later transferred to Tabuk Prison and then to al-Tarfiya Prison in al-Qassim. He was reportedly held in solitary confinement and tortured to sign a confession. He was sentenced to death by the Specialized Criminal Court on August 5, 2022, and the sentence was ratified on January 23, 2023.
Abdul Nasser al-Hwaiti
On October 18, 2020, Abdel Nasser al-Hwaiti was arrested by the Special Emergency Forces and transferred to Tabuk Investigation Prison. He stayed for about a month before being transferred to Dhahban Prison. According to information, he was placed in solitary confinement for 4 months, where he was tortured psychologically and physically. He was forced to sign confessions on charges, including inciting public opinion against the crown prince. He was sentenced to 27 years in prison.
Mahmoud al-Hwaiti
On November 24, 2020, Mahmoud Al-Hwaiti was arrested at his family's farm in the Al-Khuraiba area. He was transferred to Tabuk Prison, then Dhahban. He was subjected to psychological and physical torture for 6 months. Mahmoud al-Hwaiti was reportedly accused of public incitement and harming national unity about concerns raised about the NEOM project and the forced eviction of the al-Hwaitat tribe. He was also accused of possessing a picture of a "dead terrorist", in this case, his brother, Abd al-Rahman al-Hwaiti.
After a preliminary hearing in July 2021 and four subsequent hearings, he was sentenced to 35 years in prison on terrorism charges.
Abdullah al-Hwaiti
Mr Abdullah al-Hwaiti is a former employee in the municipality of Khuraiba. He was arrested in November 2020. Among the charges brought against him: defaming the reputation of state symbols with the intent to destabilize the security of society amounting to a terrorist act; Assisting those who seek to disturb public order and destabilize national security and stability by monitoring their accounts on the Internet and providing them with information affecting the security of the homeland through well-known social networking sites; possession of a machine gun without a permit; inciting others to commit terrorist acts; Spreading rumours through writing and social media.
On January 31, 2022, the Specialized Criminal Court sentenced Mr Abdullah Al-Hwaiti to 16 years in prison. The sentence was raised to 50 years on appeal in September 2022.
NEOM project
The letter explained what the NEOM project is, and indicated that it is one of the Saudi Vision 2030 projects that are described as an accelerator for human progress that embodies the future of innovation in business, and aims to develop a 170 km long plan for a linear smart city, called The Line, which will be home to 9 million people, in the Tabuk region. The letter indicated that several foreign companies are working on different phases of the project.
Land acquisition for the NEOM project threatened to displace 20,000 residents from the villages of Al Khuraibeh, Sharma and Jiyal. These individuals had lived in the northwest Tabuk region for centuries without genuine free, prior and informed consultation and for the lack of adequate remedies.
During the early stages of the project, the local population was assured of involvement in the development process. However, in January 2020, residents of Khuraiba, Sharma, and Jiyal were told to leave their land or face eviction. A large section of the Huwaitat tribe refused to leave and was subjected to various forms of persecution. These included property destruction, power outages, unjustified fires, job transfers, harassment, threats, and kidnappings. However, they continued to oppose the evictions publicly through campaigns, petitions and broadcasts on social media.
Saudi authorities allegedly offered financial incentives to government-appointed tribal sheikhs and other community leaders on the condition that they denounce resistance to the NEOM project.
Some residents asked to be resettled in nearby villages, but the authorities refused and offered to move to remote parts of the country. According to the information, the compensation policy appears inconsistent and unfairly applied. Some residents were reportedly offered 620,000 Saudi riyals (US$165,000) and others a meagre 17,000 Saudi riyals (US$4,500).
According to the information, the majority of the displaced settled between Tabuk and Daba, but they are still at risk of further displacement, while many were forced to live in poor neighbourhoods due to receiving insufficient compensation for property confiscation due to a legitimate settlement.
The letter expressed deep concern about this information. It called on NEOM to take all necessary measures to guarantee the rights of those who protest against the forced evictions planned within the NEOM project.
The rapporteurs emphasized that all companies should operate by the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, respecting human rights by (a) avoiding causing or contributing to negative human rights impacts through their activities, and addressing such impacts when they occur; and (b) seeking to prevent or mitigate direct adverse human rights impacts associated with their operations, products or services through their business relationships, even if they have not contributed to those impacts.
The letter noted that while the Saudi government is ultimately responsible for ensuring that members of the Huwaitat tribe who have been resisting the evictions are not persecuted, businesses such as NEOM also have the independent responsibility to respect all the human rights of affected communities and protesters.
The Special Rapporteurs expressed their deep concern about the forced eviction and displacement of the residents of al-Huwaitat in al-Khuraiba, Sharma and Jial due to the NEOM project without real prior consultation, and affirmed that the right to adequate housing stipulated in Article 25 (1) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights guarantees the right to live somewhere in security, peace and dignity.
The three letters ended with several questions and requests from the three parties, including:
To NEOM:
- Provide information on any human rights diligence the company may have undertaken to prevent, identify, mitigate and demonstrate the negative impacts of activities on human rights related to the NEOM project by the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.
- Clarify what monitoring and evaluation systems are in place to ensure effective human rights due diligence and steps taken to mitigate and prevent human rights violations, including forced evictions
- Provide information on the steps taken by the company to establish any grievance mechanisms at the company level to address the negative human rights impacts they cause and to deal with the concerns of those affected.
- The measures that have been adopted to ensure that employees and the company's business partners have sufficient awareness, knowledge and tools to define human rights.
To the Saudi government:
- Provide detailed information on judicial procedures against convicted persons from their arrest and detention and the factual and legal basis for their arrest and trial.
- Provide detailed information on terrorism and security charges against the defendants, including information on why Shazly Al-Hwaiti, Ibrahim al-Hwaiti and Atallah al-Hwaiti were sentenced to death, and Abdel Nasser, Mahmoud and Abdullah al-Hwaiti were sentenced to long prison terms.
- Provide detailed information on the measures taken by the Court to ensure that obligations relating to the prohibition of torture and other ill-treatment are fully respected.
- Clarify how the imposition of the death penalty in the above-mentioned cases is consistent with international standards
- Provide clarification on the number of people that the NEOM project will affect.
- Provide information on the number of people who have already been displaced through NEOM and those who are still living in their homes and threatened with eviction and displacement.
To the Public Investment Fund:
- Provide information on any human rights due diligence that may have been undertaken by the Fund and its affiliates to prevent, identify and address the negative impacts of relevant activities on the human rights of the NEOM Project by the United Nations Guidelines on Business and Human Rights Principles.
- Provide information regarding any steps your affiliates have taken to consult or seek feedback from potentially affected groups.
- Clarify what monitoring and evaluation systems are in place in the fund to ensure the effectiveness of human rights due diligence steps
The Special Rapporteurs indicated that the letter was sent to the business enterprises participating in the NEOM project, including Aecom, Aedas Limited, Air Products and Chemicals Inc, Bechtel Global, Corporation, Boston Consulting Group, Bureau Proberts, China State Construction, Engineering Corporation, FCC Construction SA, Hyundai Engineering and Construction Co. Ltd., Keller, Laboratory for Visionary Architecture, McKinsey & Co, Morphosis, Neom Company, Oliver Wyman LLC, Samsung C&T Corporation, Solar Water, Van Berkel en Bos U.N. Studio B.V, Zaha Hadid Architects.
The letter was also sent to the home countries of all the companies concerned. These countries were Australia, China, Germany, the Netherlands, South Korea, Spain, the United States of America, and the United Kingdom.
The European Saudi Organization for Human Rights notes that the letters of the Special Rapporteurs show the grave violations that result from economic projects promoted by Saudi Arabia.
ESOHR believes that the death sentences and long sentences against opponents of these projects confirm the extent of repression practised by the Saudi government. This prevents a clearer picture of the reality and extent of the impact of other projects on the population. ESOHR also stresses that participating companies and shareholders must take a clear position based on human rights.