Recognizing the fundamental right to express our views, free from repression, we the undersigned civil society organisations call on the international community, including the United Nations, multilateral and regional institutions as well as democratic governments committed to the freedom of expression, to take immediate steps to hold Saudi Arabia accountable for grave human rights violations. The murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Ahmad Khashoggi in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul on 2 October is only one of many gross and systematic violations committed by the Saudi authorities inside and outside the country. As the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists approaches on 2 November, we strongly echo calls for an independent investigation into Khashoggi’s murder, in order to hold those responsible to account.
This case, coupled with the rampant arrests of human rights defenders, including journalists, scholars and women’s rights activists; internal repression; the potential imposition of the death penalty on demonstrators; and the findings of the UN Group of Eminent Experts report which concluded that the Coalition, led by Saudi Arabia, have committed acts that may amount to international crimes in Yemen, all demonstrate Saudi Arabia’s record of gross and systematic human rights violations. Therefore, our organisations further urge the UN General Assembly to suspend Saudi Arabia from the UN Human Rights Council (HRC), in accordance with operative paragraph 8 of the General Assembly resolution 60/251.
Saudi Arabia has never had a reputation for tolerance and respect for human rights, but there were hopes that as Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman rolled out his economic plan (Vision 2030), and finally allowed women to drive, there would be a loosening of restrictions on women’s rights, and freedom of expression and assembly. However, prior to the driving ban being lifted in June, women human rights defenders received phone calls warning them to remain silent. The Saudi authorities then arrested dozens of women’s rights defenders (both female and male) who had been campaigning against the driving ban. The Saudi authorities’ crackdown against all forms of dissent has continued to this day.
Khashoggi criticised the arrests of human rights defenders and the reform plans of the Crown Prince, and was living in self-imposed exile in the US. On 2 October 2018, Khashoggi went to the Consulate in Istanbul with his fiancée to complete some paperwork, but never came out. Turkish officials soon claimed there was evidence that he was murdered in the Consulate, but Saudi officials did not admit he had been murdered until more than two weeks later.
ولم يكشف تحقيق النيابة العامة السعودية عن نتائج تؤكد وفاة خاشقجي سوى بعد انقضاء يومين آخرين في 20 أكتوبر/تشرين الأول. وتشير تقاريرهم إلى أنه توفي بعد “عراكٍ بالأيدي” في القنصلية، وأنه تم اعتقال 18 مواطناً سعودياً. كما أصدر الملك سلمان مراسيم ملكية يعفي بموجبها مسؤولين رفيعي المستوى من مهامهم، بمن فيهم سعود القحطاني، المستشار بالديوان الملكي، وأحمد عسيري، نائب رئيس الاستخبارات العامة. وفيما تواصل النيابة العامة تحقيقها، لم يتم العثور على الجثة حتى الآن.
Given the contradictory reports from Saudi authorities, it is essential that an independent international investigation is undertaken.
On 18 October, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and Reporters Without Borders (RSF) called on Turkey to request that UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres establish a UN investigation into the extrajudicial execution of Khashoggi.
في 15 أكتوبر 2018، دعا ديفيد كاي، المقرر الخاص للأمم المتحدة المعني بحرية التعبير، الدكتورة أغنيس كالامارد المقررة الخاصة المعنية بحالات الإعدام خارج القضاء أو بإجراءات موجزة، إلى “إجراء تحقيق مستقل يمكن أن يسفر عن نتائج موثوقة ويوفرَ الأساس لاتخاذ إجراءات عقابية واضحة، بما في ذلك الطرد المحتمل للموظفين الدبلوماسيين، والإبعاد من هيئات الأمم المتحدة (مثل مجلس حقوق الإنسان)، وحظر السفر، والعقوبات الاقتصادية، وجبر الأضرار وإمكانية إجراء محاكمات في دول ثالثة.”
تجدر الإشارة إلى أن المملكة العربية السعودية انضمت إلى توافق الآراء في لجنة حقوق الإنسان التابعة للأمم المتحدة في 27 سبتمبر/ايلول إذ تبنت قراراً جديداً بشأن سلامة الصحفيين (A/HRC/Res/39/6). وننوه في هذا القرار إلى الدعوات المطالبة “بإجراء تحقيقات محايدة، وسريعة، ومستفيضة، ومستقلة، وفعالة في جميع ما يدعى وقوعه في نطاق ولايتها من أعمال عنف، وتهديدات، واعتداءات، ضد الصحفيين والعاملين في وسائط الإعلام، وتقديم مرتكبي هذه الجرائم إلى العدالة، بما في ذلك كل من يصدر الأوامر، أو يتواطأ لارتكاب مثل تلك الجرائم، أو يساعد ويحرض على ارتكابها أو يتستر عليها.” كما يحث القرار كذلك على “الإفراج الفوري وغير المشروط عن الصحفيين والعاملين في وسائل الإعلام الذين تعرضوا للاعتقال التعسفي أو الاحتجاز التعسفي”.
كان خاشقجي يكتب مقالات في جريدة “واشنطن بوست” وصحيفة “الوطن”، وعمل كرئيس تحرير لدى “قناة العرب الإخبارية” التي لم تبصر النور سوى لأمد قصير في 2015. وغادرَ المملكة العربية السعودية في عام 2017 مع تصاعد وتيرة اعتقال الصحفيين، والكتاب، والمدافعين عن حقوق الإنسان والناشطين. وفي عموده الأخير الذي نُشر في الواشنطن بوست، انتقد الحكم على الصحفي Saleh al-Shehi بالسجن خمس سنوات في فبراير/شباط 2018. يعدُ الشيحي واحداً من أكثر من 15 من الصحفيين والمدونين الذين تم اعتقالهم في المملكة العربية السعودية منذ سبتمبر/ايلول 2017، ليصل عدد المدونين القابعين في السجون إلى 29، وفقاً لمراسلين بلا حدود، في حين أن ما يصل إلى 100 من المدافعين عن حقوق الإنسان وربما الآلاف من النشطاء أيضاً هم قيد الاحتجاز وفقاً لمركز الخليج لحقوق الإنسان والشركاء السعوديين بما في ذلك منظمة القسط لحقوق الإنسان. وقد انتقد العديد من المعتقلين في العام الماضي علناً خططَ الإصلاح المتعلقة برؤية 2030، مشيرين إلى أن النساء لن يتمتعن بالمساواة الاقتصادية بمجرد القيادة.
ومن الشخصيات الأخرى التي استهدفتها حملة القمع ضد المعارضين الاقتصاديُ البارز Essam al-Zamil، أحد رجال الأعمال المعروفين بكتاباته عن الحاجة إلى الإصلاح الاقتصادي. في 01 أكتوبر/تشرين الأول 2018، عقدت المحكمة الجزائية المتخصصة جلسة سرية اتهمت فيها النيابةُ العامة الزاملَ بانتهاك ﻗﺎﻧﻮن ﻣﻜﺎﻓﺤﺔ اﻟﺠﺮاﺋﻢ الإلكترونية بتعبئة أتباعه على وسائل التواصل الاجتماعي.” انتقد الزامل رؤية 2030 على وسائل التواصل الاجتماعي التي يحظى فيها بمليون متابع. وألقي القبض على الزامل في 12 سبتمبر/أيلول 2017 بنفس الوقت مع العديد من المدافعين عن حقوق الإنسان والإصلاحيين الآخرين.
The current unprecedented targeting of women human rights defenders started in January 2018 with the arrest of Noha Al-Balawi due to her online activism in support of social media campaigns for women’s rights such as (#Right2Drive) or against the male guardianship system (#IAmMyOwnGuardian). Even before that, on 10 November 2017, the SCC in Riyadh sentenced Naimah Al-Matrod to six years in jail for her online activism.
Four other women’s human rights defenders who were arrested in May 2018 include Dr. Aisha Al-Manae, Dr. Hessa Al-Sheikh and Dr. Madeha Al-Ajroush, who took part in the first women’s protest movement demanding the right to drive in 1990; and Walaa Al-Shubbar, a young activist well-known for her campaigning against the male guardianship system. They are all academics and professionals who supported women’s rights and provided assistance to survivors of gender-based violence. While they have since been released, all four women are believed to be still facing charges.
On 6 June 2018, journalist, editor, TV producer and woman human rights defender Nouf Abdulaziz was arrested after a raid on her home. Following her arrest, Mayya Al-Zahrani published a letter from Abdulaziz, and was then arrested herself on 9 June 2018, for publishing the letter.
On 27 June 2018, Hatoon Al-Fassi, a renowned scholar, and associate professor of women’s history at King Saud University, was arrested. She has long been advocating for the right of women to participate in municipal elections and to drive, and was one of the first women to drive the day the ban was lifted on 24 June 2018.
دعت الإجراءات الخاصة للأمم المتحدة مرتين في يونيو/حزيران إلى إطلاق سراح المدافعات عن حقوق المرأة. وفي 27 يونيو/حزيران 2018، قال تسعة خبراء مستقلين في الأمم المتحدة: “في تناقض صارخ مع لحظة التحرر التاريخية للنساء السعوديات، تم إلقاء القبض على المدافعات عن حقوق الإنسان من النساء واحتجازهن على نطاق واسع في جميع أنحاء البلاد، وهو أمر مثير للقلق وربما كان ذلك أبلغَ إشارة على نهج الحكومة تجاه حقوق المرأة.” وشددوا على أن النساء المدافعات عن حقوق الإنسان “يواجهن وصمة عار مركبة، ليس فقط بسبب عملهن كمدافعات عن حقوق الإنسان، وإنما أيضاً بسبب التمييز القائم على أساس الجنس.”
Nevertheless, the arrests of women human rights defenders continued with Samar Badawi and Nassima Al-Sadah on 30 July 2018. They are being held in solitary confinement in a prison that is controlled by the Presidency of State Security, an apparatus established by order of King Salman on 20 July 2017. Badawi’s brother Raif Badawi is currently serving a 10-year prison sentence for his online advocacy, and her former husband Waleed Abu Al-Khair, is serving a 15-year sentence. Abu Al-Khair, Abdullah Al-Hamid, and Mohammad Fahad Al-Qahtani (the latter two are founding members of the Saudi Civil and Political Rights Association – ACPRA) were jointly awarded the Right Livelihood Award in September 2018. Yet all of them remain behind bars.
The SCC, which was set up to try terrorism cases in 2008, has mostly been used to prosecute human rights defenders and critics of the government in order to keep a tight rein on civil society.
في 12 أكتوبر/تشرين الأول 2018، جدد خبراء الأمم المتحدة دعوتهم مرة أخرى لإطلاق سراح جميع النساء المدافعات عن حقوق الإنسان في السعودية. وأعربوا عن قلق خاص بشأن محاكمة الغمغام أمام المحكمة الجزائية المتخصصة، قائلين: “لا ينبغي أبداً استخدام التدابير الرامية إلى مكافحة الإرهاب لقمع أو تضييق الخناق على حقوق الإنسان.” ومن الجلي أن السلطات السعودية لم تتصرف حيال المخاوف التي أثارتها الإجراءات الخاصة – حيث من شأن عدم التعاون هذا الإساءة إلى عضويتها في لجنة مجلس حقوق الإنسان أكثر فأكثر.
Many of the human rights defenders arrested this year have been held in incommunicado detention with no access to families or lawyers. Some of them have been labelled traitors and subjected to smear campaigns in the state media, escalating the possibility they will be sentenced to lengthy prison terms. Rather than guaranteeing a safe and enabling environment for human rights defenders at a time of planned economic reform, the Saudi authorities have chosen to escalate their repression against any dissenting voices.
Our organisations reiterate our calls to the international community to hold Saudi Arabia accountable and not allow impunity for human rights violations to prevail.
- Take action to ensure there is an international, impartial, prompt, thorough, independent and effective investigation into the murder of journalist Jamal Ahmad Khashoggi;
- Ensure Saudi Arabia be held accountable for the murder of Khashoggi and for its systematic violations of human rights;
- Call a Special Session of the Human Rights Council on the recent wave of arrests and attacks against journalists, human rights defenders and other dissenting voices in Saudi Arabia;
- Take action at the UN General Assembly to suspend Saudi Arabia’s membership of the Human Rights Council; and
- Urge the government of Saudi Arabia to implement the below recommendations.
- Produce the body of Jamal Ahmad Khashoggi and invite independent international experts to oversee investigations into his murder; cooperate with all UN mechanisms; and ensure that those responsible for his death, including those who hold command responsibility, are brought to justice;
- Immediately quash the convictions of all human rights defenders, including women and men advocating for gender equality, and drop all charges against them;
- Immediately and unconditionally release all human rights defenders, writers, journalists and prisoners of conscience in Saudi Arabia whose detention is a result of their peaceful and legitimate work in the promotion and protection of human rights including women’s rights;
- Institute a moratorium on the death penalty; including as punishment for crimes related to the exercise of rights to freedom of opinion and expression, and peaceful assembly;
- Guarantee in all circumstances that all human rights defenders and journalists in Saudi Arabia are able to carry out their legitimate human rights activities and public interest reporting without fear of reprisal;
- Immediately implement the recommendations made by the UN Group of Eminent Experts on Yemen; and
- Ratify the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and bring all national laws limiting the rights to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association into compliance with international human rights standards.
Signatories،
- Access Now
- Action by Christians for the Abolition of Torture (ACAT) – France
- Action by Christians for the Abolition of Torture (ACAT) – Germany
- Action by Christians for the Abolition of Torture (ACAT) – Switzerland
- Action by Christians for the Abolition of Torture (ACAT) – USA
- المرصد – سوريا
- Al-QST Organization for Human Rights
- ALTSEAN-Burma
- Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB)
- Amman Center for Human Rights Studies (ACHRS) – Jordan
- Amman Forum for Human Rights
- Arabic Network for Human Rights Information (ANHRI)
- Armanshahr/OPEN ASIA
- ARTICLE 19
- Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA)
- Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)
- Asociación Libre de Abogadas y Abogados (ALA)
- Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression (AFTE)
- Association for Human Rights in Ethiopia (AHRE)
- Association for Progressive Communications (APC)
- Association malienne des droits de l’Homme (AMDH)
- Association mauritanienne des droits de l’Homme (AMDH)
- Association nigérienne pour la défense des droits de l’Homme (ANDDH)
- Association of Tunisian Women for Research on Development
- Association for Women’s Rights in Development (AWID)
- Awan Awareness and Capacity Development Organization
- Bahrain Forum for Human Rights (BFHR)
- Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (BIRD)
- Bureau for Human Rights and the Rule of Law – Tajikistan
- Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies (CIHRS)
- Cambodian League for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights (LICADHO)
- Canadian Center for International Justice
- Caucasus Civil Initiatives Center (CCIC)
- Center for Civil Liberties – Ukraine
- Center for Prisoners’ Rights
- Center for the Protection of Human Rights “Kylym Shamy” – Kazakhstan
- Centre oecuménique des droits de l’Homme (CEDH) – Haïti
- Centro de Políticas Públicas y Derechos Humanos (EQUIDAD) – Perú
- Centro para la Acción Legal en Derechos Humanos (CALDH) – Guatemala
- Citizen Center for Press Freedom
- Citizens’ Watch – Russia
- CIVICUS
- Civil Society Institute (CSI) – Armenia
- Code Pink
- Columbia Law School Human Rights Clinic
- Comité de acción jurídica (CAJ) – Argentina
- Comisión Ecuménica de Derechos Humanos (CEDHU) – Ecuador
- Comisión Nacional de los Derechos Humanos – Dominican Republic
- Committee on the Administration of Justice (CAJ) -Northern Ireland
- Committee to Protect Journalists
- Damascus Center for Human Rights in Syria
- Damascus Center for Human Rights in Syria
- Danish PEN
- DITSHWANELO – The Botswana Center for Human Rights
- Dutch League for Human Rights (LvRM)
- Election Monitoring and Democracy Studies Center – Azerbaijan
- English PEN
- European Centre for Democracy and Human Rights (ECDHR)
- European Centre for Press and Media Freedom
- European Federation of Journalists
- European Saudi Organisation for Human Rights (ESOHR)
- FIDH within the framework of the Observatory for the protection of human rights defenders
- Finnish League for Human Rights
- Freedom Now
- Front Line Defenders
- Fundación regional de asesoría en derechos humanos (INREDH) – Ecuador
- Foundation for Human Rights Initiative (FHRI) – Uganda
- Global Voices Advox
- Groupe LOTUS (RDC)
- Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR)
- Gulf Institute for Democracy and Human Rights
- Hellenic League for Human Rights (HLHR)
- Human Rights Association (IHD) – Turkey
- Human Rights Center (HRCIDC) – Georgia
- Human Rights Center “Viasna” – Belarus
- Human Rights Commission of Pakistan
- Human Rights Concern (HRCE) – Eritrea
- Human Rights in China
- Human Rights Center Memorial
- Human Rights Movement “Bir Duino Kyrgyzstan”
- Human Rights Sentinel
- IFEX
- Index on Censorship
- Initiative for Freedom of Expression (IFoX) – Turkey
- Innovation for Change- MENA Hub
- Institut Alternatives et Initiatives citoyennes pour la Gouvernance démocratique (I-AICGD) – DR Congo
- المركز الدولي لدعم الحقوق والحريات – جمعية سويسرية
- Internationale Liga für Menscherechte
- International Federation of Journalists
- International Human Rights Organisation “Fiery Hearts Club” – Uzbekistan
- International Legal Initiative (ILI) – Kazakhstan
- International Media Support (IMS)
- International Partnership for Human Rights (IPHR)
- Institut International de la Presse
- International Service for Human Rights (ISHR)
- Internet Law Reform and Dialogue (iLaw)
- Iraqi Association for the Defense of Journalists’ Rights
- Iraqi Hope Association
- Italian Federation for Human Rights (FIDH)
- Justice for Iran
- Karapatan – Philippines
- Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights and the Rule of Law
- Khiam Rehabilitation Center for Victims of Torture
- KontraS
- Latvian Human Rights Committee
- Lao Movement for Human Rights
- Lawyers’ Rights Watch Canada
- League for the Defense of Human Rights in Iran (LDDHI)
- Legal Clinic “Adilet” – Kyrgyzstan
- Ligue algérienne de défense des droits de l’Homme (LADDH)
- Ligue centrafricaine des droits de l’Homme
- Ligue des droits de l’Homme (LDH) – Belgium
- Ligue des Electeurs (LE) DRC
- Ligue ivoirienne des droits de l’Homme (LIDHO)
- Ligue sénégalaise des droits humains (LSDH)
- Ligue Suisse des Droits de l’Homme (LSDH)
- Ligue tchadienne des droits de l’Homme (LTDH)
- Maison des droits de l’Homme (MDHC) – Cameroon
- Maharat Foundation
- MARUAH – Singapore
- MENA Media Monitoring
- Monitoring Committee on Attacks on Lawyers, International Association of People’s Lawyers (IAPL)
- Movimento Nacional de Direitos Humanos (MNDH) – Brasil
- Muslims for Progressive Values
- Mwatana Organization for Human Rights
- National Syndicate of Tunisian Journalists
- No Peace Without Justice
- Norwegian PEN
- Odhikar
- Open Azerbaijan Initiative
- Organisation marocaine des droits humains (OMDH)
- People’s Solidarity for Participatory Democracy (PSPD)
- People’s Watch
- PEN America
- PEN Canada
- PEN International
- PEN Lebanon
- مركز القلم كوبيك – Québec
- Promo-LEX – Moldova
- Public Foundation – Human Rights Center “Kylym Shamy” – Kyrgyzstan
- Rafto Foundation for Human Rights
- Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights
- RAW in WAR (Reach All Women in War)
- Reporters Without Borders (RSF)
- Right Livelihood Award Foundation
- Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights
- Sahrawi Media Observatory to document human rights violations
- SALAM for Democracy and Human Rights (SALAM DHR)
- Scholars at Risk (SAR)
- Sham Center for Democratic Studies and Human Rights in Syria
- منتدى الشقائق العربي لحقوق الانسان – SAF
- Solicitors International Human Rights Group
- STAND, the Student-Led Movement to End Mass Atrocities
- Syrian Center for Legal Studies and Research
- SCM – المركز السوري للإعلام وحرية التعبير
- Tanmiea – Iraq
- The Article 20 Network
- Tunisian Association to Defend Academic Values
- Tunisian Association to Defend Individual Rights
- Tunisian Association of Democratic Women
- Tunis Center for Press Freedom
- Tunisian Forum for Economic and Social Rights
- Tunisian League to Defend Human Rights
- Tunisian Organization against Torture
- Urgent Action Fund for Women’s Human Rights (UAF)
- Urnammu
- Vietnam Committee on Human Rights
- Vigdis Freedom Foundation
- جمعية “يقظة” من أجل الديمقراطية والدولة المدنية
- West Africa Human Rights Defenders Network (WAHRDN)
- Women Human Rights Defenders International Coalition
- Women’s Center for Culture & Art – United Kingdom
- World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA)
- World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) within the framework of the Observatory for the protection of human rights defenders
- Yemen Center for Human Rights
- Zimbabwe Human Rights Association (ZimRights)
- 17Shubat For Human Rights
- Global Fund for Women