The British newspaper Guardian published an editorial in which he wrote: “Glamourizing the image of Saudi Arabia with the repression it does is not working.”
In its article, this newspaper criticized the sentencing of Salma al-Shehab, a Saudi student from the University of Leeds, to thirty-four years in prison, only for sending messages that she had published through Twitter.
He said; Governments and institutions of the world should reject it.
He emphasized that “the changes brought by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman are merely cosmetic reforms, such as building a glamorous new city and holding dance festivals, as a substitute for respecting basic human rights.”
Here is the full text of the article:
According to the Saudi sports minister, hosting the Olympic Games is a “desirable goal”. Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki al-Faisal speaks on Sunday as Anthony Joshua fights Ukrainian player Alexander Usyk in Jeddah, a day after the UN Human Rights Office condemned the 34-year prison sentence of Salma al-Shahab, a PhD student at the University of Leeds. did She was handed the longest prison sentence for a female human rights activist in the kingdom just because she took part in posting tweets on Twitter.
No wonder he covers a heavyweight wrestling match on his case. The state of horror and disgust that engulfed the world after the murder of Jamal Khashoggi inside the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul did not last long, although the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) concluded that the crime was committed on the orders of Mohammed bin Salman. himself
It has been reported that the crown prince and de facto ruler of the country denies any responsibility for this crime. Joe Biden had promised to make the kingdom a pariah state, but last month he traveled to the country and met with the crown prince, prompting rights groups to warn at the time that the meeting would further embolden the regime. to be
According to Riaz, initiatives such as the Leaf Golf Tournament, plans to host the Olympics and other sporting endeavors show progress rather than washing and improving reputations. However, the changes brought about by the Crown Prince are merely cosmetic reforms, such as building a glamorous new city and holding dance festivals, rather than respecting basic human rights.
When the government lifted the ban on women driving, it immediately arrested and imprisoned activists who demanded it. The message is clear, that freedom is nothing but a gift that the regime gives him whenever he wants. It is well known that activists are repressed and harassed within the country, while dissidents are persecuted abroad. But Mrs. Salma al-Shahab was not a known opposition and her voice was not loud, but it seems that her case was to shock and intimidate others.
The Saudi citizen, who is the mother of two young sons, was arrested last year while visiting her relatives. He then spoke out about the abuse behind bars and was initially sentenced to three years in prison, but this month an appeals court handed down an unfair new sentence, followed by a 34-year travel ban.
Liz Truss, the Foreign Secretary, should certainly intervene in the case of a student studying at a British university, whose only crime was to express and participate in legitimate views. However, despite her pledge to create a “freedom network”, Ms Truss once failed to single out any of the Gulf states on human rights when questioned on the issue by MPs in June. to challenge
Mr Biden, who has apparently “received a commitment” that the kingdom will act to prevent future shocking human rights abuses, should also demand Ms Salma al-Shehab’s release.
Twitter, which has not yet commented on the case, should appeal. Saudi Arabia has targeted users of the social media platform in the country, while its sovereign wealth fund controls indirect shares in the organization.
In fact, one of the crown prince’s top aides still has an official account on it, despite being accused by the US government of hacking it, which led to the identification and subsequent imprisonment of a number of users. Many other businesses, as well as their supporters, must also take responsibility.
There is no doubt that the huge amount of money that the Kingdom invests in tourism, sports and other initiatives proves the country’s willingness to buy international approval that we do not need to provide.
Source: Lebanon Debate
