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Fahd bin Abdul Aziz
Sultan Bin Abdul Aziz
Naef Bin Abdul Aziz
Salman Bin Abdul Aziz
Ahmad Bin Abdul Aziz
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Human Rights Watch/Middle East
485 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY 10017-6104
TEL: 212/972-8400
FAX: 212/972-0905
E-mail: [email protected] |
Human Rights Watch/Middle East
485 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY 10017-6104
TEL: 212/972-8400
FAX: 212/972-0905
E-mail: [email protected] |
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE AUGUST 17,
1995
TITLE: 8/17/95 Saudi Arabia Executes an Islamist Opponent
The Saudi government has carried out its first execution of an opposition
activist, in a move condemned today by Human Rights Watch. On August 11,
1995, the government of Saudi Arabia beheaded Abdalla al-Hudhaif, a Saudi
Islamist activist. He was convicted in a secret trial characterized by a
total disregard for internationally recognized standards of due process.
In the same trial, nine other Islamists were given lengthy prison
sentences.
"This represents a serious escalation in the Saudi government's
campaign against its Islamist opponents," noted Chris George,
executive director of Human Rights Watch/Middle East. "Over the past
year, the government has arrested hundreds of Islamist activists and
suppressed the opposition's criticism, but this is the first time, since
the rise of Islamist opposition during the Gulf war, that an opposition
activist has been executed." Human Rights Watch also expressed its
concern that the Saudi government, in announcing the recent verdicts,
accused its opponents of rebellion and heresy -- capital offenses in Saudi
Arabia. Once branded this way, other opposition activists may also be put
to death.
Al-Hudhaif, a thirty-three-year-old businessman and father of six, was
accused of throwing acid on an intelligence officer, possession of
firearms, and "fomenting" dissension by supporting the
London-based Saudi Islamist group known as the Committee for the Defense
of Legitimate Rights (CDLR) and distributing its leaflets. The
acid-throwing attack is the only incident of violence that the government
has attributed to the Islamist opposition since the beginning of its
public activity, which has been otherwise restricted to peaceful means,
including public rallies, speeches and the distribution of leaflets and
audio cassettes. Although the attack on the intelligence officer was
unusually cruel, disfiguring his face and other parts of his body, the
resulting harsh sentence appears to be more of an attempt to stem the tide
of opposition than an appropriate punishment.
Human Rights Watch condemned the execution of Abdalla al-Hudhaif and
deplored the secret trial during which he was denied the right to defend
himself against his accusers and challenge the confessions extracted from
him through the use of torture. "We also condemn the attack on the
intelligence officer," noted Mr. George, "but that attack does
not justify the state-sanctioned execution of al-Hudhaif or his unfair
trial."
The judicial proceedings against Abdalla al-Hudhaif were marred throughout
by serious violations of due process of law, including the use of coerced
confessions, denial of legal counsel and blatant interference by
government officials. For example, after the tribunal had sentenced
Abdalla al-Hudhaif in May 1995 to twenty years in prison, the Ministry of
Interior protested the lightness of sentence and demanded a retrial. The
judiciary complied, and in the second review, al-Hudhaif was sentenced to
death.
The decision to put him to death -- which was reportedly made in early
July and ratified by King Fahd on July 10 -- was kept secret until August
12, a day after the execution. The beheading was carried out in secret, an
exception to the rule of public executions. The authorities reportedly
rejected the dead man's family's requests to hand over his body to conduct
religious burial services. Instead, he was buried by the government,
fueling speculation that he had been tortured while in detention.
Since the execution was clearly disproportionate to the attack on the
secret police officer, the government justified this unprecedentedly harsh
sentence by citing the need to combat dissension and maintain the security
and stability of the state. It cited other alleged offenses that the
condemned man had committed, including the possession of weapons and his
support for CDLR and the distribution of its publications, which are
usually highly critical of Saudi leaders.
Nine other Islamists, including two university professors and a lecturer,
were given lengthy prison sentences by the same tribunal, which cited
their support for CDLR among the grounds for the conviction. Human Rights
Watch noted in particular that two of the convicted were accused of
conspiracy to attack the intelligence officer although they had already
been in detention for weeks when the attack took place.
The intelligence officer, who was not named by the government, is reported
to have been Major Saud ibn Shibrin, an interrogator for the Department of
General Investigations (the secret police) who in 1994 became notorious
after he was named in Islamist leaflets distributed in Saudi Arabia as the
most violent of DGI investigators. He reportedly interrogated Abdalla al-Hudhaif,
the executed man, during a previous detention. According to a government
statement announcing the execution, the attack took place after sunset on
Friday, November 11, 1994, as the officer was leaving his home in Riyadh.
The attacker, "who was lying in wait, deliberately threw a caustic
acidic substance aiming to kill the officer and resulting in burning a
large part of his body."
The others convicted include: Ibrahim al-Hudhaif, brother of executed
Abdalla al-Hudhaif, sentenced to eighteen years in prison and 300 lashes;
Professor Muhammed al-Hudhaif, another brother, sentenced to fifteen
years; Professor Muhsin al-Awaji, sentenced to fifteen years; Nasser al-Barrak,
sentenced to fifteen years; and Abdel-Rahman al-Hudhaif, a cousin of
Abdalla al-Hudhaif, sentenced to eight years. These five were convicted of
"supporting the so-called CDLR, communicating with it and spreading
its ideas which defame the Commander of the Community [King Fahd] and the
Ulema [religious scholars]." They were also accused of conspiracy in
the attack on the intelligence officer. Muhammed al-Hudhaif, a professor
of mass
communications at King Saud University, was convicted of the conspiracy
despite the fact that he has been detained since October 5, 1994, more
than a month before the attack. Muhsin al-Awaji, a professor at the
College of Agriculture of King Saud University, was also convicted of the
conspiracy despite the fact that he has been in prison since September 8,
1994, a full two months before the attack.
Two other activists, Saleh al-Barrak and Sultan al-Suwailem, were each
sentenced to five-year prison terms for helping Abdalla al-Hudhaif, the
alleged attacker, to evade capture by security forces and supporting CDLR.
Two others, Khaled al-Yahya (a police officer) and Sultan al-Khamis, were
each sentenced to three years in prison for "supporting the so-called
CDLR, attending meetings sponsored by its supporters and distributing the
heretical CDLR's leaflets despite their knowledge that the leaflets were
banned," according to a government statement, which did not refer to
their involvement in the attack on the interrogation officer.
The stiff sentences represent an escalation in the government's four-year
campaign against the opposition, which until now has consisted of
arresting key figures, the mass dismissal of Islamist sympathizers, and
the blanket bans on assembly and public speech. They also coincided with
the increasing intensity of rhetoric by the exiled Islamist opposition
group CDLR against corruption in the kingdom. The CDLR's weekly bulletins,
which include scathing critiques of the royal family's monopoly of power,
are faxed from London to Saudi Arabia where they are reproduced and
distributed widely. The CDLR's accusations of corruption and malfeasance,
which frequently name allegedly corrupt officials and members of the royal
family, are widely discussed in the kingdom, to the government's
embarrassment. CDLR's questioning of the religious legitimacy of the
government is especially challenging to the Saudi royal family, since its
rule is founded on its claim to uphold religion in the kingdom, to promote
it worldwide, and to safeguard Islam's holy shrines.
The government's August 12 statement announcing the new verdicts ominously
branded the opposition as heretics, referring to the CDLR as a group that
has "strayed beyond the pale of Islam by sowing the seeds of
dissension [fitna] when they declared their disobedience to the ruler of
the nation to whom they had pledged loyalty and expressed their utter
disregard for the Ulema, whom they accused of failing to perform their
duty." The government has already secured an opinion from the Council
of Senior Scholars denouncing the CDLR as a heresy. If convicted as
heretics, many of the detained Islamist opponents could face severe
punishments, including the death penalty.
Human Rights Watch calls on the government of Saudi Arabia to
set aside these harsh judgments and bring those suspected of participation
in the attack on the intelligence officer to a fair and public trial
before an independent court. They should be given a sufficient opportunity
to defend themselves and have lawyers of their own choosing. Coerced
confessions should be rejected as evidence and reports of torture should
be vigorously investigated. We call on the government to permit the
independent medical examination of the body of Abdalla al-Hudhaif, to
determine his condition before he was beheaded, and to investigate his
alleged torture. All of those who have been convicted or held without
trial solely because of their peaceful expression should be immediately
released.
Human Rights Watch/Middle East Human Rights Watch is a nongovernmental
organization established in 1978 to monitor and promote the observance of
internationally recognized human rights in Africa, the Americas, Asia, the
Middle East and among the signatories of the Helsinki accords. It is
supported by contributions from private individuals and foundations
worldwide. It accepts no government funds, directly or indirectly. The
staff includes Kenneth Roth, executive director; Cynthia Brown, program
director; Holly J. Burkhalter, advocacy director; Robert Kimzey,
publications director; Jeri Laber, special advisor; Gara LaMarche,
associate director; Lotte Leicht, Brussels Office Director; Juan Mndez,
general counsel; Susan Osnos, communications director; Jemera Rone,
counsel; Joanna Weschler, United Nations representative; and Derrick Wong,
finance and administration director.r. Robert L. Bernstein is the chair of
the board and Adrian W. DeWind is vice chair. Its Middle East division was
established in 1989 to monitor and promote the observance of
internationally recognized human rights in the Middle East and North
Africa. Christopher George is the executive director; Eric Goldstein is
the research director; Aziz Abu Hamad and Virginia N. Sherry are associate
directors; Awali Samara is the associate; and Brian Owsley is the Leonard
Sandler Fellow. Gary Sick is the chair of the advisory committee and Lisa
Anderson and Bruce Rabb are vice chairs |
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