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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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| 1996 United Nations Report on Human Rights
Violations in Saudi Arabia |
| QUESTION OF THE VIOLATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS
AND FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS IN ANY PART OF THE WORLD, WITH PARTICULAR
REFERENCE TO COLONIAL AND OTHER DEPENDENT COUNTRIES AND TERRITORIES
Extra judicial, summary or arbitrary executions Report by the
Special Rapporteur, Mr. Bacre Waly Ndiaye, submitted pursuant to
Commission on Human Rights resolution 1995/73In view of its length, the
present document is being issued in the original language only, the
Conference Services Division of the United Nations Office at Geneva having
insufficient capacity to translate documents that greatly exceed the
32-page limit recommended by the General Assembly (see Commission
resolution 1993/94, para. 1)
A. General
26. This chapter gives an account of actions undertaken by the Special
Rapporteur between 25 November 1994 and 25 November 1995, on the basis of
reports and allegations concerning violations of the right to life, from a
variety of sources. It also describes the replies received from
Governments to his communications and, where appropriate, contains
observations and comments of the Special Rapporteur.
27. The dates of the communications are included in parenthesis, unless
otherwise stated. Communications described as "allegations
transmitted" or "cases sent" were transmitted to the
Government on various occasions during the year, mainly in May, September
and October 1995. The follow-up section includes those letters sent to the
Governments requesting further details on the allegations, and reminders
of cases to which the Government has not yet provided a reply.
Communications from the Governments which have reached the Special
Rapporteur's office after 25 November 1995 will be included in his report
to the Commission on Human Rights at its fifty-third session.
28. Owing to restrictions on the length of this document, the
Special Rapporteur has been obliged to reduce significantly details of
communications sent and received. In many of the cases, only the names of
the victims are listed and a short reference to the Government's reply is
reflected in the report. In this context, the Special Rapporteur would
like to refer to requests received from some Member States to publish, as
part of his report, extensive responses regarding specific cases and other
matters. These (page 12)requests could not be acceded to due to the severe
limitations applied to the length of his report. However, this information
is available for consultation through the offices of the secretariat of
the Commission.
Saudi Arabia
421. According to the information received by the Special Rapporteur,
there has been a sharp increase in the number of executions carried out in
1995 by the Government of Saudi Arabia. In addition, information received
by the Special Rapporteur suggests that 70 per cent of the persons
executed in the past three years were foreigners; prisoners facing the
death penalty are denied the right to counsel; confessions are allegedly
obtained under torture and then accepted by the courts as evidence; and
that in general, the legal proceedings preceding their convictions do not
conform to international safeguards guaranteeing a fair trial.
Allegations transmitted:
422. The Special Rapporteur sent two urgent appeals to the Government of
Saudi Arabia, both concerning death sentences reportedly imposed after a
trial falling short of international standards for a fair trial:
 | a. Mehmet Nuri Koseoglu, Seyfettin Erkut, Ahmet Mulayim and
Fevzi Dana, of Turkish nationality (22 August 1995). In the same
urgent appeal, the Special Rapporteur expressed his concern about the
fate of 40 additional individuals, also of Turkish nationality, 20 of
whom were reported to be on death row, whereas the other 20 were
facing charges which carry capital punishment. The persons referred to
in the appeal are the following: Muhammed Aktas, Muhammet Kinci, Bekir
Kaplan, Abdullah Besik, Halil Bozhurt, Cevat Kart, Nizamettin Las,
Ismet Harci, Halil Karat, Ibrahim Akdalga, Abdussamet Arslan, Kemal
Sabir, Halil Temurci, Bekir Kidan, Ferit Bostanci, Tashsin Danmas,
Hilal Rende, Ziyad Akar, Ramazan Teke, Ali Say, Hasan Bozkurt, Hikmat
Karanfil, Vechi Buyukasik, Cafer Keles, Ahmet Vemir, Nebil Cabir,
Mustafa Bilge, Rasit Kartal, Yeter Merakli, Adem Ozhurt, Osman Eren,
Ayhan Kilic, Mustafa Kir, Abdulkadir Gulmus, Ali Kaya, Mehmet
Sinanoglu, Fazil Oklu, Asaf Milli and Yalcin Porat;
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| b. Muhammad Jamal 'Ali, 'Abd al-qadir Muhammad Muqtar, Faqay
Haji Cusman, Sali Id Farah Yacqub, Muhammad Nur Muhammad, Muhammad Abu
'Abd al-Qadir Ade and 'Abd al-'Aziz Muhammad Isse, of Somali
nationality, who were reportedly sentenced to death in 1994 for the
alleged murder of three persons. All of them were reported to have
insisted on their innocence, and it was said that 'Abd al-'Aziz
Muhammad Isse was not in the country at the (page 100) time when the
crime was committed (2 May 1995). The Special Rapporteur learned with
regret that two of the above-mentioned individuals, Sali Id F. Yacqub
and Muhammad Nur Muhammad, were executed. |
423. The Special Rapporteur, in 1995, also transmitted to the
Government allegations he had received concerning the summary execution of
Abdullah 'Abd Al-Rahman Al-Hudhayf on 12 August 1995. According to
information received, the aforementioned person had initially been
sentenced to 20 years' imprisonment, but for unknown reasons his sentence
was later increased to capital punishment by a court in Riyadh.
Observations:
424. The Special Rapporteur regrets that no replies had been received from
the Government. He remains concerned about the recurrence of reported
death sentences in Saudi Arabia. He is particularly dismayed about the
reported death sentences imposed on foreigners after trials which take
place without affording the accused the right to counsel and the right to
interpretation. He urges the Government of Saudi Arabia to ensure that the
procedures applicable during trials leading to the possible imposition of
capital punishment comply with the provisions contained in the relevant
international instruments. |
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