There are 30,000 or more prisoners of conscience in the gaols and detention centres in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, who have been languishing in there for between two and twenty years. They are subjected to numerous violations of both Shari’a and acknowledged legal codes. These violations are listed at the end of this communiqué.
We, the relatives of the detainees, tried to petition those responsible through official channels but our complaints were ignored. We sought help from religious scholars to no avail. Having exhausted these means, we decided to take our grievances to the office of the Minister of Interior but were attacked and some of us were detained and are still incarcerated.
We believe that our loved ones are innocent and should be freed. We have now decided to make our voice heard through a peaceful and orderly vigil hoping the issue will attract local and international attention which might facilitate a speedy end to their anguish.The vigil will be held outside five designated mosques after Friday prayer on the 16th of December. A list of these locations is listed below.
Through this announcement we like to emphasise the following:
1. The gatherings are orderly and peaceful. We reject the use of violence and we disassociate ourselves, as of now, from any call for violence and disorder that might falsely be attributed to us.
2. The people behind this call are made of the relatives of the detainees and those sympathisers who are concerned with civil and human rights. We reject beforehand any talk of “foreign agendas” and political aims. We are not to be held responsible for statements from anyone not authorised by our group to speak on our behalf.
3. We ask all those joining our vigil to refrain from raising any slogans or demands outside our immediate demand of releasing our detainees.
4. We call upon all those concerned with civil and political rights to come to our aid and support our vigil audibly and disseminate the news of the event.
5. We call upon international rights activists and organisations to spread awareness of our vigil through media venues worldwide.
The vigils are to be held outside the following mosques on Friday 16th of December:
Riyadh, Al-Rajihi mosque.
Jeddah, Al-Lami mosque
Al-Jawf, Al-Subai’i mosque.
Ash-Sharqiyya, Al-Julwiyyah mosque
Abha, King Abdul-Aziz mosque.
Violations of Shari’a and legal procedures committed by the Ministry of Interior.
1. Arrests in most cases were conducted outside the hours allowed by criminal code which are between sunrise and sunset and were of the nature of abduction and armed raids involving terrorising the detainees’ household members and physical abuse.
2. In almost all cases the detainee was not informed of the reasons for his arrest nor is he shown any warrant. They were not even told who is arresting them and where are they taken them to.
3. After the arrest, the inquisitors do not inform the detainees of their legal rights, neither are they allowed a lawyer. They are not even told the nature the charges against them.
4. After the arrest is made and during the period of questioning the detainee is not allowed to contact his relatives.
5. The detainees are subjected to various levels psychological and physical torture.
6. The questioning is conducted by the General Investigation Authority and not the public prosecutor office as required by law.
7. The detainees are kept beyond the prescribed time for charging them and referring them to trial which is six months.
8. After the said six months period has expired, detainees should be set free, by law.
9. In response to local and international pressure, a few detainees were put on trial in breach of the law for their detention has passed the maximum time limit.
10. They were put before kangaroo courts where they accused of peculiar crimes and received even more peculiar sentences.
11. When some detainees were allowed visits by their relatives, the visitors were insulted, physically harmed and humiliated. Women, children and elderly visitors were equally maltreated. In this regard we refer you to many tales of suffering including that of Azza Al-Zahrani whose arm was broken.
12. The authorities disregarded completely the fact that many relatives and family members are dependent on the financial, social and moral support of the detainees, thus heaping material and moral suffering on family members.
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