Saudia Arabia: New wave of repression sweeps through kingdom - new report

[dipsydoodle]

Source: Amnesty International

The last nine months has seen a new wave of repression in Saudi Arabia as the authorities have cracked down on protesters and reformists, Amnesty International said today as it published a new report on the issue.

In Saudi Arabia: Repression in the Name of Security, the organisation says hundreds of people have been arrested for demonstrating, while the government has drafted an anti-terror law that would effectively criminalise dissent as a "terrorist crime” and further strip away rights from those accused of such offences.

Amnesty said that since February, when sporadic demonstrations began - in defiance of a permanent national ban on protests - the government has carried out a crackdown that has included the arrest of hundreds of mostly Shi’a Muslims in the restive Eastern Province. Since March over 300 people who took part in peaceful protests in al-Qatif, al-Ahsa and Awwamiya have been detained, either at demonstrations or shortly afterwards. Most have been released, often after pledging not to protest again. Many face travel bans.

Elsewhere in the country, protests have been stifled by warnings from the Interior Ministry that the authorities would “take all necessary measures” against those who tried to “disrupt order”. Those individuals who have demonstrated have been swiftly arrested.

Read more: http://www.amnesty.org.uk/news_details.asp?NewsID=19838

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News picked actually up here but thought it simpler to use Amnesty's link :

Thursday 1 December

1.38pm GMT / 8.38am EST: The Saudi embassy in London has accused Amnesty of basing its criticism of repression in the Kingdom on "inaccurate information".

Amnesty's report entitled Repression in the Name of Security (see 8.20am) said Saudi Arabia was trying to criminalize dissent in proposals that would treat activists as terrorists.

The embassy pointed out that the plans referred to were still draft proposals.

Amnesty also expressed concern about the arrest of hundreds of mostly Shia people during peaceful protests in the restive eastern province since March.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/middle-east-live/2011/dec/01/egypt-election-results-live-updates

[Arctic Dave]

1. But women can drive now!

Isnt that enough freedom?


And yet our government says nothing. Hypocracy is a blatant.

[AlecBGreen]

2. hmm...

...the government has drafted an anti-terror law that would effectively criminalise dissent as a "terrorist crime” and further strip away rights from those accused of such offences.

I would not be surprised to see this in the US in the years to come

[JCMach1]

3. Meanwhile, they are locking up bloggers in the UAE...

and the propaganda in thick this National Day (UAE Independence day).

[TBF]

4. We'd better start bombing -

oh, wait, all the lucrative oil contract are already in place. Never mind.

[tcaudilllg]

5. No word of this on CNN as it happened, nor MSNBC.

[TBF]

6. Do you trust the M$M? I'll go with the Amnesty Intl report. nt

[bvar22]

7. What?

Surely we have some Humanitarian Freedom Bombs left over from the annexation of Libya? :shrug:

[Nihil]

8. On past performance ...

... that just means that the US will bomb some random nation with only
the most tenous link to the problem ...

Actually, after a quick check of the atlas, we find that they've already
been bombing several of SA's neighbours over the years - Yemen, Iraq,
Sudan & Somalia - so maybe it will just take a slightly larger lead in
the polls for Egypt to be treated to a consolation dose of "freedom"
in the place that should have been reserved for Saudi Arabia back in 2001?

:shrug: