Page 30 - bon-dia-aruba-20201229

A30 world news
Diamars 29 December 2020

Saudi women's rights activist sentenced to nearly 6 years

launched campaigns calling
for her release.

The prosecutor had called for
the maximum sentence of 20
years, citing evidence such as
al-Hathloul's tweets in sup-
port of lifting a decades-long
ban on women driving and
speaking out against male
guardianship laws that had
led to multiple instances of
Saudi women fleeing abusive
families for refuge abroad.
Al-Hathloul's family said the
prosecutor's evidence includ-
ed her contacts with rights
group Amnesty Internation-
al. She was also charged with
speaking to European dip-
lomats about human rights
in Saudi Arabia, though that
was later dropped by the
prosecutor.

The longtime activist was
first detained in 2014 under
the previous monarch, King
Abdullah, and held for more
than 70 days after she at-
tempted to livestream herself
driving from the United Arab
(AP) — One of Saudi Biden has vowed to review rorism laws,” her sister, Lina fer to rescind her allegations Emirates to Saudi Arabia to
Arabia’s most prominent the U.S.-Saudi relationship al-Hathloul, said in a state- of torture in exchange for protest the ban on women
women’s rights activists and take into greater con- ment. “My sister is not a ter- early release, according to her driving.
was sentenced Monday to sideration human rights and rorist, she is an activist. To be family. A court recently dis-
nearly six years in prison, democratic principles. He sentenced for her activism for missed her allegations, citing She's also spoken out against
according to state-linked has also vowed to reverse the very reforms that MBS a lack of evidence. guardianship laws that barred
media, under a vague and President Donald Trump’s and the Saudi kingdom so women from traveling abroad
broadly worded counter- policy of giving Saudi Ara- proudly tout is the ultimate Among other allegations without the consent of a male
terrorism law. The ruling bia “a blank check to pursue hypocrisy,” she said, referring was that one of the masked relative, such as a father, hus-
nearly brings to a close a a disastrous set of policies,” to the Saudi crown prince by interrogators was Saud al- band or brother. The king-
case that has drawn inter- including the targeting of fe- his initials. Qahtani, a close confidante dom eased guardianship laws
national criticism and the male activists. and advisor to Crown Prince last year, allowing women to
ire of U.S. lawmakers. Jake Sullivan, Biden's incom- Sabq, which said its report- Mohammed bin Salman at apply for a passport and travel
ing national security adviser, er was allowed inside the the time. Al-Qahtani was freely.
Loujain al-Hathloul has al- called the sentencing of al- courtroom, reported that the later sanctioned by the U.S.
ready been in pre-trial deten- Hathloul “unjust and trou- judge said the defendant had for his alleged role in the Her activism landed her mul-
tion and has endured several bling." confessed to committing the murder of Saudi writer Jamal tiple human rights awards
stretches of solitary confine- crimes and that her confes- Khashoggi in the kingdom’s and spreads in magazines
ment. Her continued im- “As we have said, the Biden- sions were made voluntarily consulate in Turkey. like Vanity Fair in a photo
prisonment was likely to be Harris administration will and without coercion. The shoot next to Meghan Mar-
a point of contention in rela- stand up against human rights report said the verdict was While more than a dozen kle, who would later become
tions between the kingdom violations wherever they oc- issued in the presence of the other Saudi women’s rights the Duchess of Sussex. She
and the incoming presidency cur,“ he said in a tweet. prosecutor, the defendant, a activists face trial, have spent was also a Nobel Peace Prize
of Joe Biden, whose inaugu- representative from the gov- time in prison or remain nominee.
ration takes place in January Al-Hathloul was found ernment’s Human Rights jailed, al-Hathloul’s case
— around two months be- guilty and sentenced to five Commission and a handful stood out in part because she Al-Hathloul’s family say in
fore what is now expected to years and eight months by of select local media repre- was the only female rights 2018, shortly after attending
be al-Hathloul’s release date. the kingdom’s anti-terrorism sentatives. activist to be referred to the a U.N.-related meeting in
court on charges of agitating Specialized Criminal Court, Geneva about the situation
Rights group “Prisoners of for change, pursuing a for- The 31-year-old Saudi activist which tries terrorism cases. of women’s rights in Saudi
Conscience,” which focuses eign agenda, using the inter- has long been defiantly out- Arabia, she was kidnapped
on Saudi political detainees, net to harm public order and spoken about human rights In many ways, her case came by Emirati security forces in
said al-Hathloul could be re- cooperating with individuals in Saudi Arabia, even from to symbolize Prince Mo- Abu Dhabi, where she'd been
leased in March 2021 based and entities that have com- behind bars. She launched hammed's dual strategy of residing and pursuing a mas-
on time served. She has been mitted crimes under anti-ter- hunger strikes to protest her being credited for ushering ter’s degree. She was then
imprisoned since May 2018, ror laws, according to state- imprisonment and joined in sweeping social reforms forced on a plane to Saudi
and 34 months of her sen- linked Saudi news site Sabq. other female activists in tell- and simultaneously cracking Arabia, where she was barred
tencing will be suspended. The charges all come under ing Saudi judges that she was down on activists who had from traveling and later ar-
the country’s broadly worded tortured and sexually assault- long pushed for change. rested.
Her family said in a state- counterterrorism law. ed by masked men during in- While some activists and
ment she will be barred from terrogations. The women say their families have been pres- Al-Hathloul was among
leaving the kingdom for five She has 30 days to appeal the they were caned, electrocut- sured into silence, al-Hath- three female activists targeted
years and required to serve verdict. ed and waterboarded. Some loul’s siblings, who reside in that year by state-linked me-
three years of probation after say they were forcibly groped the U.S. and Europe, consis- dia, which circulated her pic-
her release. “She was charged, tried and and threatened with rape. tently spoke out against the ture online and dubbed her a
convicted using counter-ter- Al-Hathloul rejected an of- state prosecutor’s case and traitor.