![]() The government of Saudi Arabia arrested a few intellectuals, businessmen and activists last year for the same reason. The punishment included a five-year prison term and a fine of 3 million riyals (US$800,000). In September 2018, the official Twitter account of the Saudi Arabia prosecutors issued a warning to punish those who share anything satirical on social media that "affects public order, religious values and public morals". In 2016, a Saudi man was sentenced to 2,000 lashes, ten years in prison and a fine of 20,000 riyals (US$5,300) for making tweets critical of Islam, and denying the existence of God. However, he was released and returned home in November that year. His family feared the punishment could kill him. In October 2015, UK pensioner and cancer victim Karl Andree, then 74, faced 360 lashes for home brewing alcohol. The case was internationally condemned and put a considerable amount of pressure on the Saudi legal system. The first round (50) were administered on 9 January 2015, but the second round has been postponed due to medical problems. The lashes were due to take place over 20 weeks. In 2014, Saudi blogger Raif Badawi's sentence was increased to 1,000 lashes and ten years' imprisonment after he was accused of apostasy in 2012. In 2009, Mazen Abdul-Jawad was sentenced to 1,000 lashes and five years in prison for bragging on a Saudi TV show about his sexual exploits. Since April 2020, flogging is no longer carried out as a punishment in the Saudi court system. At least five defendants were sentenced to flogging of 1,000 to 2,500 lashes. The courts continue to impose sentences of flogging as a principal or additional punishment for many offences. Saudi Arabia later abolished the punishment of flogging, and replaced it by jail time or fines, or both. The Saudi delegation responded defending "legal traditions" held since the inception of Islam 1,400 years ago and rejected interference in its legal system. In 2004, the United Nations Committee Against Torture criticized Saudi Arabia over the amputations and floggings it carries out under Sharia. The number of lashes is not clearly prescribed by law and is varied according to the discretion of judges, and ranges from dozens of lashes to several hundred, usually applied over a period of weeks or months. In the 2000s, it was reported that women were sentenced to lashes for adultery the women were actually victims of rape, but because they could not prove who the perpetrators were, they were deemed guilty of committing adultery. In April 2020, the Saudi Supreme Court abolished the flogging punishment from its system and replaced it with jail time and fines. In Saudi Arabia's case this includes amputations of hands and feet for robbery, and flogging for lesser crimes such as "sexual deviance" and drunkenness. Saudi Arabia is one of approximately 30 countries in the world with judicial corporal punishment. The 1992 Basic Law sets out the system of governance, rights of citizens, and powers and duties of the government, and it provides that the Quran and Sunnah (the traditions of the Prophet Muhammad) serve as the country's constitution. Saudi Arabia is an absolute monarchy in which all legislative, executive, and judiciary power ultimately rests in the hands of the king, who is both head of state and head of government. ![]() 10 Extraterritorial harassment, forced repatriation, and killing.8.5 Charges of magic, witchcraft, and sorcery.5.1 Guardianship system, segregation, and restrictions.3 Capital punishment and right to representation.subsidiary of Publicis Groupe, has been working with Saudi Arabia amidst its executions of political protesters and opponents for more than a decade to whitewash its record of human rights abuses. On 28 December 2020, the Criminal Court in Riyadh sentenced a prominent Saudi women's rights activist to nearly two years in prison, drawing renewed attention to the kingdom's human rights abuses. The authoritarian regime ruling the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is consistently ranked among the "worst of the worst" in Freedom House's annual survey of political and civil rights. The Saudi government, which mandates both Muslim and non-Muslim observance of Islamic law under the absolute rule of the House of Saud, has been accused of and denounced by various international organizations and governments for violating human rights within the country. Human rights in Saudi Arabia are a topic of concern and controversy. In 2014, Badawi was fined 1,000,000 riyals and sentenced to 10 years in prison and 1000 lashes for "insulting Islam" and "blasphemy". ![]()
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