Activists have declared that Saudi Arabia joining the UN Human Rights Council would be a “slap in the face” for abuses against victims ahead of tomorrow’s vote.
The warning came after it was revealed that the Kingdom carried out a record number of executions this year under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
The Saudi government has continued to try to present itself as a reformed country that has made progress on gender equality and human rights, despite figures revealing that at least 208 people have been executed in the Middle Eastern nation so far. that goes from 2024.
The brutal regime has also given several women long prison sentences, often during secret trials, after they were caught using social media to advocate for more rights and freedoms for women.
One of those women, Manahel al-Otaibi, 30, was sentenced to 11 years in prison for “terrorist crimes” after a Saudi Arabian fitness instructor posted messages about female empowerment online.
This week, Manahel told her family that she had been stabbed in the face with a sharp pen and needed stitches, but when her family tried to report the attack to the Saudi government’s Human Rights Commission, they were allegedly ignored.
The United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva. The heartbreaking figures come as the UN prepares to vote tomorrow on whether to grant the Gulf state membership in the Human Rights council.
At least 208 people have been executed in the Middle Eastern nation so far this year, surpassing the most recent high of 196 in 2022 with almost three months left on the calendar.
Saudi Manahel al-Otaibi, 30, was sentenced to 11 years in prison after posting about female empowerment on social media.
Human rights groups have continued to criticize the country’s supposed progress, citing incidents such as the 2018 murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
Khashoggi, who had been an outspoken critic of the Saudi autocracy, was murdered in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in October 2018. Six years later, the circumstances of his death remain unclear.
More recently, Human Rights Watch has documented that hundreds of Ethiopian migrants were killed while attempting to cross the Yemen-Saudi Arabia border in 2022 and 2023, in what the organization says could be a crime against humanity.
On Wednesday, the UN General Assembly will select 18 new members to serve a three-year term beginning in January 2025.
Saudi Arabia is one of six candidates vying for five seats in the Asia-Pacific group. Other candidates include Cyprus, South Korea, Thailand, Qatar and the Marshall Islands.
Louis Charbonneau, U.N. director for Human Rights Watch, said: “A Saudi victory would be a slap in the face to the many victims of Saudi abuses, including the hundreds of Ethiopian migrants and asylum seekers killed trying to cross the Yemen-Yemen border. Saudi Arabia”. , the victims of war crimes committed by the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen and the family of Jamal Khashoggi.
“If Saudi Arabia wins a seat, council members who value human rights should work hard to prevent it and other abusive governments from undermining the council’s work to expose and address rights violations around the world,” he said.
It comes after Saudi Arabia was chosen in March to chair a UN commission aimed at promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment.
To the dismay of human rights groups around the world, Saudi Arabia’s envoy to the UN, Abdulaziz Alwasil, was elected president of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) in an unopposed election in the group’s annual meeting in New York.
Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi had been an outspoken critic of Saudi autocracy and was murdered in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in October 2018.
Saudi Arabia’s UN envoy Abdulaziz Alwasil (pictured) was elected president of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) in an unopposed race.
Saudi Arabia has an impressive record on gender equality (File Image)
Saudi lawmakers passed a law in 2022 that claims to have increased the ‘personal status’ of women in the nation (File Image)
Currently, the council has 47 member states that are responsible for addressing human rights violations around the world. If the Saudi attempt to join the council is successful, it will likely be seen as a major victory for MBS.
She even received the backing of a group of Asia-Pacific states on the commission, despite her nation’s notorious record on gender equality, which human rights groups were quick to point out.
Charbonneau added at the time: ‘Saudi Arabia’s election as chair of the UN Commission on the Status of Women shows a shocking disregard for women’s rights around the world.
‘A country that imprisons women simply because they defend their rights has no business being the face of the UN’s main forum for women’s rights and gender equality.
“Saudi authorities should demonstrate that this honor is not completely undeserved and immediately release all detained women’s rights defenders, end male guardianship and guarantee women’s full right to equality with men.”
Saudi lawmakers passed a law in 2022 that claims to have increased the “personal status” of women in the nation.
But the law explicitly says that a woman must obtain permission from a male guardian to marry.
It also says that a wife must obey her husband in a “reasonable manner” and states that her husband’s financial support depends on her “obedience.”
A husband may withdraw financial support for reasons including refusing to have sexual relations with him, living in a matrimonial home, or traveling with him without a “legitimate excuse.”
Human Rights Watch noted that a woman who leaves the marital home can lose custody of her child if the “best interests” of the child, which are not defined, require it.
But not only is Saudi Arabia known for its treatment of women, it was recently revealed that the Gulf Arab state is firmly in the top five countries where the death penalty is most frequently used, despite Prince Heir Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS) pledged to reduce the death penalty. execution rate.
Human Rights Watch noted that a woman who leaves the marital home can lose custody of her child if the ‘best interests’ of the child, which are not defined, require it (File image)
A husband may withdraw financial support for reasons including refusing to have sex with him (File Image)
A Saudi woman preparing to start a driving lesson. Vision 2030 was launched in 2016 by MBS as part of a bid to diversify the petrostate’s economy and create a “vibrant society.” As part of this liberalization, women were allowed the right to drive in 2018.
Since assuming the role of Crown Prince in 2015, MBS has overseen at least 1,447 executions and, despite a moratorium on the use of the death penalty for minor crimes in 2020, instances of capital punishment reached a monthly record of 41 in August. and 32 last month.
If the nation’s attempt to join the council is successful, it will likely be seen as a major victory for MBS. He has been working to change international opinions about Saudi Arabia as part of his Vision 2030 plan.
Vision 2030 was launched in 2016 by MBS as part of an attempt to diversify the petrostate’s economy away from its dependence on oil. The program also pledges to create a “more vibrant society.”
On paper, many of the reforms overseen by MBS have liberalized much of civil society, such as allowing women the right to drive in 2018 and lifting the ban on public cinemas that same year.
Amnesty International has also stated that citizens in Saudi Arabia continue to be illegally imprisoned on a regular basis without the possibility of challenging the legality of their detention.
