 |
| From: |
American Political Science Association |
| Re: |
Call for Urgent Action on Behalf of Saudi Political Scientist |
| Date: |
May 30th 2008 |
The Committee on Professional Ethics, Rights and Freedoms of the American Political Science Association (APSA) urges action on behalf of Dr. Matrouk al-Faleh, professor of political science at the Kind Saud University in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. What follows is an abbreviated capsule of the situation as it is understood by the Committee and is drawn from the sources as cited which can provide more detail.
Background
Although some of facts remain unclear, and the personal situation may have changed, it has become clear from a “human call from King Saud University, Political Science Department [in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia] to all Political Science departments and all civil society organizations in the United States,” various press reports (notably The Washington Post and CNN), and notices from Human Rights Watch (http://www.hrw.org/english/docs/2008/05/21/saudia 18895.htm) and Amnesty International (uan@aiusa.org amnestyusa.org/urgent/) that Dr. Matrouk al-Faleh, an academic and human rights activist, was apparently taken into custody by the Saudi Interior Ministry on May 19, 2008, on the premises of King Saud University in Riyadh, where he teaches political science. The message from the Political Science Department listed the following phone contact numbers: Director of the Department 00966 4674208; Secretary of the Department 00966 4674209 or 00966 4674201 and fax 00966 4674207.
Dr. al-Faleh’s arrest reportedly took place two days after he publicly criticized conditions in a prison where two other Saudi human rights activists (the brothers Isaa and Dr. Abdullah al-Hamid) are serving jail terms after having been found guilty of “incitement to protest” after they took part in what was reported by Amnesty International as a peaceful demonstration outside Buraida prison, north of Riyadh, by women relatives of political detainees held at the prison.
The Saudi Arabian authorities have thus far not disclosed publicly the reason for Dr. Matrouk al-Faleh’s arrest, but it may be connected to the publication on May 17, 2008 of an article he wrote following his visit to al-Buraida prison in which he referred to Dr. Abdullah and Issa al-Hamid, and criticized their harsh and overcrowded prison conditions. Dr. al-Faleh was previously arrested in March 2004 after calling for political reform, and was sentenced to six years imprisonment in May 2005 on charges that included “sowing dissent and disobeying the ruler” (see Amnesty International’s May 20, 2008 “Urgent Action”). He was released after being granted a royal pardon by King Abdullah on August 8, 2005. Since his release he has not been permitted to travel abroad.
As part of a broader context provided from Human Rights Watch, it is worth noting that in May 2006, Saudi Arabia was elected to a three-year term on the United Nations Human Rights Council after pledging its “confirmed commitment with the defense, protection and promotion of human right [sic],” including by a “policy of active cooperation with international [human rights] organization.” Human Rights Watch also notes that Article 32 of the Arab Charter of Human Rights, which Saudi Arabia signed in 2004, and which the Shura Council (appointed parliament) ratified in March 2008, guarantees the freedom of opinion and expression and “the right to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media, regardless of frontiers.” In addition, the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders adopted by the United National General Assembly in 1998 specifies that everyone has the right “[t]o communicate with non-governmental or intergovernmental organizations” (Article 5), and “freely to publish, impart or disseminate to others views, information and knowledge on all human rights and fundamental freedoms” (Article 6).
For anyone wishing to address Dr. Matrouk al-Faleh’s case, as well as the brothers Isaa and Dr. Abdullah al-Hamid, Amnesty International has provided contact information for Saudi Arabian authorities:
PLEASE WRITE TO:
His Majesty King Abdullah Bin ‘Abdul ‘Azziz Al-Saud
The Custodian of the two Holy Mosques
Office of His Majesty The King
Royal Court
Riyadh
KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA
Salutation: Your Majesty
His Royal Highness Prince Naif bin ‘Abdul ‘Azziz Al-Saud
Minister of the Interior
Ministry of the Interior
P.O. Box 2933
Airport Road
Riyadh 11134
KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA
Fax: 011 966 1 403 1185
011 966 1 403 3614
Salutation: Your Royal Highness
His Royal Highness Prince Saud al-Faisal bin ‘Abdul ‘Azziz Al-Saud
Minister of Foreign Affairs
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Nasseriya Street
Riyadh 11124
KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA
Fax: 011 966 1 403 0645
Salutation: Your Royal Highness
COPIES TO:
Mr. Turki bin Khaled Al-Sudairy
The President
The Human Rights Commission
P.O. Box 58889, Riyadh 11515
King Fahad Road
Building No. 373
Riyadh
KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA
Fax: 011 966 1 4612061
Ambassador Adel A. Al-Jubeir
Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia
601 New Hampshire Avenue N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20037
Fax: 1 202 944 3113
Email: info@saudiembassy.net
Please let the Association know that you have taken action, by sending copies of your letters (mail, fax, or email) to the following:
Jeffrey Biggs
Director, Congressional Fellowship Program
American Political Science Association
1527 New Hampshire Ave., NW
Washington, DC 20036-1206
p: 202.483.2512 | f: 202.483.2657
www.apsanet.org
This Action Alert was posted by the AAAS Science and Human Rights Program on behalf of the Committee on Professional Ethics, Rights and Freedoms of the American Political Science Association (APSA).
(page updated 05/30/2008)
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