The Religious Policeman

3 Saudi reformists told they will face trial

Friday, May 21, 2004


RIYADH: Three Saudi reformists who have been in detention for two months will go on trial after authorities turned down a proposal put forward to secure their release, the wife of one of them said.

"Ali al-Demaini, Matrouk al-Faleh and Abdullah al-Hamed were told by a lawyer today that they will be referred to the courts," Demaini's wife, Fawzia al-Ouyuni, told AFP Wednesday after visiting her detained husband in Riyadh.

A dozen had originally been arrested in mid-March, following a political meeting in a hotel. Some were released, after promising to desist from further activity. However the three remaining political prisoners

would not have admitted guilt for signing petitions demanding political reform or other pro-reform activities and would not have undertaken to cease those in future

They will therefore be tried in closed session, with no reporters, jury, or legal representation, in what is called in this country "A Trial", but in any other part of the world is called a "Kangaroo Court". To quote the FAQ from the London Embassy of Saudi Arabia, "The West's judicial system is the result of its own historic evolution and so is Saudi Arabia's. According to Saudi tradition there are no juries, nor are there likely to be in the future. Lawyers are not an integral part of the system. One can bring a lawyer but that is optional. We don't consider the presence of lawyers a prerequisite for the delivery of justice." So what do you think are their chances of an acquittal?

Here's a little test, to see if you've been paying attention to all of this blog so far. Match the act, and what should happen next.

1. You take part in a political meeting in a hotel.

2. You are an adult male and you have sex with a 13-year-old girl.


a) Someone writes a flattering newspaper article about you.

b) You go to prison


If you answered 1b and 2a, well done, you have the mind of a "Muttawa", reward yourself with a shawarma, a smoke, and a snooze.

If you answered 1a and 2b, you're obviously still corrupted by decadent western zionist thinking, you don't understand our unique traditions and culture, go back to the beginning and start again.