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On 3 March 2010, Mr Thamer Alkhodr was arrested by security agents before being detained without charge or trial to date, in spite of a Saudi Court’s decision ordering the immediate end to his detention. On 2 August 2011, Alkarama sent updated information to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention and the Special Rapporteur on Torture regarding Mr Thamer Al-Khodr’s arbitrary detention.
Background information
Mr Alkhodr is a human rights defender and the son of Dr. Abdelkarim Alkhodr, Professor of Comparative Jurisprudence and founding member of the Association of Civil and Political Rights in Saudi Arabia.
Mr Alkhodr and his father are both well-known human rights defenders in Saudi Arabia, having on several occasions called for the promulgation of the Saudi constitution and political reforms. On 8 March 2008, they published an appeal denouncing the inhumane conditions inside Al-Burayda prison, where prisoners of conscience and political detainees often remain without trial for several years; such as is the case with Dr Abdullah Al-Hamed and his brother Aissa, both members of the Saudi Reform Movement and imprisoned since 8 March 2008.
On 3 March 2010, Mr Thamer Alkhodr was arrested by agents from the Al-Qassim intelligence services. He was then taken to Al Hayr prison where he was detained in incommunicado detention and subjected to severe acts of torture. On 21 June 2010, Mr Alkhodr was transferred to Al-Qassim prison where he remains detained without any legal proceedings to date, nearly 19 months after his arrest.
Before this arrest, Mr Alkhodr's family was verbally harassed for several days by agents of the local security services. They were most likely targeted due to their activities as human rights defenders.
Mr Alkhodr's arrest should be viewed in the context of human rights activities against arbitrary arrests and detention in the country. Indeed, his arrest is clearly linked to his activities as well as his father's human rights activities and more particularly for having exercised their right to freedom of expression and association, in violation of article 19 and 20 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
The Board of Grievances’s decision:
On 8 June 2011, the First Administrative Circuit Court in the Riyadh Board of Grievances (Diwan Al Mazalem) issued a verdict against the Directorate of General Investigations (DGI) in Thamer Alkhodr's Arbitrary Detention Case. This Court ruled that Thamer Alkhodr is arbitrarily detained by the DGI, and that he must be released.
The Court verdict was based on article (114) of the Saudi Criminal Procedure Law, which states: "The detention shall end with the passage of five days, unless the Investigator sees fit to extend the detention period. In that case, he shall, prior to expiry of that period, refer the file to the Chairman of the branch of Bureau of Investigation and Prosecution in the relevant province so that he may issue an order for extending the period of the detention for a period or successive periods provided that they do not exceed in their aggregate forty days from the date of arrest, or otherwise release the accused. In cases that require detention for a longer period, the matter shall be referred to the Director of the Bureau of Investigation and Prosecution to issue an order that the arrest be extended for a period or successive periods none of which shall exceed thirty days and their aggregate shall not exceed six months from the date of arrest of the accused. Thereafter, the accused shall be directly transferred to the competent court, or be released". This decision confirms that the detention of Mr Thamer Alkhodr by DGI is outside the authority of domestic law, as clarified in our initial communication of 7 February 2011 to the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention.
According to our sources, the DGI's lawyers failed to attend any of the four hearings held, in clear disrespect of the Court.
Mr Alkhodr’s detention conditions
Following three months and 16 days of incommunicado detention, Mr Al Alkhodr’s family was able to visit him but under surveillance. Furthermore, during these visits, Mr Al-Khodr’s family members were subjected to persecution by agents of Al Qassim prison who verbally harassed them for hours. Mr Alkhodr’s family is sometimes forbidden from visiting him.
During his detention, Mr Al-Khodr has been subjected to many acts of torture, threatened in various ways and was kept in incommunicado solitary confinement for long periods in his cell. Furthermore, Mr Alkhodr is suffering from his bad health conditions and is prevented from all sort of medical care.
Alkarama calls on the Saudi authorities to take the necessary measures to ensure Mr Thamer Alkhodr’s immediate release, to refrain from any torture and mistreatment, and that he be compensated for having been arbitrarily detained. The Saudi authorities should respect their engagements according to domestic and international law.