On 6 November 2014, human rights defender and writer Mikhlif Al Shammari was sentenced to two years imprisonment and 200 lashes after a single hearing for a tweet stating that he had faith in tolerance between Sunni and Shia and announcing that he will pray for that in a Shia mosque as a sign of solidarity, being himself Sunni. Accused of "stirring up public opinion," Al Shammari's sentence was upheld by the Al Dammam Court of Appeal on 2 November 2015 and his sentence is now enforceable at any time, meaning that the human rights advocate is at risk of arbitrary detention and lashes at any time. In view of the facts and of Al Shammari's impossibility to obtain a fair hearing in his country, Alkarama sent an urgent appeal to the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to Freedom of Opinion and Expression (SR Freedex) requesting him to urge the Saudi authorities to repeal the sentence and abandon all charges against Al Shammari.
This is the second urgent appeal sent by Alkarama to the UN on this case. After the first instance tribunal handed down Al Shammari's sentence on 24 November 2014, Alkarama had sent a first urgent appeal to the SR Freedex as well as to the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders (SR HRD), requesting these UN Special Procedures on human rights to ask the Saudi authorities to drop all charges against him.
Following Alkarama's appeal, in December 2014, several UN Special Procedures had sent an urgent appeal to the Saudi authorities regarding his case and that of other human rights defenders, but their calls were ignored by the Saudi authorities. "In too many cases, the Saudi authorities disregard their international obligations in human rights and ignore calls from independent UN experts to put their policies in line with their commitments," comments Radidja Nemar, Regional Legal Officer for the Gulf at Alkarama.
Al Shammari is a prominent human rights defender in Saudi Arabia, who courageously and relentlessly advocates for the reconciliation between Sunni and Shia communities in the country. Because of his work, he was detained several times, including in 2007, when he was detained for three months without charge after meeting a Saudi Shia cleric; on 15 May 2010, when he was detained for a few hours during which he was questioned about articles he had published criticising anti-Shia discrimination; and on 15 June 2010, when he was again arrested and charged with "troubling others" for having written articles raising attention on corruption and having made public statements in which he criticised anti-Shia feelings. He was released after 21 months of arbitrary detention. Speaking to Alkarama back in 2014, Al Shammari defended his commitment to "work for peace and unity between Sunni and Shi'a communities," adding that he was ready to pay the price for his work on this.
In view of the above Alkarama recommends to the Saudi authorities:
- To commit to their international obligations under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and under the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (UNCAT);
- To respect peaceful activists' right to freedom of expression;
- To drop all charges and repeal sentenced handed as a punishment for peaceful speeches
- To end retaliation against human rights defenders and activists
For more information or an interview, please contact the media team at media@alkarama.org (Dir: +41 22 734 1007 Ext: 810)