In 2012 Blogger Raif Badawi was arrested for his views posted upon his blog "Saudi Arabian Liberals", where he advocated secularism and hosted political and religious debate in the highly charged religious atmosphere of Saudi Arabia. In 2013 Badawi was convicted with the crimes of violating the Kingdom's information technology laws and insulting Islam and was sentenced to seven years behind bars along with 600 lashes to be filled out through his incarceration.
When appealed, Saudi Arabian Courts increased his sentence to ten years and 1,000 lashes. Badawi received his first set of 19 public lashing in January of this year.
However the Raif Badawi story is just one of many when it comes to speaking your mind in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Saudi Courts have recently sentenced to death Palestinian-born poet Ashraf Fayadh for his 2008 book of poetry, " Insructions Within ". Citing his work contained evidence of atheism and destructive thoughts. Originally Fayadh was given the sentence of four years and 800 lashes, however, a new court panel concluded that his punishment was to light and a decision of death was handed out instead.
International outcry over the death penalty urged Western intellectuals and the literary community to hold rallies and sign petitions calling to set Fayadh free. In February their efforts paid-off somewhat as the case was retried for a third time leading to Fayadh receiving an eight year sentence along with 800 lashes.
*Mona Kareen, a New York based writer and friend of Fayadh, is translating the controversial book from Arabic to English for the independent Brooklyn based publishers The Operating System. " Most of it [the book] is about the experience of being a refugee in an oil kingdom. Specifically as Palestinian refugee born and raised in Saudi Arabia. Fayadh challenges [the] common narrative in which migrations end in Western countries. His work calls into question the role of Arab states... Highlights the marginalization of refugees in Arab society. " Mona Kareem goes on to say that Fayadh's poetic protests are inherently political and this is why the government of Saudi Arabia has come after him.
Saudi Arabia is home for 240,000 Palestinian refugees however they are excluded from laws that allow expatriates to purse citizenship and exist in limbo of statelessness. When it comes to other refugees in the Arab Kingdom who break laws many are deported, although, in the case of Ashrah Fayadh, whom is a Palestinian but born and raised in Saudi Arabia, he has no state to be deported too.
Today the 35 year-old poet sits in jai. No longer writes. Preparing for a new process of appeals. Looking at a reality of years of prison. His one and only care is that people don't forget him. But forget him they will. Many don't care about what goes on the other side of the world, about things they no nothing or care about. If the West in looking for change in places like Saudi Arabia they are never going to find it as the governments turn blind eyes to the abuses that are delivered Daily for those trying for change. Obama and other Western governments talk about trying to spur openness and freedom in places such as Iran but continue to allow our supposed allies in the region carte blanche when comes to their own Human Rights Violations.
*Mona Kareem is a researcher for the advocacy group Migrant-Rights.org and is currently a PhD candidate in the Comparative Literature Program at Binghamton University. You can find her at MonaKareem.blogspot.com
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