A prominent Saudi Arabian women’s rights activist whose arrest and alleged torture drew international condemnation was convicted of crimes against the state, but could be freed from prison early next year, according to her family.
Loujain al-Hathloul, 31, on Monday was found guilty by a court in Riyadh of inciting regime change, seeking to serve foreign agendas through the Internet with the goal of harming public order and cooperating with individuals and entities criminalized by the kingdom’s anti-terrorism law, the online Saudi Arabian newspaper Sabq reported.
She was sentenced to five years and eight months in prison, but accounting for time served since her arrest in May 2018, and a partial sentence suspension of two years and 10 months, she could be released in about two months, her sister Lina al-Hathloul wrote on Twitter.
Photo: Reuters / Marieke Wijntjes
She was also banned from traveling abroad for five years, and both the public prosecutor and her family can appeal the sentence, Lina al-Hathloul said.
The partially suspended sentence is likely to be viewed as a nod —- but not a complete capitulation — to foreign pressure ahead of the transition to US president-elect Joe Biden’s administration, which is expected to be less tolerant of the kingdom’s human rights record.
Biden has said he wouild treat Saudi Arabia as a “pariah” over rights concerns after the kingdom enjoyed a particularly friendly relationship with US President Donald Trump.
In an early indication that Biden might not be easily placated by such Saudi Arabian moves, Jake Sullivan, Biden’s choice for national security adviser, wrote on Twitter on Monday that al-Hathloul’s conviction “for simply exercising her universal rights is unjust and troubling.”
A US Department of State spokesman expressed concern about the sentence as well.
“We’ve emphasized the importance of free expression and peaceful activism in Saudi Arabia as it advances women’s rights,” spokesman Cale Brown wrote on Twitter. “We look forward to her anticipated early release in 2021.”
Adam Coogle, deputy director of the Middle East and North African division for US-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) said that “Saudi Arabia convicting a prominent human rights activist between Christmas and New Year’s shows they are trying to minimize attention because they are embarrassed over their treatment of Loujain, and they should be.”
He called it a “travesty of justice” that “reveals the depths to which they will go to root out independent voices.”
Another sister, Alia al-Hathloul, saw a bittersweet victory.
“I was upset about the ruling, but when I saw that everyone was congratulating me and everyone was excited for Loujain to leave prison within months, I realized that people consider this verdict a victory for Loujain and everyone understands that the government needs to save face,” she said.
Loujain al-Hathloul’s arrest made global headlines, as did allegations of torture in custody that were denied by Saudi officials.
Detained shortly before Saudi Arabia ended its ban on women driving after advocating for that reform for years, she became a symbol of the complexities of the new kingdom being fashioned by Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman
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