Just Another Day in Saudi #2

From today's Arab News:

Dissenters Get Six to Nine Years in Jail

Rasheed Abou-Alsamh, Arab News

RIYADH, 16 May 2005 — The Riyadh Higher Court yesterday sentenced three reformists to jail terms ranging from six to nine years for sowing dissent and disobeying the ruler.

Three judges at the court, which was ringed by security forces, issued their verdict after a nine-month trial which was conducted almost entirely behind closed doors.

The court sentenced academics Ali Al-Dumaini to nine years in jail, Abdullah Al-Hamed to seven years, and Matruk Al-Faleh to six years in jail.
All have been imprisoned for more than a year after being arrested in March 2004. The prosecutors had accused them of using Western terminology in calling for reforms.

“I’m in shock,” said an obviously upset Jamila Al-Ukala, the wife of Al-Faleh, as she talked to supporters and reporters outside the courthouse.

“They didn’t commit a crime. From the beginning there was no evidence against them,” said Ameer Al-Faleh, the 23-year-old son of Al-Faleh. “The whole case is just about thoughts, that were just ink on paper.”

Lawyer Ali Gothaimi said the three would appeal the decision within a month.

Al-Dumaini reportedly got the harshest sentence because of his criticism of the Saudi educational system.

According to Gothaimi, the panel of judges found that the men had overstepped the bounds by speaking to the foreign media, intended to incite people against the government and defamed officials. They also accused the trio of challenging the independence of the judiciary.

But Al-Ukala denied these charges.

Police kept a close watch yesterday on the relatives and supporters of the three, who had quietly started to gather outside the courthouse from eight in the morning. By 9:15 a.m., the police tried to move the crowd of around 35 people, including six women, four children and around 10 journalists, further away from the courthouse. The crowd was eventually funneled onto a side street, where everyone waited for more than three hours in the dusty heat until the verdict was announced.

Although the hearing was supposedly open to the public, only lawyer Khaled Al-Mutairi was actually allowed into the courtroom.