Nicosia: Saudi Arab Insisting on reforming its rigid justice system, but weighing heavily on the implementation of reforms and tougher treatment of dissidents, raising the question of how much will change.
The state is known for its strict interpretation of Islamic Sharia law, which forms the basis of its judicial system.
But in recent months it has moved forward with reforms that analysts say could make its courts function like other courts in the Middle East.
The effort hinges on a series of new laws for sensitive issues such as women’s right to divorce and the power of judges to determine criminal punishment.
Declared last year by the Crown as the de facto ruler Prince Mohammed The measures, including bin Salman, the first written penal code, appear to align with Saudi Arabia’s goal of opening up the world and softening its extremist image.
Even critics believe the changes could make Saudi courts more predictable in some cases.
But there is no hope that restrictions on freedom of expression will be reduced, or that the legal system will treat perceived opponents of the government more favorably.
And despite the reforms, officials are simultaneously reminding of what gave Saudi Arabia its brutal reputation in the first place, most notably the mass executions of 81 men in a single day in March for crimes related to “terrorism.”
The Saudi cabinet has already approved two new laws. The first controls the admissibility of evidence at the discretion of the judges.
The second, a family law, is to take effect in June. In a traditionally male-dominated system, it extends the rights of divorced women to alimony and custody of their children.
Announcing the new law in March, Prince Mohammed said it represented “a huge qualitative leap” for women’s rights and “family stability”.
Adel al-Saeed, vice president of the European Saudi Organization for Human Rights, said the reforms appeared to partly cater to foreign firms whose investments in the kingdom are increasing.
“Capital owners are afraid to invest in this country, which is notorious in the legal aspect, so these laws are aimed at changing the image,” he said.
The new penal code, which is yet to be unveiled, could bring about more dramatic changes.
Under Sharia, only apostasy, theft, rebellion, armed robbery, adultery, drinking and slander have prescribed sentences. It is left to the judges to determine the punishment in other cases.
With a penal code, “states would expect judges to rely not on their own training in Sharia but on state-approved legal rules (based on Sharia),” said Nathan Brown, an academic at George Washington University.
“As a result, Saudi Arabia will look like a civil law system, like most states in the region,” said Brown, who studies Saudi reforms.
The result should be more “predictable”, Abdullah Aloudh, a US-based legal expert and government critic, said, adding that the new rules “take away from the exemptions … that judges used to have”.
But strict regulation by the monarchy also “creates a bigger problem: the lack of independence”, he said.
The king is the head of the Saudi judiciary and serves as the final court of appeal.
Aloudh’s own father, prominent cleric Salman al-Awda, has been held since 2017, in what appears to be retaliation for a Twitter post that clashed with Saudi Arabia’s policy at the time of the separation of Qatar.
He is one of many who have been detained in an apparent crackdown on dissent and who may challenge the power of Prince Mohammed.
One of the most prominent examples is former Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, a CIA ally revered for his efforts to counter violent extremism in the West, but thrown out of the line of succession by King Salman.
Prince Nayef has not been seen in public since his arrest was reported in March 2020. His detention was not officially confirmed.
For government opponents, such cases reinforce the question of how much ongoing justice reforms will make a difference.
“In my view, this is all window-dressing,” said Madawi al-Rashid, a spokesman for the opposition National Assembly party founded by a UK-based academic and exile.
“It is very difficult to see what these reforms mean other than the project of portraying (Prince Mohamed) as a reformer.”
Hanging on any discussion of justice and legal reform in Saudi Arabia is the 2018 murder of the kingdom’s Istanbul consulate and the murder of critic and columnist Jamal Khashoggi.
A US intelligence assessment was found Prince Mohammed Self “Approved” an operation to capture or kill Khashoggi, although Saudi officials deny this and say it was a “rogue” operation.
In April, before the President of Turkey Risp Tayip Erdogan After visiting Riyadh on Thursday and hugging Prince Mohammed, Turkey moved the trial to Saudi Arabia in the absence of 26 suspects in the Khashoggi case.
Turkey’s decision sparked protests from lawyers and Khashoggi’s fiancee, who insisted that Saudi courts could not possibly conduct a credible trial.
For loved ones of those detained, Khashoggi’s murder triggered a similar fear of speaking out.
“I would, many people do, but we are afraid,” said a friend of Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz, who has been in custody with his father since 2018.
“Everybody knows what happened to Khashoggi.”
The state is known for its strict interpretation of Islamic Sharia law, which forms the basis of its judicial system.
But in recent months it has moved forward with reforms that analysts say could make its courts function like other courts in the Middle East.
The effort hinges on a series of new laws for sensitive issues such as women’s right to divorce and the power of judges to determine criminal punishment.
Declared last year by the Crown as the de facto ruler Prince Mohammed The measures, including bin Salman, the first written penal code, appear to align with Saudi Arabia’s goal of opening up the world and softening its extremist image.
Even critics believe the changes could make Saudi courts more predictable in some cases.
But there is no hope that restrictions on freedom of expression will be reduced, or that the legal system will treat perceived opponents of the government more favorably.
And despite the reforms, officials are simultaneously reminding of what gave Saudi Arabia its brutal reputation in the first place, most notably the mass executions of 81 men in a single day in March for crimes related to “terrorism.”
The Saudi cabinet has already approved two new laws. The first controls the admissibility of evidence at the discretion of the judges.
The second, a family law, is to take effect in June. In a traditionally male-dominated system, it extends the rights of divorced women to alimony and custody of their children.
Announcing the new law in March, Prince Mohammed said it represented “a huge qualitative leap” for women’s rights and “family stability”.
Adel al-Saeed, vice president of the European Saudi Organization for Human Rights, said the reforms appeared to partly cater to foreign firms whose investments in the kingdom are increasing.
“Capital owners are afraid to invest in this country, which is notorious in the legal aspect, so these laws are aimed at changing the image,” he said.
The new penal code, which is yet to be unveiled, could bring about more dramatic changes.
Under Sharia, only apostasy, theft, rebellion, armed robbery, adultery, drinking and slander have prescribed sentences. It is left to the judges to determine the punishment in other cases.
With a penal code, “states would expect judges to rely not on their own training in Sharia but on state-approved legal rules (based on Sharia),” said Nathan Brown, an academic at George Washington University.
“As a result, Saudi Arabia will look like a civil law system, like most states in the region,” said Brown, who studies Saudi reforms.
The result should be more “predictable”, Abdullah Aloudh, a US-based legal expert and government critic, said, adding that the new rules “take away from the exemptions … that judges used to have”.
But strict regulation by the monarchy also “creates a bigger problem: the lack of independence”, he said.
The king is the head of the Saudi judiciary and serves as the final court of appeal.
Aloudh’s own father, prominent cleric Salman al-Awda, has been held since 2017, in what appears to be retaliation for a Twitter post that clashed with Saudi Arabia’s policy at the time of the separation of Qatar.
He is one of many who have been detained in an apparent crackdown on dissent and who may challenge the power of Prince Mohammed.
One of the most prominent examples is former Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, a CIA ally revered for his efforts to counter violent extremism in the West, but thrown out of the line of succession by King Salman.
Prince Nayef has not been seen in public since his arrest was reported in March 2020. His detention was not officially confirmed.
For government opponents, such cases reinforce the question of how much ongoing justice reforms will make a difference.
“In my view, this is all window-dressing,” said Madawi al-Rashid, a spokesman for the opposition National Assembly party founded by a UK-based academic and exile.
“It is very difficult to see what these reforms mean other than the project of portraying (Prince Mohamed) as a reformer.”
Hanging on any discussion of justice and legal reform in Saudi Arabia is the 2018 murder of the kingdom’s Istanbul consulate and the murder of critic and columnist Jamal Khashoggi.
A US intelligence assessment was found Prince Mohammed Self “Approved” an operation to capture or kill Khashoggi, although Saudi officials deny this and say it was a “rogue” operation.
In April, before the President of Turkey Risp Tayip Erdogan After visiting Riyadh on Thursday and hugging Prince Mohammed, Turkey moved the trial to Saudi Arabia in the absence of 26 suspects in the Khashoggi case.
Turkey’s decision sparked protests from lawyers and Khashoggi’s fiancee, who insisted that Saudi courts could not possibly conduct a credible trial.
For loved ones of those detained, Khashoggi’s murder triggered a similar fear of speaking out.
“I would, many people do, but we are afraid,” said a friend of Prince Salman bin Abdulaziz, who has been in custody with his father since 2018.
“Everybody knows what happened to Khashoggi.”