Saudi Arabia: 40 NGOs call on Saudi authorities to release imprisoned online critics ahead of Internet Governance Forum

Saudi to host the Internet Governance Forum in 100 days

Hosting forum reveals Government’s deep hypocrisy given its history of arbitrarily detaining people for expressing their views online 

Saudi authorities must ‘use this event as an opportunity to carry out genuine reforms rather than as part of an image-washing campaign’ - Agnès Callamard

Saudi Arabia must immediately release all those arbitrarily detained solely for expressing their views online ahead of the upcoming Internet Governance Forum in Riyadh, said 40 NGOs and human rights organisations including Amnesty International in a joint statement published today.

One of the key themes of the annual forum on digital public policy, which is due to take place from 15 to 19 December, is advancing human rights in the digital age. The organisations highlighted the hypocrisy of Saudi Arabia hosting the event while continuing to lock up, forcibly disappear and intimidate people into silence.

Many civil society activists and human rights defenders who usually attend the annual conference have expressed serious concerns about travelling to Saudi Arabia to participate, fearing arrest, harassment or surveillance given the country’s track record of silencing and imprisoning critics.

Amnesty is calling on the forum’s organising committee to seek public assurances from the Saudi authorities that no one will be denied entry into the country to participate in the conference, that none of the participants will face any harassment including detention and surveillance, and that all participants will be able to speak freely.

Crushing online freedom

Amnesty has repeatedly documented the Saudi authorities’ chilling crackdown against people who demonstrate even the slightest sign of dissent or critical views online including the case of Salma al-Shehab who was arrested in January 2021, and following a grossly unfair trial, sentenced in January 2023 to 27 years in prison followed by a 27-year travel ban on trumped-up terrorism charges, simply because she tweeted in support of women’s rights.

In January 2024, Saudi Arabia’s terrorism court sentenced Manahel al-Otaibi to 11 years in prison in connection with social media posts promoting women’s rights and sharing images of herself online at a mall without wearing an abaya (a traditional loose-fitting long-sleeved robe). 

In April 2020, after a grossly unfair trial, Abdulrahman al-Sadhan, a Red Crescent worker, was sentenced to 20 years to be followed by a 20-year travel ban for his satirical tweets, and Mohammad bin Nasser al-Ghamdi, a retired schoolteacher, was sentenced to death in July 2023 for criticising authorities on X (formerly Twitter) and his online activity on YouTube.

Agnès Callamard, Amnesty International’s Secretary General, said:

“These cases illustrate the dark truth about the Saudi authorities’ repression of freedom of expression online.

“Saudi Arabia’s authorities have 100 days before the Internet Governance Forum begins to demonstrate that they will ease their draconian crackdown on freedom of expression, and to show that they will use this event as an opportunity to carry out genuine reforms rather than as part of an image-washing campaign. 

“In order to prove that their hosting of the conference about the Internet’s future is more than just a cynical PR exercise, the Saudi authorities must release all those arbitrarily detained solely for exercising their right to freedom of expression online before the meeting begins.

“If the Saudi authorities are serious about taking on a global leadership role in digital public policy, they must demonstrate their commitment to respecting the right to freedom of expression for all by reforming vague laws that criminalise expression, such as the Anti-Cyber Crime Law, and putting a decisive end to their repressive crackdown on critics online and offline.”