Torture and sexual intimidation in Saudi Arabian prisons

At least ten female human rights activists are being held and tortured in Saudi Arabian prisons since May 2018. New Amnesty research shows that they’ve been intimidated, physically and psychologically tortured and sexually harassed. On 28 February we will discuss the situation for human rights activists in Saudi Arabia in a Masterclass for students.

The activists were arrested in May 2018, right before the driving ban for women was lifted. Ironically, most of the arrested activists are women who protested against this same ban. The arrests seem to have been made in order to prevent these women from claiming more rights. Right after these arrests, the harassment started.

Inhumane treatment

One of the imprisoned women was told that her closest family members died. A month later they told her that this wasn’t true. This is inhumane. Pure torture. Two other women were forced to kiss each other in front of their interrogators. Others were given electric shocks.This resulted in them not being able to stand or walk for some time.

Take action!

Amnesty International started a petition for the female activists who are still imprisoned in Saudi Arabia for simply claiming their rights – something they shouldn’t be in prison for. We most stop them from being tortured and harassed. You can help! Sign the petition for this urgent action here.

Join our Masterclass

If you want to know more about the human rights situation in Saudi Arabia, join our Masterclass ‘Saudi Arabia: reform and repression’! We will focus on Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman and what his reign means for human rights defenders. Is Bin Salman really the reformer he appears to be? Interested? Register here.