S. Arabia protects human rights

Your excellent newspaper, in its edition of May 1, 2000, published an article: Migrant workers face rights abuses in Saudi Arabia, quoted from a statement by Amnesty International.

As we trust and know the bonafides of your newspaper and its efforts to obtain information properly, I would like, clarifying the facts and rejecting wrong suspicions, to explain the positions of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia regarding those accusations.

The government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is committed to the lofty purposes and aims of the protection of human rights and human dignity in accordance with the Islamic principles and values in which it believes and advocates protection of the rights and dignity of the human person, which Islam regards as the most noble creature on the face of the earth.

As it is the Kingdom's desire to safeguard human rights, the regulations in force in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, stress the importance of protecting those rights. The Kingdom strictly prohibits the practice of any form of torture, the perpetrators of which are subject to punishment. It is prohibited to assault prisoners or detainees in any way and disciplinary measures must be taken against civilian or military officials who commit any act of aggression against them. The courts take no account of any confession or statement made as a result of torture, aggression of coercion.

With regard to penalties and punishment, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia applies the provisions of the Islamic Shari'a concerning the imposition of the fixed penalties prescribed in the Holy Koran and the discretionary penalties decided upon by the courts, which constitute a deterrent to others.

The deterrent nature of punishment, which is a basic principle in Saudi Arabian society, has curbed the spread of crime and corruption and by the grace of God, the Kingdom is among the States that enjoy the lowest of crime rates. The kingdom applies the death penalty in the case of serious crimes. These being reported in the media, including coverage of all stages of the trial proceedings in which 12 judges participate.

About the migrant workers, and non Muslim residents in Saudi Arabia, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia attaches great importance to the principle of religious tolerance.

Non-Muslims, as well as Muslim residents of the Kingdom enjoy all the basic rights and freedom guaranteed to them.

It is clear to you that with our appreciation of the noble targets of Amnesty International, it should be emphasized that many of the vicious and unjustified campaigns to which the Kingdom is currently being subjected lack credibility in view of the inaccurate information on which they are based.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has consistently cooperated with the United Nations human rights mechanisms, which we support in their endeavors to protect human rights.

ABDULLAH A. ALIM

Ambassador

Royal Embassy

of Saudi Arabia

Jakarta