COMMITTEE ON ELIMINATION OF RACIAL DISCRIMINATION BEGINS REVIEW OF INITIAL AND SECOND PERIODIC REPORTS OF SAUDI ARABIA

CERD
62nd session
5 March 2003
Afternoon




The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination began consideration this afternoon of initial and second periodic reports of Saudi Arabia, questioning a Government delegation, among other things, on the status of women, refugees and migrant workers.
Introducing his country's reports, Torki bin Mohammed bin Saud Al-Kabeer, Assistant Deputy Minister for Political Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Saudi Arabia, said the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001 had had an adverse impact on endeavours to eliminate all forms of racial discrimination, and notably those involving hatred or hostility towards Islam. He said the basic rights of Muslims had been violated in some countries in the wake of the attacks.
Committee Expert Marc Bossuyt, who acted as the panel's country rapporteur for the reports of Saudi Arabia, said, quoting various sources, that the enjoyment of the right to freedom of residence by foreigners and women was restricted -- that foreign workers were living under strict rules of residence impinging on their right to movement.
Mr. Bossuyt said women faced severe restrictions on the right to freedom of movement, which led to the denial of other rights: women were not allowed to walk in the street without being in the company of an immediate male relative; and even a non-Muslim woman was expected to wear a black garment that covered the entire body.
Other members of the Committee also raised questions, asking among other things about the situation of Iraqi refugees in the country; about difficulties faced by migrant workers; about social benefits; about religious freedom; and about the absence of political parties. One Expert praised the manner in which Saudi authorities organized the annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, in which all nationalities and colours of the Islamic faith participated without discrimination.
Contributing to the debate were Committee Experts Mohamed Aly Thiam, Regis de Gouttes, Luis Valencia Rodriguez, Morten Kyaerum, Mario Jorge Yutzis, Tang Chengyuan, Patricia Nozipho January-Bardill, Raghavan Vasudevan Pillai, Agha Shahi, Jose A. Lindgren Alves, Ion Diaconu and Patrick Thornberry.
Members of the Saudi delegation included Abdulwahab Attar, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Saudi Arabia to the United Nations Office at Geneva; Ali bin Sulaiman Al-Saawi, Assistant President of the Board of Grievances; Soleiman Al-Hogail, Professor of Education at Imam Muhammad bin Saud University; Thurayya Al-Urayyid, Aramco Public Relations Adviser and member of the Saudi Association for Communication Sciences and the Cultural and Arts Association; Khalid bin Abdullah bin Duheish, Deputy Minister of Education; Ibrahim bin Abdullah bin Nasir, Legal Advisor at the Ministry of Justice; Essa bin Abdul Aziz Al-Shamkh, Counsellor and Head of the Human Rights Department at the Ministry of Interior; Abdul Aziz bin Ibrahim Al-Hadlaq, Head of the Department of International Relations at the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs; Samia Al-Idrisi, Businesswomen and member of the Businesswomen's Forum in the Eastern Region; Muhammad bin Sulaiman Al-Ajaji, Representative of the Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers; and Abdul Aziz bin Abdul Muhsin Al-Fadhi, Representative of the Public Investigation and Prosecution Commission.
As one of 167 States parties to the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, Saudi Arabia is required to present periodic reports to the Committee on efforts to implement the provisions of the treaty.
When the Committee reconvenes at 10 a.m. Thursday, 7 March, it will hear the responses of Saudi Arabia to its questions.

Report of Saudi Arabia
The initial and the second periodic reports of Saudi Arabia (CERD/C/370/Add.1) descirbe administrative, legislative and judicial provisions relating to implementation of the International Convention. The 12-page reports say that the regulations of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which are derived from the Islamic Shariah, prohibit all forms of racial discrimination. Under the Kingdom's regulations, which are derived from the Holy Koran and the Summa of the Prophet, the rights of anyone who is a victim of racial discrimination or acts of injustice must be upheld.
The reports further say that since its establishment, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has consistently pursued a policy of promoting equality among persons of all races and ethnic origins. This policy had helped to ensure such equality not only through the promulgation of regulations but also in actual practice in such a way as to enable all sectors of society to enjoy employment opportunities and social development on an equal footing.
The Kingdom has ratified a number of international anti-discrimination conventions, such as the Slavery Convention concluded in Geneva in 1926, the International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention No. 100 of 1951 concerning equal remuneration for men and women workers for work of equal value, the ILO Convention No. 101 of 1958 concerning discrimination in respect of employment and occupation, and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.
The reports note that the Kingdom's regulations do not permit the establishment of racist organizations or the dissemination of theories based on superiority of one race or group over another, nor do they permit the promotion or incitement of racial discrimination.

Introduction of Reports
TORKI BIN MOHAMED BIN SAUD AL-KABEER, Under-Secretary for Political Affairs and Head of the International Organizations Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Saudi Arabia, said he was convinced of the vital importance of the role the Committee was playing, especially under the new international circumstances resulting from the consequences of the attacks of 11 September 2001. The event had had an adverse impact on endeavours to eliminate all forms of racial discrimination, and notably on efforts to eliminate hatred and hostility towards Islam and violations of the basic rights of Muslims, in addition to the discrimination to which Muslim individuals and institutions had been subjected in some countries.
Mr. Al-Kabeer said some of the most important provisions of the Code of Civil Procedure of Saudi Arabia defined the jurisdiction of the courts, as well as the procedures concerning the filing and registration of actions, the presence or absence of the litigants, and courtroom proceedings and discipline. Among other things, the Code stipulated that proceedings should be conducted in public, and it devoted a separate chapter to the disqualification of judges in order to ensure judicial impartiality vis-a-vis all litigants without any discrimination.
The Code of Criminal Procedure clearly specified all procedures regulating arrest, custody, examination and the right of the accused to a defense, as well as protection of everyone's right to liberty of person so that no one could be arrested, searched, held in custody or imprisoned except as provided by law, Mr. Al-Kabeer said. It was prohibited to subject an arrested person to physical or mental harm or to torture or degrading treatment.
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia condemned all forms of racial discrimination or segregation, Mr. Al-Kabeer said. The Kingdom used all available means to transmit clear messages in that regard to all institutions and individual members of society through the information media and academic curricula. The competent authority also issued periodic circulars to the imams and preachers of mosques urging them, in their sermons, to remind people of the magnanimous moral teachings of Islam and particularly the principles of equity, equality and tolerance, and the rejection of bigotry and all forms of racial discrimination.
Mr. Al-Kabeer said the Kingdom's regulations prohibited the establishment of racist organizations or propaganda and the dissemination, endorsement or promotion of ideas based on racial discrimination. The Press and Publication Regulations promulgated in 2001 explicitly prohibited the authorization of any publication that would incite bigotry or propagate discord among citizens or prejudice the dignity, freedoms or reputation of persons.
With regard to the right to the freedom of movement and residence within the Kingdom, Mr. Al-Kabeer said that in the case of Saudi nationals, freedom of movement within the borders of the Kingdom was guaranteed. Non-Saudis entering the country on a work visa should observe some procedures when moving from one region to another. However, on 10 October 2000, the Council of Ministers had promulgated an ordinance providing for non-Saudi workers and their families the right to retain their passports, as well as freedom to move within the Kingdom as nationals.

Discussion
MARC BOSSUYT, the Committee Expert who served as country rapporteur for the reports of Saudi Arabia, recalled that when ratifying the Convention, Saudi Arabia had made a declaration under article 14 of the Convention on individual complaints; and it had also made a reservation saying that it would implement the provisions of the Convention, providing they did not conflict with the precepts of the Islamic Shariah. He said that seemed a rather general reservations with a broad and imprecise nature. The reports did not give any clarification about the exact scope of the reservation and its effect on the provisions of the Convention. Mr. Bossuyt said it would be interesting for the Committee to know what were the practical effects of the reservation.
Mr. Bossuyt said that in recent years, Saudi Arabia had embarked on an ongoing process of regulatory reform. A number of important laws had been enacted. General information on the political structure and on the land and people was, however, lacking. It would be interesting to receive information on the demographic composition of the population of Saudi Arabia: which ethnic or religious minorities were living in the country? Which were the countries of origin of the many foreigners living in Saudi Arabia? What was their legal status? The report did not provide information on women, as well as on any other vulnerable groups such as indigenous peoples, migrants, or persons belonging to the lowest socio-economic categories.
Saudi Arabia had enacted necessary legislation, such as a new Publications and Publishing Code, Mr. Bossuyt said, but noted that the report failed to contain any information on cases involving acts to incite racial discrimination or racially motivated acts of violence. How many cases had been brought before the courts? What verdicts had been reached and what were the punishments?
Mr. Bossuyt said that in the wake of 11 September, the Anti-Defamation League (a non-governmental organization or NGO) had remarked on increased anti-Semitic attitudes in the Saudi media. Newspapers had been featuring articles about "Jews taking over the world" and "Jews using teenagers blood for 'purim' pastries". Had the Saudi authorities reacted to such manifestations of anti-Semitism?
It was reported that the enjoyment of the right to freedom of residence by foreigners and women was restricted, Mr. Bossuyt said. Foreign workers were living under strict rules of residence impinging on their right to movement. They were not permitted to travel outside the city of their employment or change their workplace without their sponsor's permission. Women also faced severe restrictions on the right to freedom of movement, which led to denials of other rights: women were not allowed to walk in the street without being in the company of an immediate male relative. Even a non-Muslim woman was expected to wear black garment that covered the entire body.
Mr. Bossuyt said there seemed to be no equality between men and women with respect to the right to marry, the right to own property or the right to inherit. A Saudi Arabian man could marry a non-Muslim, but a Saudi woman might marry only a Muslim. Though women had the right own property, they were often constrained from asserting the right due to various legal and societal barriers.
Mr. Bossuyt said the Saudi Ministry of Information website had described Saudi Arabia as "a nation which is completely Islamic. Hence no churches, synagogues, temples or shrines of other religions exist". Thus, freedom of religion did not exist. Islam was the official religion and all Saudis were Muslims. All religious minorities were in a difficult position and faced discrimination. Public worship by non-Muslims was banned; and public apostasy was a crime under the Shariah and punishable by death. The country's minority of 900,000 Shi'a Muslims also allegedly faced restrictions and discrimination.
The Government of Saudi Arabia had not ratified the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families, despite the presence of 6 to 7 million migrant workers in the country, Mr. Bossuyt said. The strictly enforced segregation of the sexes caused discrimination in employment for women. Article 160 of the Labour Code prohibited co-mingling of men and women in the workplace.
According to Amnesty International, a disproportionate number of foreigners in Saudi Arabia faced the death penalty, Mr. Bossuyt said. Several cases of migrant workers being sentenced to death without any legal assistance had been brought to the attention of the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions.
Other Committee members also raised a number of questions and issues. An Expert said migrant workers in Saudi Arabia had been subjected to violation of their rights by their employers who confiscated their passports and salaries. Their right to the freedom of movement was also limited. The Expert asked about the kind of legal assistance Saudi lawyers could intervene with in such cases. The Government had promulgated a law in 2001 providing for workers to keep their passports, the Expert noted; however, remedies were not attached to this measures in the event that an employer confiscated a worker's passport.
Another Expert said Saudi Arabia's legal system had prohibited racist organizations; however, the report did not indicate if sentences had been handed down in cases breaching that law. With regard to 5,000 Iraqi refugees who had been accommodated in military camp in Rafha since 1991, the Expert asked why these persons did not have access to refugee status. There was also religious discrimination because of the recognition in Saudi Arabia of only one religion, the Expert said.
An Expert asked if the provisions of the Islamic Law -- Shariah -- covered foreigners living in the country. On the issue of nationality, the law provided for the right of a foreign woman to obtain Saudi nationality if she married a Saudi man; but what situation would pertain if a Saudi woman married a foreigner?



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