The Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is an important tool to keep states accountable, combat impunity for human rights violations, and promote open dialogue on human rights issues. Nevertheless, states such as Saudi Arabia notoriously do not follow through on their promises to implement recommendations, a fact that many at Saudi Arabia’s fourth Universal Periodic Review consideration meeting emphasized. This meeting was held on Thursday 4 July 2024, as part of the Human Rights Council’s 56th regular session. The meeting ended with the unanimous adoption of the outcome of the UPR of Saudi Arabia.
The country received 354 recommendations from 135 states. The president of the Saudi Human Rights Commission (HRC), Dr. Hala bint Mazyed Al-Tuwaijri, claims that they have accepted more than 80% of these recommendations, and specified that 273 were accepted, 12 partially accepted with clarifications, and 69 were noted. She also emphasized that 97% of those regarding women were accepted. Although these statistics may appear reassuring, it is important to remember that many of the recommendations from Saudi’s third periodic review in 2018 remain either partly or not at all implemented. Therefore, these empty promises mean nothing until they are accompanied by concrete action.
There was a clear division between the remarks from nation-states and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs). Representatives from Oman, Kuwait, Qatar, and Jordan, to name a few, all commended the country’s efforts. It should be pointed out that all these countries submitted recommendations that did not address Saudi’s human rights violations. Even the wording of their recommendations, most of which started with “continue” rather than more proactive terms such as “strengthen”, “adopt”, or “abolish” as used by other states, showcases a weak attempt to hold the country accountable for its wrongdoing.
On the other hand, representatives from NGOs such as Human Rights Watch were a lot more vocal about their views on Saudi Arabia’s human rights violations. The speaker of the organization rightfully said that Saudi authorities continue to infringe on the human rights of its people and that the limited reforms thus far are inadequate. They also underlined that there is no credible accountability for the crimes against humanity committed by the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen, which ECDHR also agrees with. Despite these being well-known facts, impunity prevails and tools such as the UPR appear to not do enough to change the situation.
It has not gone unnoticed that, despite the 80% acceptance rate, key recommendations were rejected. One of which is Belgium’s recommendation (number 43.65) on refraining from reprisals against human rights defenders with interaction with UN human rights mechanisms. Saudi Arabia is condemning innocent people for using mechanisms that have been specifically set up to protect their rights. This is a common tactic used to silence dissidents and hide the state’s abuses.
Issues of transparency and accountability were also brought up. The International Federation for Human Rights (IFHR), rightly, demanded that the Saudi Human Rights Commission abide by the Paris Principles. Moreover, the Amnesty International representative spoke on Saudi’s proven lack of engagement with the demands of the international community, highlighting that despite its alleged acceptance of the recommendations on women’s rights, the male guardianship system remains unfortunately strong. This shows that there is a lack of dedication from the Saudi HRC and the state to follow through on its commitments.
The need to abolish the cybercrime and counter-terrorism law was also addressed, including by Amnesty International and The Gulf Center for Human Rights. Amnesty International rightfully requested for the release of human rights defenders who have been unlawfully detained for simply exercising their right to freedom of expression. The president of HRC stated that the laws were in line with international standards and that the presumption of innocence is always applied. This is evidently not the case as innocent activists are continuously detained without real justifications.
Many NGOs, including The Gulf Center for Human Rights and The Advocates for Human Rights, raised the issue of the unlawful use of the death penalty. The representative of The Advocates for Human Rights highlighted the continued use of the death penalty on minors, which the president of the Saudi HRC claimed does not happen despite the evidence clearly showing otherwise.
Saudi Arabia’s UPR report consideration meeting allowed NGOs around the world to speak out about the human rights violations occurring and try to hold the country accountable. Unfortunately, Dr. Hala bint Mazyed Al-Tuwaijri appeared set in the fact that Saudi Arabia had already addressed many of the issues discussed. ADHRB calls on Saudi Arabia to take its commitments under the UPR seriously and take accountability for its violations. Additionally, we call on other human rights organizations to keep advocating for much-needed systemic change in the country so that its people can have their human rights respected as they deserve.
