“Ali Hussein Sibat Must Not Be Executed,” by Raja Kamal and Tom G. Palmer
UPDATE: It might help to save Mr. Sibat’s life to send letters to the Saudi Ambassador to the United States, His Excellency Adel A. Al-Jubeir at info@saudiembassy.net, or to use the form at the website of the Saudi Arabian Embassy in Washington, D.C. (Those in other countries could contact the Ambassadors there.)
I truly hope that your efforts work to persuade the Saudi government to drop the execution.
Thank you, Jonathan. A polite and respectful letter to the Saudi Ambassador might help. You can write to His Excellency Adel A. Al-Jubeir at info@saudiembassy.net, or use the form at http://www.saudiembassy.net/contact/
Saudi Arabia has a more complex political order than many people know. In this case, it seems that certain forces are trying to stop reforms from the King by stepping up arrests and prosecution for “religious crimes,” including alleged witchcraft. It’s deeply embarrassing for other elements of the government, who need to be encouraged to take action to stop such evil and backward practices.
Those in other countries could get to know how to contact national Saudi Ambassadors by using this website: http://www.mofa.gov.sa/Detail.asp?InSectionID=2526&InTemplateKey=Homepage
I have just written a very respectful email to the Saudi Ambassador in France and posted the text on http://www.liberaux.org, the French libertarian forum.
Do not hesitate to send the message below, too-even if it is in French.
To: amb.arabiesaoudite@gmail.com
Subject : A Son Excellence Monsieur Muhammad Bin Ismaïl Al-Ashekh, Ambassadeur d’Arabie Saoudite en France
Monsieur l’Ambassadeur,
J’aimerai vous faire part de ma plus vive émotion concernant la condamnation à mort de Ali Hussein Sibat.
Animateur sur une chaîne de télévision libanaise émettant dans toute la péninsule arabique, musulman et citoyen libanais, il faisait part de ses conseils aux téléspectateurs qui l’appelaient lors de son émission et leur prédisait l’avenir.
Au mois de mai 2008, alors qu’il accomplissait son pèlerinage à La Mecque, Ali Hussein Sibat fut arrêté par la police religieuse saoudienne et accusé de sorcellerie. Jugé sans la présence d’un avocat, le tribunal a utilisé sa confession obtenue par l’usage de la force pour le condamner à mort à Médine le 9 novembre 2009. Il peut être exécuté à n’importe quel moment.
Ce jugement va à l’encontre de tout ce que le Royaume d’Arabie Saoudite représente.
Terre Sainte et lieu de pèlerinage pour des millions de musulmans à travers le monde, pays d’accueil et d’opportunités pour plusieurs dizaine de milliers de travailleurs étrangers venus d’Asie, d’Europe et d’Amérique du Nord, l’Arabie Saoudite oeuvre quotidiennement pour la tolérance et l’approfondissement de l’entente entre les peuples.
De plus, depuis le mois d’octobre 2003 et sous l’autorité de Sa Majesté le défunt Roi Fahd, la Déclaration de Riyad affirme que la violation des droits de l’Homme est un crime, que maintenir prisonnier un être humain sans base légale est interdit par les lois Islamiques et que la tolérance en matière de Foi est requise en Islam, interdisant de faire acte de coercition pour des raisons religieuses en Arabie Saoudite.
Quelle que soit notre opinion envers la nature de l’émission de télévision que Ali Hussein Sibat animait, personne ne devrait être tué pour ce dont il est accusé. Si cette condamnation à mort n’est pas levée à temps, à la tristesse de sa veuve et de ses cinq enfants s’ajoutera le fait que le sol d’Arabie Saoudite sera désormais souillé d’un crime : celui de son assassinat.
Puis-je très humblement vous demander de tout faire pour intercéder en la faveur de Ali Hussein Sibat ?
J’espère de tout coeur que Sa Majesté le Roi Abdallah fera une nouvelle fois preuve de courage politique en permettant son extradition au Liban.
J’ai l’honneur, Monsieur l’Ambassadeur, de présenter à Votre Excellence l’expression de ma très haute considération.
Xxx Xxx
Thank you, Alex for the information and the very exquisite clear letter you sent. I will do the same. I hope that such barbarity can be stopped in 2010.
Dr. Palmer,
I tried “spreading the word” through my own blog (not much readership, but I also linked through various forums I form part of and Facebook), and have prepared a letter. I am hesitant to send it without inquiring further on the background of the situation. I have read your piece (linked in your post), but there must be more to it than that. I am not accusing you of leaving important details out in respect to Ali Hussein.
Rather, I am wondering whether Ali Hussein has been the unfortunate target of a political maneuver by the Royal Saudi government. Is he the proverbial carrot? Is he being used to satiate the extremists, while the government focuses on “more important” (I guess it is all subjective) liberalizations?
I ask, because if this is the case (or even if it’s not, but there is more to the story in another direction), then what are the chances that our letters will actually be relevant? Of course, letters received by the embassy will probably not all be held in high esteem anyways, but if the Saudi government is using Ali Hussein as “meat for the dogs” then I think that our letters are probably less powerful than they could be (at least, mine is).
I hope that made sense.
Dear Jonathan,
Your questions are reasonable. As with the case with most (really, all) governments, the power structure in SA is more complex than it might seem. There are different nodes of power, and sometimes they maneuver against each other. This seems to be one of those cases. Encouraging the king to take on the religious police and save Mr. Sibat seems a good and wise thing to do. In any case, whether he is a sop to the religious extremists by the king or not (and it does not seem that he is, but rather, a challenge from the extremists to the king), sending a letter cannot hurt, and may help. So if you are so inclined, I think you should send a respectful letter (an abusive one will likely make things worse for him). And thank you for spreading the word through your network. It is appreciated by me and others, and no doubt by someone whom you may never meet even if he survives, but who certainly deserves the right to live.
Best,
Tom
I have been following this story for quite sometime now and have barely been able to sleep over it and I am looking forward to seeing some sort of breakthrough. Thanks for your support in the matter.