After months of silence, Saudi princess appeals for freedom, says she is ill
Basma bint Saud, 56, is one of the daughters of King Saud, who fathered more than 100 children. For months she has been held in the Al-Ha'ir prison. In her appeal, she tells King Salman and MbS that she is being held arbitrarily and without charges. In the past, she fought for freedom and rights, and criticised the war in Yemen.
Riyadh (AsiaNews/Agencies) – After nine months of silence on social media and mystery surrounding her fate, Saudi princess Basma bint Saud suddenly resurfaced with a message on Twitter that found its way in mainstream media in the past 48 hours.
"As you may be aware (?) I am currently being arbitrarily held at Al-Ha'ir prison without criminal, or otherwise any charges against my person," read one of the tweets posted on her account late on Wednesday. The latter goes on to say: "My health is deteriorating”.
The tweets are addressed to the kingdom’s rulers, King Salman as well as Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MbS), who is the architect of the recent crackdown against his rivals and opponents.
In her plea, in Arabic and English, she asks them to "review my case, and to release me as I have done no wrong”.
Located some 40 kilometres south of the capital, Al-Ha'ir is the country's largest maximum security prison. The Saudi women rights’ activist Loujain al-Hathloul has been held in the facility since February 2019.
Princess Basma, 56, is the youngest of King Saud’s one hundred and more children. Saud ruled the kingdom from 1953 to 1964.
Over the years she has distinguished herself advocating rights and the country’s (at least partial) modernisation, like overhauling the country’s laws and institutions, from the constitution and the status of women (like male guardianship) to education and social services.
In 2018 she strongly criticised the war in Yemen, whose architect and greatest supporter is none other than Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
In a series of articles published last year, Deutsche Welle reported on her arrest, and that of her daughter, on charges of planning to leave Saudi Arabia without authorisation.
In her twitter messages, deemed genuine, she complains that she has not received medical treatment and that recent her letters to members of the royal family have not received any reply.
“I was abducted without an explanation together with one my daughters, and thrown into prison,” reads one of her tweets.
For some observers, her advocacy for human rights is not the only reason for her arrest. It would appear that land property in Ta'if and two billion euros (US$ 2.2 billion) in Swiss bank accounts that belonged to her father are also involved.
Saudi Arabia is a Sunni kingdom ruled in accordance with a rigid Wahhabi interpretation of Islam.
The reforms introduced by the crown prince in recent years have touched the social sphere and some rights, like women’s right to drive and attend stadiums (in reserved areas).
However, the arrests of senior government officials and business people, the repression of activists and critical voices, like journalist Jamal Khashoggi, have cast a long shadow on the country’s process of change.
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27/09/2017 10:13
