Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch called for the reform of the criminal justice system in Saudi Arabia and the abolition of the death penalty altogether, noting - in two separate statements - that its implementation reached a shocking level last year with 184 executions.
This came after Riyadh announced that it intends to partially end the use of the death penalty against persons under the age of 18 at the time of the crime in cases not related to the terrorist crime system.
This is not enough, said Heba Morayef, director of the Middle East and North Africa Regional Office for Amnesty International, noting that "the death penalty is the most cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment, and should not be used by any country, and Saudi Arabia's record is particularly poor in this regard."
The gift called on the Saudi authorities to "now decide the formal moratorium on executions as a first step towards completely abolishing the death penalty."
The organization also called "to bear in mind also that dozens of peaceful human rights activists are still being held after being convicted in grossly unfair trials for their struggle to achieve equality and justice in a broadly repressive environment."
In turn, Human Rights Watch downplayed the importance of the two new Saudi decrees, one of which related to the suspension of the punishment of flogging, noting that they did not apply to certain crimes such as “retribution” crimes that usually include murder, or what Saudi Arabia calls “border” crimes.
"It is still possible for persons convicted of border cases to face the punishment of flogging, and for juvenile offenders convicted in border cases or retribution to face the death penalty," Human Rights Watch said.
The organization urged the Saudi authorities to prohibit flogging and to completely eliminate juveniles. These amendments "are not sufficient to protect juveniles from major defects in the notorious Saudi criminal justice system, including the risk of torture, unfair trials, and the death penalty," said Michael Page, deputy director of the Middle East division at Human Rights.
Page added that "these changes should be a starting point for a comprehensive and transparent reform of the criminal justice system in Saudi Arabia."
The organization reminded that Saudi Arabia “has one of the highest death rates in the world and executes people for crimes that include murder, drug trafficking, rape, armed robbery and terrorist crimes. It is one of the few countries that imposes the death penalty on juvenile offenders.”