Saudi executions and the spiral of silence

Abdullah Al-Emadi

Since the intensive arrests of many of the symbols of the Islamic movement in the Sunni and Shiite branches, as well as the liberal movement, and the Saudi government deaf ears of all the human rights and voices condemning what is happening in its detention against hundreds of those community symbols, without charges and clear convincing, Their right to choose defense lawyers, or at the very least their right to open and transparent trials.

The campaign of arrests in 2017 extended to many figures of the reformist movement and a number of liberal currents, in light of multiple leaks about the Saudi government's intention to impose the death penalty in a number of them, after the Saudi prosecution brought political charges against them and brought them to a judge suspected of being completely biased towards the decision Political.

Of these charges, inciting the departure of the guardian and the crown prince, and questioning the receivables, and the abuse of officials in the state, and mock the body of senior scientists and questioning its secretariat and its members are only tools of power.

As well as seeking to incite the seeds of sedition and dissent in society. He described the Saudi regime as a repressive security system based on injustice, repression and concealment of religion, to the last long list of charges that can not be presented here, without knowing the compatibility of that provision with those charges, The guarantees of a fair trial, especially those contained in international law, or the extent to which they agree with the tolerant provisions and spirit of Islamic law.

According to the follow-up to the Saudi European Human Rights Organization for many trials in Saudi Arabia in general and the trials of some of the victims of the executions carried out on April 23, 2019, the organization confirmed the judiciary's departure in Saudi Arabia and largely on the conditions and principles of fair trials, despite the numerous international calls that demanded the government The return of trials as a result of deep defects and the lack of independence of the judiciary.

The organization published a comparison of executions in Saudi Arabia during the five years of King Salman's rule from its inception until April 23, carrying 68 death sentences in 2015, 86 judgments in 2016, 2017 to 33, and jumping again in 2018 to 48 , Which has risen sharply this year to reach the number of executions until last April 107, including children and minors, women, demonstrators, activists and others.

Whirlpool silence
The latest leaks published by the Middle East A website on Tuesday expressed the intention and determination of the Saudi government to impose the death penalty on three of the most prominent figures of the Islamic awakening movement, Sheikh Dr. Salman Al-Awda, Sheikh Dr. Awad Al-Qarni and Sheikh Dr. Ali Al-Amri after the end of the month of Ramadan , But is part of the practical application of what is called in the media "theory of the spiral of silence".

This theory revolves around the fact that any ruling regime that controls the media in the country will push these means to adopt certain views or trends within a specified period of time, thus making most individuals move in the direction supported by the media, thus forming a general consensus consistent with and consistent with Ideas supported by the media, which are the ideas of power or the ruling regime.

This is the first of the results, and the second is to push individuals opposed to the issue or the direction of society to take a position of silence in order to avoid the oppression of society and the state before it, and also the social isolation that may be followed by denial of other rights such as the job and the like, Is the silence or silence that - though - in the tradition of repressive regimes is evidence of rejection of the penalty also!

This happened with many of those who were arrested in the 2017 Awakening movement, who were not aware of any objections or objections to the government's policies and policies. However, the bulldozer did not forgive them. And that the tense atmosphere in the region may help accelerate the implementation of the Saudi government to the death penalty in some.

This requires an international alert to stop the Saudi execution machine and to stop it from exploiting the opportunity of East and West preoccupation with their interests and Gulf oil, at the expense of the lives of the Gulf people that may be lost at any moment.