UAE Cybersecurity Law Threatens Freedom of Expression

On 21 July 2016, President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) issued new legislation further intensifying existing cybercrime laws enacted under Federal Law No. 5 of 2012. The amendment, Federal Law No. 12 of 2016, punishes Internet users who use counterfeited IP addresses with the intent to commit a crime[…]

Saudi Laws that Violate the Rights of All Sects

Government-sponsored oppression of Shia in Saudi Arabia is well documented. But government oppression also affects the populace more broadly, through legislation which violates fundamental human rights. Several widely-used laws criminalize political and religious criticism of the king, state, or religious establishment, contravening the universal right to freedom of opinion and expression. The government utilizes three[…]

ACPRA and Restrictions on Human Rights Organizations in Saudi Arabia

In March 2013, the Saudi government forced the Saudi Arabian Civil and Political Rights Association (ACPRA) to close. ACPRA was a prominent human rights organization, and one of the few independent civil society organizations in the country. On 29 May 2016, the government’s Specialized Criminal Court (SCC) sentenced ACPRA’s last free co-founder, Abdulaziz al-Shubaily, to[…]