Saudis won't flog female journalist
Reform-minded king intervenes in case against TV network
|
TOOLBOX
   Resize
COMMENT
 Discussion Policy
 CLOSE
Comments that include profanity or personal attacks or other inappropriate comments or material will be removed from the site. Additionally, entries that are unsigned or contain "signatures" by someone other than the actual author will be removed. Finally, we will take steps to block users who violate any of our posting standards, terms of use or privacy policies or any other policies governing this site. Please review the full rules governing commentaries and discussions. You are fully responsible for the content that you post.
Who's Blogging  |
RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA -- The Saudi king on Monday waived a flogging sentence against a female journalist who had been convicted as part of a crackdown on a controversial Lebanese television network.
On Saturday, Rozana al-Yami, 22, was sentenced to 60 lashes by a Jiddah court for working for an unlicensed network. The network, known as LBC, has generated controversy in Saudi Arabia because it recently aired a program that featured discussion about sex.
"I keeled to God when the information minister called this morning,'' Yami said in an interview. "I was confident our king will never let me down. My family, my tribe and I were defamed, and now I feel honored that I cleared my name."
King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz also ordered the case dropped against another female journalist on trial in the same case, according to a spokesman for the Information Ministry.
Abdullah, who is pushing a reform agenda against the wishes of his country's religious and judicial establishment, has pardoned several Saudis in high-profile trials in recent years. The cases have highlighted the tug of war between conservatives and liberals in the kingdom.
"The king often moves swiftly when a verdict can harm Saudi rights reputation," said Waleed Abu Alkhair, a human rights lawyer.
The ruling against Yami was the latest attack against an LBC show called "Bold Red Line." The show has upset many people in the conservative kingdom, where a strict segregation of sexes is imposed by both the society and the religious police. The Information Ministry closed LBC's offices in Saudi Arabia soon after the recent controversial episode, in which a Saudi man boasted of his sexual exploits.
Mazen Abdul Jawad, the man featured in the LBC show, was sentenced this month to five years in prison and 1,000 lashes for promoting debauchery. Three friends who appeared on the show with him were given two-year terms and 300 lashes each, while a cameraman was sentenced to two months in jail and 300 lashes.
Many Saudis felt scandalized by the program, which they saw as unfairly highlighting their society's ills. Other episodes had tackled temporary marriages, secret dating and divorce.
"This was the last straw," said a Saudi official who spoke on the condition of anonymity. "Many people wondered why the Lebanese insist on airing only the Saudi dirt. Why don't they show similar episodes on Lebanon or other Arab countries?"
-- Financial Times
