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UN Internet Governance Forum in Riyadh draws criticism

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Kingdom slammed for detaining rights activists

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'Reputation washing' picks up pace under grand MBS vision

By Nazih Osseiran

BEIRUT, Dec 17 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Saudi

Arabia plays host this month to a major United Nations effort to

discuss internet policy, drawing accusations of rank hypocrisy

from rights activists who say the kingdom represses free speech

and jails online critics.

Just this January, activists say Riyadh sentenced a Saudi

woman to 11 years in prison for her choice of clothes and for

using social media to attack its policy on women.

"You as a government can imprison people for their

online posts, surveil everyone, and have one of the most

draconian laws in the world, and still be able to host

conversations about tech policy and the internet," said Marwa

Fatafta, policy and advocacy manager at the internet watchdog

Access Now.

The five-day Internet Governance Forum (IGF) kicked off in

Riyadh on Sunday, with 6,000 people from more than 170 countries

set to discuss "policies for a safe, inclusive, and innovative

digital future", according to the U.N.

Among other topics under debate: 'Advancing human rights

and inclusion in the digital age' - a red flag to activists who

say Riyadh routinely silences dissident voices.

Fatafta blasted the choice of venue for the U.N.'s 19th

annual internet summit as "a missed opportunity" that

"normalises" digital repression.

Saudi Arabia was selected as host following a standard

process, the U.N. organising team told the Thomson Reuters

Foundation.

"A country hosting the IGF does not equal an endorsement of

any country's policies, but an opportunity to bring the forum's

values and principles into diverse national contexts, including

those where challenges exist," the team said in a statement.

"It would represent a 'missed opportunity' if the meeting

were not held in this part of the region for the first time," it

added.

Amnesty International said Saudi Arabia should free all

citizens "who have been detained and convicted solely for

exercising their right to freedom of expression online".

It cited 29-year-old Manahel Al-Otaibi, a fitness instructor

and women's rights activist who it said was jailed in January

for her choice of clothing and for her social media posts urging

an end to the kingdom's male guardianship system.

Civil society organisations attending the summit said they

were told by the U.N. not to single out individual leaders or

entities for criticism.

"The U.N. is really policing what civil society, what

activists, etc., can say at these things," Bissan Fakih,

Amnesty's campaigner on Saudi Arabia, told the Thomson Reuters

Foundation.

"If I want to make a point about the human rights situation

deteriorating under (Crown Prince) Mohammed bin Salman, I can't

do that, okay, because it would mean singling someone out," she

said, referring to Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler, known as MBS.

Concerns voiced by civil society activists "have been

heard," the U.N. organising team said, adding that "efforts have

been made to ensure unimpeded access to the IGF. The platform

remains open and accessible, with measures in place to uphold

its inclusive ethos".

"The forum's Code of Conduct prohibits ad hominem attacks.

This is a policy intended to maximise the space for safe,

collegial exchange among stakeholders, and is in line with

broader rules of engagement in other U.N. fora," the team added.

Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Communications and Information

Technology did not respond to a request for comment.

GREENWASHING, SPORTSWASHING

Riyadh is spending billions to clean up its reputation for

hardline religious restriction and human rights abuse and become

known instead as a tourism and leisure hub.

Since taking power in a palace coup in 2017, MBS has faced

international censure for cracking down on dissent and for the

killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.

The Saudi government has denied any involvement by MBS,

saying Khashoggi's killing - he was dismembered in the Saudi

consulate in Istanbul - was carried out by a rogue group of

Saudi agents.

Critics also accuse the kingdom of using entertainment stars

and sporting spectaculars - such as its recently announced

hosting of the 2034 men's World Cup - to deflect global

attention, even as it continues to crack down on domestic

dissent.

In November, Amnesty said Otaibi's family was told that a

court had upheld the 11-year prison sentence against her.

Amnesty said Otaibi was also being held incommunicado, and

had told her family she had undergone brutal beatings from both

fellow prisoners and prison guards.

Saudi Arabia has denied that Otaibi was sentenced for her

social media posts, saying she was "convicted of terrorist

offences that have no bearing on her exercise of freedom of

opinion and expression or her social media posts".

Otaibi's case is not unique.

In 2022, Salma al-Shehab - a doctoral candidate at Britain's

Leeds University and women's rights activist - was sentenced to

34 years in jail for her tweets, according to rights groups.

A member of the kingdom's Shi'ite Muslim minority,

Shehab was detained in January 2021 while visiting Saudi Arabia,

days before she was due to return to her studies, the groups

said.

Some activists believe Shehab was reported to the state

through a government app that lets citizens flag up worrying

everyday incidents from road accidents to suspicious behaviour.

Yet even anonymous accounts with the most minuscule of reach

have become targets of the authorities.

In 2023, a Saudi court sentenced retired teacher Muhammad

al-Ghamadi to death for criminal offences related to his

"peaceful expression online", according to Human Rights Watch.

The international monitoring group said Ghamadi was

convicted for his tweets, retweets and YouTube activity.

"The thing to note about this case, which really blows my

mind, is the fact that these posts were from anonymous

accounts," Amnesty's Fakih said.

The two accounts used to convict Ghamadi had a combined

following of 10 people, she added.

"We are in this really dark space for freedom of

expression," she said.

"Now there is this desperate need to control the online

space, which was used to organise dissent against authoritarian

regimes. Now you've got all these tools to do that with."

(Reporting by Nazih Osseiran ; Editing by Clar Ni Chonghaile

and Lyndsay Griffiths. The Thomson Reuters Foundation is the

charitable arm of Thomson Reuters. Visit https://context.news/)