Introduction
The media system of Saudi Arabia, like that of every country, is rooted in its particular history. Never formally colonized, the modern state of Saudi Arabia was established in 1932 after Ibn Saud defeated four Arabian states and captured Mecca,Islam’s holiest city. Ibn Saud then obtained the support of the Saudi tribes, the religious leaders (known as the ulema or ulama,) and the merchants, united the entire area under the Saud (“Saud”) family's rule and declared himself King. But the Kingdom’s longevity and stability is due in good part to its unfettered access, beginning in the 1940’s, to a growing stream of oil rent income. This income has given the monarchy the ability to deliver benefits to all sectors of a populace grateful to receive them, to develop a very powerful centralized security force, and to increase Saudi Arabia’s influence in regional affairs, thereby buffering some of the security problems it faced on several Borders.
Since his death in 1953, King Ibn Saud has been succeeded by various sons and the power of the ruling Saud family in Saudi Arabia has remained concentrated and undiminished. The current King, Fahd Ibn Abdul Aziz Al-Sa'ud (“Fahd”), assumed the title in 1982. When Fahd suffered a series of stokes in the mid-1990’s, his half-brother, Crown Prince Abdullah, became and remains the effective ruler of Saudi Arabia.
The laws:
A)The Constitution
Saudi Arabia is an absolute monarchy and has no written secular constitution. The monarchy defends its refusal to adopt a secular written constitution on the ground that the country already has a constitution in the form of the Koran (the Qur`an), the Muslim holy book, and the Sunnah of the prophet Mohammed. On March 1, 1992, probably in response to international demands for written rules of law, King Fahd issued three major laws: the Basic Law of Government and two procedural laws. One of the procedural laws, the Consultative Council Law, concerned the replacement of a government council and the other, the Law of Provinces, concerned the regulation of the relationship between central government agencies and regional governors.
The Basic Law is sometimes referred to as Saudi Arabia’s constitution but such a reference is misleading. Chapter I, Article 1 of the Basic Law explicitly provides that Saudi Arabia’s only “constitution “ are the Koran and the Sunnah.
Not only is the Basic Law not a constitution, it contains no provisions that seek to codify or otherwise guide the way in which the Koran or the Sunnah is to be interpreted. Instead, the Basic Law leaves intact the role of the government-appointed clergy as the nominal arbiters of constitutional matters while ensuring that the King retains absolute authority to determine the outcome of all constitutional disputes.
B) Domestic Legislation
Saudi legislation proposed by the Council of Ministers must be ratified by royal decree to ensure its compliance with the Sharia law. The justice system consists of religious courts whose judges are appointed by the royal family. The king functions as the highest court of appeal and has the power to pardon.
The criminal code is unwritten and penalties are left to judge’s discretion, based on precedent and tradition. There is an Imprisonment and Detention Law, which sets forth executions of the acts of imprisonment and detention. It establishes a Supreme Prisons Council charged with monitoring the execution of imprisonment procedures. There is an
extensive civil and commercial code aiming to encourage economic development.
1 - Labour and Workmen Law
The law as amended in 2005 contains articles that extend protection to previously unregulated workers and it recognizes the right of women to work in “all sectors compatible with their nature”, as well as forcing large companies to establish nurseries and day-care centers. However, the law discriminates against foreigners and migrant workers by stipulating that at least 75% of any company’s employees must be Saudi citizens, enforcing a policy of “Saudization” adopted to reduce the kingdom’s dependency on foreign labour.
Order No. 37 of 1994 underlines that employers must provide equal remuneration for equal conditions and environment of work between male and female workers. There is also an Order of the Council of Ministers (No. 85 of 1997) related to providing disabled persons with employment opportunities.
2 - Social Insurance Law
Chapter 1, article 2.7 of the Social Insurance Law explains that, “The term “contributor” means any person who is subject to insurance, be he a man or woman, thus the use thereof in a masculine form in any provision shall include the woman insofar as it is appropriate.”
Chapter 2, Article 2 states:
“1. The Occupational Hazards Branch shall be compulsorily applied to all workers without any discrimination as to sex, nationality or age.
2. The Annuities Branch shall be compulsorily applied to all Saudi workers without any discrimination as to sex…”
Significantly, domestic workers and servants are excluded from the protection of the social insurance law.
C) International Law
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has acceded to the International Convention against Torture in 19971997, the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination in 1997, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women in 2000 and the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1996. Saudi Arabia has not acceded to any of the optional protocols. It has ratified 15 of the ILO’s Conventions, including C111 Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention and C100 Equal Remuneration Convention.
It has also ratified the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of
Genocide, 1948; The Four Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949 and the 1977 Protocols Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949; and the UNESCO Convention against Discrimination in Education, 2001.
Regional Agreements
Saudi Arabia is a founding member of the Arab League, as well as the Organisation of the Islamic Conference, the headquarters of which are located in the Saudi city of Jeddah. It is signatory to its charter, the Cairo Declaration on Human Rights in Islam.
It is also a member of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), organisations with mainly economic aims, which also plan to strengthen cooperation and integration of policies between states.
Realising the Right to Non-Discrimination
Human rights have a long way to go in Saudi Arabia. Trade unions and political parties are banned, as well as are public protests and demonstrations. There are practically no independent civil society associations or NGOs and human rights defenders are subject to abuse and mistreatment. In September 2006 Wajeha al-Huwaider, a women’s rights activist was detained and forced to cease her human rights advocacy as a condition for release. Many international organisations, including Amnesty International, are denied access to the country.
As is evident from the foregoing, anti-discrimination legislation is extremely weak in Saudi Arabia. Censorship is heavy and extends to all forms of media and communications (press,TV, books, Internet, etc.). Anything deemed offensive to Islam, the government or the monarchy is prohibited.
1King Ibn Saud (also referred to as Abd Al-Aziz Al Saud) defeated the four Arabian states of Hejaz, Asir, Ha'il and Jauf between 1919 and 1925. He captured Mecca (Makkah) in 1924. Initially, in 1926, he proclaimed himself King of the Hejaz and Sultan of Najd. In 1932 he was able to merge this dual monarchy and establish the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
http://www.worldinformation.com/World/meast/Saudi_Arabia/profile.asp?p=4&country= 966.
2Michael C. Hudson, “Saudi Arabia: One Hundred Years Later,” Preface to the Revised and Updated Proceedings of a Conference at the Center for Contemporary Arab Studies, Georgetown University, April 28, 1999
http://www.georgetown.edu/sfs/programs/ccas/saudi.pdf,.
4Upon King Ibn Saud death in 1953, the Crown Prince, Saud Ibn Abdul Aziz Al-Saud (Al-Saud) became King. King Saud died in 1964 and was replaced by his brother, Faisal ibn Abdul Aziz Al-Saud. King Faisal was assassinated by one of his nephews in 1975 and was succeeded by Khalid Ibn Abdul Aziz Al-Sa'ud. King Khalid died in 1982 and his brother, Fahd became and is still the King of Saudi Arabia.
www.worldinformation.com/World/meast/Saudi_Arabia/profile.asp?p=4&country=966
and http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/country_profiles
5All three of the 1992 laws were issued by the King without formal consultation with any governmental body. Instead, they were drafted by an ad hoc committee headed by the Minister of the Interior, Prince Nayef, another of the King's brothers. See “Empty Reforms: Saudi Arabia’s New Basic Laws,” May 1, 1992, Human Rights Watch Report.
6 Chapter 1 of the Basic Law is entitled “General Principles.” Article 1 states in its entirety, “(t)he Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is a sovereign Arab Islamic state with Islam as its religion; God's Book and the Sunnah of His Prophet, God's prayers and peace be upon him, are its constitution, Arabic is its language and Riyadh is its capital.”
7 The executive branch of government in Saudi Arabia is controlled by the royal family. As the 2003 Human Rights Watch report notes, the country has no independent national institutions to question, criticize or hold accountable the all-powerful monarchy. The King appoints the Consultative Council (majlis al-shura) and its role in running the country is quite limited. Political groups of any kind are prohibited and all demonstrations are banned. “Saudi Arabia, 2003 Report”, Human rights Watch,
10 - The texts of these orders are available upon request from the NATLEX database.