HUMAN RIGHTS - THE BAROMETER OF HOW WE ACT TO OTHERS...
UK signed up to the European Convention on Human Rights ("ECHR") & enacted the Human Rights Act 1998 to comply with the ECHR [located in Strasbourg, France].
UK Government has to balance the consequences of its actions [in Broadcasting & Communication/s & in its ability to grant Sanctuary to Asylum Applicants] to potential Trade negotiations & UK Trade in comparison to adhering or breaching Human Rights' Treaties...
It is part of the ongoing Diplomacy with the 191 other Sovereign Nations...
http://alarabiya-net.blogspot.com
Radio programme about the 1980 documentary Death of a Princess (Princess Misha'al bint Fahd al Saud 1958 - 1977). This Saudi princess was executed with her lover in 1977 on account of ADULTERY.
Princess Mishaal bint Fahd al Saud, the 19-year-old great-niece of the late King Khalid, was shot several times in the head in 1977. Her death is thought to have been ordered by her grandfather, Muhammad bin Abdul Aziz al Saud, the King's older brother. She was unmarried but had confessed that she had committed ADULTERY.
The killing became the focus of an international outcry in 1980 when the docu-drama "Death Of A Princess" was shown on television. Saudi authorities tried to get the film suppressed and - when that failed - they expelled the British ambassador to Riyadh (KSA), withdrew 400 members of their royal family from Britain and cancelled millions of pounds worth of exports.
A Saudi Arabian princess who had an illegitimate child with a BRITISH man has secretly been granted Asylum in the UK after she claimed she would face the DEATH PENALTY if she were forced to return home. The young woman, who has been granted anonymity by the courts, won her claim for refugee status after telling a judge that her adulterous affair made her liable to DEATH by STONING. [Thus, the Judge was obliged to grant SANCTUARY! (Art 3 ECHR)]
Her case is one of a small number of claims for Asylum brought by citizens of Saudi Arabia which are not openly acknowledged by either government. British diplomats believe that to do so would in effect highlight the persecution of women in Saudi Arabia, which would be viewed as open criticism of the House of Saud and lead to embarrassing publicity for both governments.
The woman, who comes from a very wealthy Saudi family, says she met her English boyfriend - who is NOT a Muslim - during a visit to London. They struck up a relationship after he gave her his 'phone number in a department store.
She became pregnant the following year and worried that her ELDERLY husband - a member of the royal family of Saudi Arabia - had become suspicious of her behaviour, she persuaded him to let her visit the UK again to give birth in secret. She feared for her life if she returned to Saudi Arabia. [It is extremely easy to give birth to a child in London in SECRET!][Many women from GCC countries take such actions with very great ease in London!]
She persuaded the court that if she returned to the Kingdom [of Saudi Arabia] she would be subjected to Capital Punishment under Sharia law - specifically Flogging and Stoning to Death. She was also worried about the possibility of an "Honour Killing".
Since she fled Saudi Arabia, her family and her husband's family have broken off contact with her.
The woman has been granted permanent leave to remain in the UK after the Immigration and Asylum Tribunal unanimously allowed her appeal.
Keith BEST, of the Immigration Advisory Service, said that SAUDI nationals who were in genuine FEAR of Persecution had the LEGAL RIGHT to claim Asylum in the United Kingdom. He explained: "They may also be able to claim if they were subjected to Degrading and Inhumane treatment. [Art 3 ECHR]. I can see why these cases can be difficult for Britain when one considers the relationship with the Saudi royal family and the many military CONTRACTS."
In September 2008, women's rights activists [in very prominent positions of KSA society] petitioned the King to allow women to drive all vehicles. There were also calls for Saudi Arabian women to be allowed to compete in international sporting events along with their male counterparts.
[Approximately 75-90% of Muslims are SUNNI and 10-20% are SHIA].
According to AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL, discrimination has fuelled violence against women, with foreign domestic workers particularly at risk of ABUSES such as beatings, rape and even MURDER, and non-payment of wages.
Concerns have been raised that discriminatory laws relating to marriage mean women are TRAPPED in VIOLENT and ABUSIVE Relationships from which they have NO legal recourse.
Is this RIGHT?
Is this FAIR?
Is this REASONABLE?
What is YOUR View?
Please look at John Perkins: "Confessions of an Economic Hitman" - he explains that a deal was done between the US & Saudi Arabia to protect the feudal monarchy whatever might happen - in exchange for receiving reasonably priced Oil from Saudi Arabia. [Ditto Bahrain].
youpolitics 7 months ago