As the reports emerged that Saudi Arabia executed more than 47 people on a single day for alleged terrorist crimes causing outrage across the Middle East, there's some murmurs doing the rounds in western capitals about blatant human rights abuses in Saudi Arabia. There has already been a glaring spike in capital punishment in Saudi Arabia last year, with at least 151 executions in 2015,compared with 90 for all of 2014.
After donning the cloak of protector of prestigious human rights body namely Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) Saudi Arabia recently preached to the international community about the need to confront “intolerance, extremism and human rights violations.” The funny thing is Saudi Arabia wants Western cartoonists, comedians, and others—people who represent only their individual selves—to stop mocking the religious beliefs and symbols of Islam, even as the Arabian kingdom’s own institutionalized policy is to vilify and discriminate against the religious beliefs and symbols of all other faiths(non muslims).
In Saudi Arabia almost ten percent of its population is deprived of equal rights because of their race. Any other religious texts or symbols apart from Islam are confiscated and congregation of other religious disciples(non muslims) is forbidden yet Saudi Arabia has the audacity to ask the world to cease “discrimination based on religion.” Truth is Saudi Arabia is notorious for worst kind of human rights violations,repressive theocracy by discussing the open discrimination against women, public execution for petty crimes and harsh sentencing for government critics, yet its candidacy and selection to UNHRC high table is baffling.
The scourge of Islamic terrorism plaguing world today has its roots in toxic radical ideology of Wahhabbism. This ideology was glorified and bankrolled by petro dollars of Saudi Arabia to spread its sphere of influence in Muslim world and to legitimize Saudi role as head of Arab world . This perverted ideology breeds terrorism as it propagates subjugation of women ,non Muslims , extreme hatred towards transgender ,gays, coercion ,intolerance towards freedom of speech or free thinking. There are cases in Saudi Arabia of young bloggers incarcerated for asking educational reforms or veracity of religious diktats when confronted through the prism of science. This toxic ideology has widened and refreshed the sectarian historical fault lines earlier diminished with passage of time.
The onus of sectarian war engulfing newer countries with each passing day in Middle Eastern region lies on Iran and Saudi Arabia. While Iran is spearheading Shiite onslaught on Sunni monarchies, Saudi Arabia is at the forefront on decimating Shia regimes. The end result being the unending waves of refugees storming shores of west seeking asylum from middle east war zone countries. Take for example the airstrikes by a Saudi-led coalition in Yemen has not only butchered innocent civilians (3000 so far) but more then million other people in Yemen have been displaced and the country is now at serious risk of famine. The credentials of Saudi Arabia as the warden of human rights thus lies in tatters and so does the duplicity of Western powers is exposed who support and sell arms to tyrant regimes world wide while preaching tolerance to victims.
The sectarian struggle between Saudi Arab and Iran of one-upmanship has now taken a turn for worse where fundamental human rights of citizens have gone for toss. The recent execution of 47 convicts in Saudi Arabia on flimsy grounds and among them was one prominent Shia cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr has once again startled human rights organizations .The execution of political prisoner is not only condemned by world community but also infuriated Iran and Shia block. Though track record of Iran is equally appalling and condemnatory with reports indicating that Iranian authorities put to death more than 753 people in the first half of 2015 – an average of four executions a day, many among them are Sunni preachers and intellectuals. The deplorable policy of government initiated intolerance towards any opposition needs immediate restitution.
It is high time the world at large should take cognizance of mind numbing mass murders carried out by Middle eastern regimes and through all effective diplomatic tools at hand try to persuade them to honor basic human rights of individuals and minorities by seizing the practice of premeditated, judicially-sanctioned killings on a mass scale.
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