UN committee Report: The Arrest of Safar bin Abdulrahman Al-Hawali Amounts to Full-Scale Human Rights Violations

The UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities has issued a decision regarding the detention of Dr. Safar bin Abdulrahman Al-Hawali by Saudi Arabia, holding him incommunicado without trial. The experts concluded that Al-Hawali’s treatment amounts to torture, arbitrary detention, and enforced disappearance, violating his rights to health and access to justice, which constitutes full-scale human rights violations.

The report highlighted that despite Al-Hawali’s need for assistance with communication, mobility, and self-care, none of the accommodations required for his disability have been provided. As a result, he has become isolated and unable to express his needs while in detention, with family visits only allowed occasionally. 

The committee found that Al-Hawali has been subjected to “a wide range of human rights violations,” including enforced disappearance, arbitrary detention, and denial of the right to health, as no suitable medical facilities have been provided for his disability, leading to a significant deterioration in his health. He has also been subjected to torture and cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment and denied the right to access justice.

The committee called on Saudi Arabia to immediately release Al-Hawali or ensure a fair trial for him, and to cease any retaliatory actions against him or his family members.

In this context, committee member Markus Schefer stated: “Mr. Al-Hawali has been subjected to a wide range of human rights violations over the past six years, including enforced disappearance, arbitrary detention, deprivation of the right to due process, deprivation of the right to health, as well as acts of torture or inhuman treatment”.