U.S. State Department: We Are Following the Case of Abdulaziz Al-Muzaini and Demand Justice and Transparency
U.S. State Department: We Are Following the Case of Abdulaziz Al-Muzaini and Demand Justice and Transparency
The Wall Street Journal reported that the spokesperson for the U.S. State Department stated that the department is closely monitoring the case of Abdulaziz Al-Muzaini and seeks to ensure that his legal process is fair and transparent.
Al-Muzaini, a Saudi-American citizen, appeared in a video revealing harassment and threats he faced from officials at the General Commission for Audiovisual Media after his company, Myrkott, which produces the series “Masameer,” signed an exclusive contract with Netflix. Al-Muzaini explained that the threats included attempts to shut down his company and pressure it to contract with local entities instead of international ones. Consequently, the company’s license was revoked, and its employees were laid off.
Furthermore, Al-Muzaini reported that he was sentenced to 13 years in prison and banned from travel for 30 years on charges related to supporting terrorism and homosexuality based on an episode of the “Masameer” series. Al-Muzaini denied these charges, asserting that the episode does not encourage terrorism in any way. Saudi authorities also cited tweets Al-Muzaini wrote in 2015, some of which were revealed by the Wall Street Journal. In one tweet, he mocked Arab countries, saying: “No one can save Palestine except God, Arab countries can barely save themselves.” In 2015, Al-Muzaini also tweeted in support of women’s rights, and in 2014, he wrote: “You can only live in Riyadh if you are a drug addict.”
SANAD Organisation for Human Rights has expressed its full solidarity with Abdulaziz Al-Muzaini, calling on Saudi authorities to stop persecuting creatives and to annul the unjust sentences against him and lift his travel ban immediately. The organization added that such sentences constitute a blatant violation of human rights and freedom of expression and contribute to restricting creativity and individual initiatives in Saudi Arabia.
For more details, you can read SANAD organisation’s report through the following link:
