RIYADH, 21 June 2007 — In the first such incident in the Kingdom, three members of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice will go on trial on Saturday for their involvement in the death of a Saudi man in their custody at a commission center in Tabuk three weeks ago.

This is one of two cases involving the virtue commission allegedly causing death of a Saudi.

The man in Tabuk, Ahmed Al-Bulawi, was apprehended by commission members after they observed a woman getting into his car at an amusement park. Both the man and woman were arrested on suspicion of being in a state of illegal seclusion (when a man is alone with a woman who is not a relative). While at the virtue center, the man collapsed and died.

An earlier statement from the Governorate of Tabuk said that medical reports showed that the man died of natural causes. It was later proven that the man was not guilty when commission members discovered that he was working for the woman’s family as a driver. Five members of the commission, including the commission head in Tabuk, Sheikh Suleiman Al-Anzi, and a Bangladeshi employee were investigated. The commission head and the Bangladeshi were cleared of any wrongdoing but the other three men have been transferred to the General Investigation and Prosecution Authority (GIPA) for violations committed during the detention.

A statement from the Governorate of Tabuk said: “As a follow-up regarding those detained for their involvement in the case, we announce that the entire case was transferred to a religious court and then back to the GIPA to determine what rights were violated. A trial has been set for Saturday, June 23. The governorate also notes that that all administrative violations alleged against commission members will be transferred to the GIPA for investigation.”

The governor of Tabuk, Prince Fahd ibn Sultan, said in statements published in the press that “nobody is above the law.” The governorate announced that the prince had agreed to pay, from his own pocket, a salary to the deceased’s family. Al-Bulawi supported a family of 12 — five boys, six girls, as well as his spouse. According to reports, his debts may be as high as SR50,000 and he lived in poverty. He was a retired border patrol guard who lived on a pension and drove families on errands in order to earn extra cash.

An investigation into the second incident which resulted in the death of a Saudi man in custody of the commission in Riyadh last month is now in its final stages. Members raided the house of Sulaiman Al-Huraisi in Al-Uraijah District because of suspicions that there was alcohol on the premises. The Governorate of Riyadh later stated that large quantities of alcohol were found and it also confirmed that the man had died during the raid. Some 14 commission members have been detained for questioning and all 11 family members who were in the house at the time have been detained for investigation purposes. The father of the deceased has accused the commission members of beating his son to death.

At a press conference held earlier this week, commission President Sheikh Ibrahim Al-Ghaith suggested that his men might have acted in self-defense. The outcome of the investigation is expected soon. On Monday, the Shoura Council rejected a proposal to build more commission centers in the Kingdom. It also rejected a proposal to increase the wages of members by 20 percent. Members, however, voted in favor of commission members being given priority in government training programs; the council also recognized the need for them to use walkie-talkies in their field operations. Shoura members, including Khalil Al-Khalil, have called for the commission to reshape its image and address its violations.

Various writers in the local media have spoken of the need for more responsibility from the commission. Bushra Al-Sebaei, a writer in Okaz, wrote an article entitled “Abuse of Authority.” In the article she listed violations by the commission which had not been widely reported over the years. “Looking at these incidents, one cannot help but notice a pattern. In none of these cases is the commission doing what it is supposed to do,” she said. She went on to say: “In fact, the matter should be considered from the psychological perspective that studies the impact of authority on individuals.”