JEDDAH, 18 March 2007 — Talal Salim Ali Al-Sageer thought of going to the US soon after finishing high school. He believed going there would give him access to a better standard of education. However, on arriving to the US his dreams were shattered.
He cannot leave the US now while the courts there hear his case.
Talal’s family did not hesitate to let him go and study English and IT eight years ago. Talal’s father, Salim Al-Sageer, is impaired of hearing and thought sending his son to the US would be an investment for the future. Salim works as a mechanical engineer for Saudi Arabian Airlines and was looking forward to seeing his son pursue further education in the US. Likewise, his mother, like any other, was looking forward to seeing her son gaining a US education.
Talal, who lives in Phoenix, Arizona, talked about his case to Al-Madinah newspaper over the phone. “I was kept in custody for 45 days in Shaban 1427 in Phoenix, Arizona. I was accused in a case made up by the US immigration authorities,” he said.
“I decided to buy a new car a year earlier. I wasn’t allowed to fill in the application form by myself. Instead an employee at the agency I bought it from filled the form. I agreed since this was their law,” he said.
A year later Talal was approached by a group of policemen who wanted his ID, passport and car license. “When they checked my documents they noticed that the name did not match with that in my passport. I was arrested because the employees at the car agency did not write my full name that had appeared on my passport. Instead he had deleted my first name. So my name came up as Salim Ali Al-Sageer instead of Talal Salim Ali Al-Sageer. Everyone knows that the Saudi passport has the full name written clearly in English.”
Talal remained in prison for 45 days and was made to appear before a court in Phoenix. “I was freed after paying SR20,000, which my family transferred to me in Ramadan. Later, I was involved in another legal case after my wife, Natalia, accused me of beating her,” said Talal.
Talal’s mother said: “My son went to the US to study English and IT at the George Washington University. The university didn’t accept him because of his low GPA. Therefore, he went to study at a well-known institute in Arizona. I know him well. I raised him up in this country.
He is gentle, kind and shy. He minds his own business and concentrates on his studies. He doesn’t like making trouble and forgives easily even when he gets angry. This was Talal before he went to the US. Even after going to the US he was looking forward to returning to the Kingdom and helping his father.”
Although Talal’s father is deaf, he still communicated with Al-Madinah newspaper through sign language with his wife interpreting. Salim said he wishes to see his son return adding that he needs him since he is getting old.
“After staying for two years in the US, Talal married an American Christian woman. Her name is Natalia, and they have a four-year-old girl whose name is Rania. Although Talal’s wife is older than him, we still wished them a happy life,” said Salim.
Talal’s mother said that he telephoned her when he was in prison. “He didn’t go into detail because he didn’t want to worry me. He didn’t even tell me about the problems he was having with his wife.
However, he told me about the mistake in his car application form and that the courts had assigned him a lawyer who is his mother-in-law,” she said, adding, “He also said that the authorities had taken his passport from him. Talal has stones in his kidneys and this causes him a lot of pain. We are worried about his health.
He asked his lawyer about his case and he told him he would end up in prison,” said Talal’s mother.
Talal’s parents added that they just wanted to see their son back, especially since he is sick and his mental state is deteriorating. They also called on the Saudi authorities and human rights organizations to intervene in the case.
Omar Al-Ieedi, spokesman at the Saudi Embassy in Washington, said that the Saudi Embassy takes a positive interest in Saudis in the US. Commenting on Talal’s case, he said that Talal has been in the US for eight years and had been arrested several times in the past two years.
Al-Ieedi said that two lawyers had been assigned to help Talal last January.
“We hope that the two lawyers will succeed so that he can return to his family.
I have advised Talal to go back to the Kingdom. This is something that he himself wants to do. According to US law, a person’s passport is taken away when a case is pending. This is to prevent him from leaving the country.” Al-Ieedi said that like many other Saudis, Talal knows little English. He added that many Saudis do not examine forms carefully and end up signing papers without understanding what the paper actually says.
Regarding the problem between Talal and his wife, Al-Ieedi said: “The embassy suggested they would resolve the matter. But Talal refused, saying she was unsuitable for him.”
The Saudi Embassy spokesman added that the embassy is always ready to help and said they would pursue the case until Talal is able to return to the Kingdom.
