Nazia Quazi was supposed to be flying from Riyadh to Dubai. It, however, remains a mystery whether she was able to board the flight and whether her father granted her permission to leave.
Citing privacy laws, a spokeswoman for the Canadian Embassy in Riyadh declined to make specific comments on the case, but said they are aware of Quazi’s request for help and are “taking steps” to provide that help.
Canadian Embassy officials remained tight-lipped when asked to confirm or deny whether Quazi, who has reportedly been prevented from leaving the Kingdom since 2007, had left Saudi Arabia.
According to press reports, Quazi’s father, Quazi Malik Abdul Garrar, is refusing to allow her to leave Riyadh because he disapproves of her relationship with B. Singhal, an Indian man from Dubai who she met at the University of Ottawa when they were students there. Arab News tried to call Quazi’s family, but no one answered.
Quazi’s mother Shaheen Unnisa and a brother, who both live in Ottawa, came to Saudi Arabia last week, according to a report released by the Muslims for Progressive Values of Ottawa (Canada), a group lobbying for Quazi’s release.
Quazi was brought to Saudi Arabia by her father in November 2007. It is alleged that Quazi’s father has taken her passport, and refused to sign an exit visa allowing her to leave the country.
Quazi’s family moved to Canada in 2001. Her father, however, remained a resident of Saudi Arabia. He has been working for a bank in Riyadh for the past 25 years. Quazi went to high school in Canada and became a Canadian citizen in 2005.
Quazi's case was taken up by the Human Rights Watch in January this year. It wrote to the Canadian Embassy in Riyadh to “take appropriate measures to protect her until such time as she has the documents and arrangements in place to exit the Kingdom, and also during her trip to the airport and her departure.”
