“A number of detainees have written to the NSHR complaining that they have been kept at the center for lengthy periods without being sent back to their respective countries,” said Muhammad Kilinton, a member of the Kingdom’s nongovernmental human rights watchdog.
Meanwhile, the society said there has been a marked drop in foreign workers complaining about nonpayment of their salaries.
“This is a positive sign that justice is being done to foreign workers in the Kingdom,” Kilinton said.
He also said the society has begun studying old people’s homes in the province to identify ways to help those who live there. “The counting process will be completed next Saturday,” he said.
Fair trial training
The society, meanwhile, is explaining to budding women lawyers ways of holding a fair trial of suspects in criminal cases.
The organization is conducting an intensive course on the subject at its Jeddah branch office, Hussain Al-Sharif, NSHR supervisor in Makkah province, said on Tuesday.
“This session is an extension of a previous training session that helped 24 women law students from Saudi and foreign universities,” he told Arab News.
Al-Sharif said the NSHR is giving utmost attention to the training of various sections of society working in areas connected to human rights. “We focused on training women because men usually have numerous opportunities to learn about these issues,” he said.
Al-Sharif said many of the young lawyers who participated in the first course have opted for higher studies under Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah’s scholarship program for studying abroad, while some of them have joined jobs considered supportive to the activities and aspirations of the NSHR.
“These women graduates of law colleges were among the first to call for the right to practice,” he said.
He claimed that Saudi society strongly supported their demand because of the belief that they would be of great help in tackling important issues concerning women and families.
The Kingdom, according to legal sources, is close to issuing regulations allowing women lawyers to stand before courts.
Al-Sharif revealed that the NSHR was planning to hold two conferences for lawyers and media personalities to discuss various human rights issues.
He asked all lawyers and journalists to contact his office to help facilitate the events.
According to statistics, cases involving women represent the majority of cases heard by courts in the Kingdom.
