by Syed Neaz Ahmad
Corruption rules in Saudi prisons
IN CONTRAST with the bright lights and glamour of the Mahmood Saeed shopping mall near the disused runway of the old Jeddah airport are a number of non-descript buildings that look more like warehouses for the nearby shopping malls. That they are high-security prisons escapes the imagination of ordinary citizens. Most commuters drive past the buildings without realising the sinister reputation such places have in Saudi Arabia.
My journey to the 'unknown' began in Mecca where I spent the first six nights at the dreaded Mobahas (Saudi Intelligence Service) detention centre. The notoriously famous building is located at the foot of a mountain in Al-Nuzha district. The road is uneven and the place is not easily accessible – passers-by avoid the road, motorists go past in high gear and the Barron street bears a desolate look.
My eleven-day journey to two cities, 13 detention centres, and a 150-kilometre bus ride through the desert was no picnic by the Red Sea. This was an experience nobody needs to go through but – call it a conspiracy or karma – I had no choice. I was thrown into a prison room barely large enough to accommodate hundred but some 500 persons were locked in the extreme heat of the desert.
The room was full of expatriates and some Saudis. As I entered the room old timers rushed towards me – Egyptians, Afghanis, Indians, Pakistanis, Bangladeshis, Indonesians and nationals of some African countries – for news from the outside world. The inmates were keen to know if there had been a radical change in the system or was there any truth in the rumour that Saudi Arabia was going to have an elected parliament and that the kingdom would soon become a democratic republic. My answers didn't raise their hopes.
My first shock was the sight of a 9-year-old Nigerian boy sitting on his own and crying aloud. He wanted to go to his mama. He was separated from his mama in a crowded souk. For the police he was an illegal immigrant and booked for deportation. Does the Saudi Shariah law permit a 9-year old to be imprisoned with adults?
This was not a fun fair. Apparently Saudi law is blind when it comes to such subtleties.
My mobile phone and most of the cash in my pocket were confiscated but inside I saw inmates communicating with the outside world. I was told the phones were smuggled in with the connivance of the guards. Cigarette and what appeared to be addictive tablets of some sort were sold for cash. The business was brisk and cash turnover seemed high.
This was not a fun fair. Apparently Saudi law is blind when it comes to such subtleties.
My mobile phone and most of the cash in my pocket were confiscated but inside I saw inmates communicating with the outside world. I was told the phones were smuggled in with the connivance of the guards. Cigarette and what appeared to be addictive tablets of some sort were sold for cash. The business was brisk and cash turnover seemed high.
I paid five riyals (about $2) for a call – to British consulate – that would normally cost one-fifth of a riyal. Cigarettes were sold ten riyals a stick whereas a packet of 20 sticks costs around six riyals outside. I have no idea what was the cost of the 'tablets' and their Jeddah-street price but I am glad I am not an addict for I couldn't afford the habit.
One question that every inmate asked was: What did you do? Everyone had a story to tell, and with no television, radio or newspapers, the only pastime inside the prison was to talk.
One question that every inmate asked was: What did you do? Everyone had a story to tell, and with no television, radio or newspapers, the only pastime inside the prison was to talk.
There was this HGV driver from Peshawar who hadn't received his salary for six months and his employer wasn't keen to pay him either. The driver had paid a Saudi lawyer two thousand riyals to drag his employer to the court. But his employer terminated his services, revoked his sponsorship and reported him absconding. His subsequent arrest and torture was a matter of routine for the police. Despite his 3-year stay in Mecca, Medina and Jeddah prisons the old man is still optimistic.
The three big, burly carpenters from the outskirts of Cairo were no different. They had been made redundant as their sponsor decided to go out of business. He allowed the carpenters to work wherever they could for their journey home but later changed his mind, reported them absconding and got fresh work visas which he sold at an exorbitant price.
A young man from Islamabad, a welder, was offered a job in Medina but on his arrival was told the factory had relocated – some fifty kilometres down Tabuk highway. It was a desolate and lonely place, the factory was an illegal set-up and this welder was the only worker around. Water and food was scarce – water had to be brought in tankers from Medina – which he had to share with the camels and goats.
A young man from Islamabad, a welder, was offered a job in Medina but on his arrival was told the factory had relocated – some fifty kilometres down Tabuk highway. It was a desolate and lonely place, the factory was an illegal set-up and this welder was the only worker around. Water and food was scarce – water had to be brought in tankers from Medina – which he had to share with the camels and goats.
He tried to talk things over with his employer but it didn't work out. One moonlit night the welder decided to call it a day and walked through the rugged terrain, reached the highway, hitched a ride and surrendered to the police requesting them to arrest him and send him back. For a small fee of five hundred riyals the police agreed. After three months the young man is still waiting for his passage to Pakistan.
An 18-year old Yemeni student who was born in Saudi Arabia and whose father had a retail shop – obviously in partnership with a Saudi – was a pathetic case. One evening the young man was helping his father off-load goods for the shop when the ever-vigilant police asked him for his residence permit. His profession on the permit is student so he tried to run – as he is not allowed to work – but was chased and caught. He was charged with breaking the rules and was hauled in for deportation.
In Jeddah prison I saw and met hundreds of inmates from Burma. Thousands of Burmese Muslims from Arakan – often called Rohingyas – were offered permanent residence in Saudi Arabia by King Faisal but with the change of rulers in Saudi Arabia rules underwent a change too. The Haven of Peace that was offered to these uprooted Arakanese is now nothing less than a chamber of horrors.
There are about three thousand families of Burmese Muslims in Jeddah prison awaiting deportation. Women and children are being held in separate warehouse like prisons nearby. The only contact the men have with their wives and children is through mobile phones.
There are about three thousand families of Burmese Muslims in Jeddah prison awaiting deportation. Women and children are being held in separate warehouse like prisons nearby. The only contact the men have with their wives and children is through mobile phones.
The problem with their deportation is: Where to? Burma doesn't want them and Bangladesh doesn't have the desire or the economic ability to accommodate, feed and resettle refugees at this grand scale.
Sudanese, Nigerian, Eritrean, Ethiopian and Somalis go to Saudi Arabia for pilgrimage but with turmoil back home they overstay, do odd jobs, get caught and get deported. Not discouraged they come again using a different passport often using different identities but such cases are rare. African inmates are usually the ones most aware of what's happening around the world. I spotted a number of 'Man United for the Cup' graffiti in African prisons.
Sudanese, Nigerian, Eritrean, Ethiopian and Somalis go to Saudi Arabia for pilgrimage but with turmoil back home they overstay, do odd jobs, get caught and get deported. Not discouraged they come again using a different passport often using different identities but such cases are rare. African inmates are usually the ones most aware of what's happening around the world. I spotted a number of 'Man United for the Cup' graffiti in African prisons.
Going back to 'business' in Saudi prisons the Burmese Muslims – being in prison for over three years – have developed a good working relationship with the guards. They sell soap, shampoos, razors, trousers, shirts, pain-killers, biscuits, toothpaste and other items of daily use. Then there are 'restaurants' that offer biscuits, tea and coffee. Daredevil young men offer mobile phone charging facility – 10 riyals a phone – by tapping the live wire.
Jeddah- based Arab News (August 29, 2009) carried an article about the brisk business opportunity that Saudi prisons provide. Narcotic peddling under the nose of the guards, directing criminal activities over the phone and running other shady business from within the four walls of prisons is the order of the day.
Before I checked out from the facility I couldn't resist the temptation of leaving my own mark on the wall:
Corruption Rules. OK!
Syed Neaz Ahmad taught creative writing at Mecca University for 28 years. Last June he was imprisoned in Saudi Arabia for 11 days without any charge and then deported. He is a London-based writer and is currently compiling his memoir, Saudi Arabia: A holy country that was!
Before I checked out from the facility I couldn't resist the temptation of leaving my own mark on the wall:
Corruption Rules. OK!
Syed Neaz Ahmad taught creative writing at Mecca University for 28 years. Last June he was imprisoned in Saudi Arabia for 11 days without any charge and then deported. He is a London-based writer and is currently compiling his memoir, Saudi Arabia: A holy country that was!
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