Loujain al-Hathloul
THE second hearing into the trial of Saudi human rights defender Loujain al-Hathloul took place in a special terrorism court in the autocratic kingdom today.
She has been held in prison for over two years due to her human and women’s rights advocacy work, though the Saudi government accuses her of “undermining the kingdom’s security, stability and national unity.”
At the trial today Loujain al-Hathloul handed in her defence and was told, according to her sister Lina, “what the public prosecutor considers evidence of her alleged crimes.”
As peers prepare to debate reform of the 1861 Offences Against the Person Act, Labour MP Tonia Antoniazzi leads a bid to end the criminalisation of women who end pregnancies at home. LYNNE WALSH reports
As Saudi Arabia is hailed abroad for its ‘reforms,’ the reality for women inside the kingdom grows ever more repressive. On the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, MARYAM ALDOSSARI argues it is time to stop applauding the illusion – and start listening to the women the state works hardest to silence
