“I am with the uprising of women in the Arab world because I can think and fully practice my
religion (like men). Also, I’m in debt to my daughter to offer her an honorable life…I will win. Not immediately, but definitely."
- Loujain al-Hathloul
Loujain al-Hathloul, born on 31 July 1989 in Saudi Arabia, is a prominent Saudi women’s
rights activist who spent 1,001 nights in jail (almost 3 years), as a consequence of attempting
to lift the ban on driving for women and for openly protesting against the “Wilayah” male
guardianship system, now banned in Saudi Arabia. She graduated from the University of
British Columbia. Al-Hathloul was ranked third in the list of "Top 100 Most Powerful Arab
Women 2015”. She was named one of Time magazine's "100 Most Influential People of
2019". She was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize twice, in 2019 and 2020, respectively.
In March 2019, PEN America announced that Al-Hathloul along with Nouf Abdulaziz
and Eman al-Nafjan would receive the 2019 PEN America Barbey Freedom to Write Award.
She has also been shortlisted for the 2020 Václav Havel Human Rights Prize, the winner for
which will be announced on 16 April, 2021.
Loujain al Hathloul has often criticized the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Crown Prince
of Saudi Arabia- Mohammed bin Salman’s regressive anti-women laws, especially the ban on
driving for women. In 2014, Al-Hathloul, who had a driving license issued in the UAE, drove
the car from Saudi to the UAE and streamed the video live. She was detained for 73 days by
the authorities for attempting to cross the border illegally. In 2015, al-Hathloul stood for
elections in Saudi Arabia- also, the first time that women were allowed to vote and stand for
in Saudi elections, however, according to Amnesty International reports, her name was not
added to the ballots.
In March 2018, Loujain was allegedly kidnapped from the UAE and deported to Saudi
wherein she was subjected to a travel ban. On 15 May, 2018, weeks before the Saudi Arabian
authorities lifted the ban on women drivers (the last such ban in the world), Loujain was
arrested along with along with Eman al-Nafjan, Aisha al-Mana, Aziza al-Yousef, Madeha al-
Ajroush and some men, for "attempting to destabilise the kingdom" and faced charges of
terrorism from Saudi Arabia’s counterterrorism court. The court, established in 2008, has its
own definition of what it considers to be terrorism. According to Middle East expert Guido
Steinberg- “The government in Saudi Arabia defines what exactly terrorism is. What we have
here is a political trial set in motion by political leadership. This court was established to
accomplish such things”.
For over 10 months after she was detained, Al-Hathloul was not charged and there was no
trial. According to Amnesty International reports, she was whipped, waterboarded, given
electric shocks, was sexually harassed and was threatened with rape and murder during this
time. As per Baroness Helena Kennedy’s allegations, Loujain al-Hathloul was shown
pornographic films during interrogation. She was hung from a ceiling, severely beaten and
given electric shock several times. Loujain’s parents state her "thighs were blackened by
bruises", and that Loujain "was shaking uncontrollably, unable to hold her grip, to walk or sit
normally" in the duration of their visit. According to Alia al-Hathloul, her sister, Saud al-
Qahtani visited al-Hathloul during her torture sessions, laughing at her, threatening to rape
and kill her and to dispose of her body in the sewage system, and he tortured her all night
during Ramadan.
On 13 March 2019, the trial began but was indefinitely postponed in May 2020 owing to the
COVID-19 pandemic. Al-Hathloul was charged under Article 6 of the Anti-Cybercrime law
that penalises the production and transmission of material deemed to impinge on public order,
religious values, public morals and life, as per UN Human Rights. The Saudi Arabian
authorities charged her under the state’s broad counter-terrorism laws for undermining
national security and trying to change the political system of the country. Following the
sentence, al-Hathloul’s sister Lina al-Hathloul posted on Twitter: “Loujain cried when she
heard the sentence today. After nearly three years of arbitrary detention, torture, solitary
confinement – they now sentence her and label her a terrorist. Loujain will appeal the
sentence and ask for another investigation regarding torture”.
Loujain was held in incommunicado detention for three months. When she came to know that
other detainees were allowed to call their family, she went on a 6-day hunger strike to
demand the same, after which was allowed to meet her parents. In October 2020, Saudi
Arabian officials received multiple pressures from the European Union for releasing all
human rights activists, and on 29 November 2020 seven European envoys released a joint
statement condemning the continued detention of five Saudi Arabian women's rights
activists. On 28 December 2020, al-Hathloul was sentenced to five years and eight months in
prison by a Saudi Specialised Criminal Court and finally after 1,001 days in prison for the
sake of the right to drive for women- on 10 February 2021 she was released on probation.
Alia al-Hathloul, in an online press conference, said that seeing her sister after release “was a
very special moment … a moment I’ll never forget. She’s such a strong woman. That’s the
woman I know. We’re happy she’ll now be able to sleep in a warm bed.” Alia said that one of
the first things her sister wanted to do, after release, was to eat ice cream and she, while
living in Belgium, decided to buy an ice cream too and celebrate!
She also added- “Loujain is home, but she isn’t free,” as she is subject to a travel ban and is
forbidden from speaking to the media. She can be sent back to jail at any time over the next
three years if she is seen as having violated her parole in any way. Her Tweets are now
considered illegal and any activity in this regard would be considered a cybercrime, so she
will be staying away from social media for now. This is the life of a 31-year-old woman in
the 21 st century who wanted to secure the right to drive and freedom of movement for women
in her own country. Loujain al-Hathloul’s extraordinary resilience and unshakable resolve
inspire millions of women in the world today, to fight for their basic rights and dedicate their
lives for womankind, in particular and for humanity, in general. It is by looking up to women
like her, that we rise in unison.
Sources
1. https://www.dnaindia.com/viral/photo-gallery-was-raped-forced-to-kiss-interrogators-
in-jail-saudi-activist-loujain-al-hathloul-narrates-her-horrifying-ordeal-2874519
2. https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/who-is-loujain-al-hathloul-the-saudi-
activist-who-was-released-from-prison-7185989/
3. https://indianexpress.com/article/world/saudi-activist-loujain-al-hathloul-no-longer-
in-jail-but-still-not-free-7185756/
4. https://youtu.be/_2E7ENXhu0k
Piece by-
Pronita Tripathi
pronitatripathi15@gmail.com
Biography: Pronita is currently studying English Literature from Delhi University. She is an
art enthusiast with a love for writing and reading. She hopes to debunk the multiple
stereotypes associated with Humanities Studies and become a worthy English Professor to
her future students. She can’t wait to meet them! On most days Pronita chooses sleep over
everything else, and on some everything else over sleep.
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