In defiance of a protest ban, Shia
Muslim protesters took to the streets of Qatif and Awwamiya in
eastern Saudi Arabia on April 15. Both cities
held rallies of 400-500 people.
In a second day of protests, the
demonstrators called for expanded religious and political freedoms,
an end to the ban on protests, the release of political prisoners,
the halting of arbitrary arrests and an end to discrimination against
Shia Muslims by the Sunni monarchy, among other demands. They also
held banners supporting the Shia in Bahrain, demanding the withdrawal
of Saudi troops who were deployed to suppress massive protests
there.
According to Human Rights Watch, the
Saudi monarchy has arrested more than 160 dissidents since February
as part of the government’s crackdown on protests. (Bloomberg News,
April 20)
While the U.S. slanders China under the
guise of religious and political freedoms, it turns a blind eye to
oppression in its client regimes like Saudi Arabia.
