The Saudi Arabian criminal justice
The Saudi Arabian criminal justice is primarily based on Islamic law known as the sharia law, which controls the entire Saudi Arabian judiciary. At the same time, its magistrates, attorneys, and judges form the part of the state’s religious governance (Ulema). Also, there are extra-sharia states tribunals that primarily deal with cases or disputes involving specific royal rulings. Correspondingly, courts and tribunals must strictly adhere to Sharia rules, procedures and attestations despite the intensity of the crime.
Saudi Arabian Sharia is derived from Koran (Quran) and the Islamic traditions of Prophet Mohammed, popularly known as the “Sunnah.” While the judicial system is primarily grounded on the Hannibal school of Sunni Islam, strictly following the 1926 rulings by King Abdi Aziz. According to the Hannibal system of jurisprudence, the analogy is rejected as a source of criminal justice laws in Saudi. Instead, it recommends the traditional Islamic statutes and the saying of Prophet Mohammed. The use of traditions and sayings of Prophet Mohammed in the criminal justice system is mostly used rigid Sunni Muslim Jurist who occupies more than 85% of entire Saudi Arabia. In case, the Hannibal school of Sunni is unable to handle criminal justice cases. Sharia allows it to use their reasoning or refer to other schools basing on Islamic beliefs (Alanazi & Menon 2018).
The Saudi Arabian criminal justice systems are critically influenced by Islamic believes since Sharia is not codified; thus, it lacks systems of judicial precedents. And because the country requires a well-organized or formal penal codes listing criminal offenses and accompanying punishments for its citizens, including crimes entitled to capital punishment. Therefore Sharia instructs judges to use Fiqh (Hannibal school of jurisprudence) texts to judge all cases. Also, Saudi Arabian judges are authorized to contempt prior judgments, either one’s judgments or other judges’ rulings, hence letting them use their opinions to interpret and implement justice in various cases. The criminal justice system in Saudi Arabia is significantly obstructed by external forces separate from the formal jurisdiction processes, causing divergent judgment even in seemingly identical cases.
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In Saudi Arabia, Islamic Law is enforced with all legal and judicial structures entirely depending on the Quran to solve both civil and criminal cases. The Saudi legal and judicial system is headed by the king, who is supreme also the final judge and the Nation’s source of pardon at the court of appeal. Apart from the king, the Saudi laws are also enforced through three central court systems: the Shariah Courts, which are the second from the court of appeal. The Sharia Court is structured into three categories to ensure that every case is solved effectively, depending on its urgency. The first instance courts consist of Summary and General Courts. Followed by Courts of Cassation and the Supreme Judicial courts, which hears less complicated cases, mostly criminal injustice cases. Nonetheless, to ensure that the Saudi Arabian law is fully enforced and to enhance the Shariah Courts, the legal and judicial system has the Board of Grievances, Which primarily deals with cases involving governments. Besides, the Saudi Arabian system of law enforcement, depending on the Quran as the principal guideline for all legal matters, including applying severe punishment for those proven guilty, especially the emigrants and all non-Sunnah Muslims. At the same time, the Saudi Arabian Sharia assumes that one is innocent until proven guilty by the law.
In Saudi Arabia, policing and law enforcement are controlled by the ministry of interior and ministry of defense, where the minister is supposed to be a member of the Royal Family. Saudi Arabian law enforcement structure is depicted as a “Centralized single police force,” which is critically controlled by state emphasis and not local influences, which are practical in all acts of law within the country. The state has two law enforcers units; the Saudi Police and military forces. Both branches work by complementing each other in maintaining law and order as well as dealing with any form of external aggressions threatening the country. The country’s policing stricture is further structured into two more security offshoots depending on their specializations; the Public Security Forces and investigative Police Force. Even though all the Saudi Arabian policing work in a similar manner but the Public service Forces mostly deals with sensitive state entities like tracking criminals, terrorism, and dealing with crime results. Similarly to the Investigative Police Force, which uses elements of intelligence in its exercise to maintain law and order. The state also has other types of policing known as the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice (CPVPV). This policing branch operates differently from other police units, as it’s mandated the task of monitoring social behavior and ensuring that everybody adheres to the Islamic doctrines of hisbah.
Saudi Arabia policing unit and other law enforcers use various methods of investigations. For example, “Mabaheth” (General Investigation Directorate), Investigative Police Force and Saudi INTERPOL undergo special training in military colleges to enable them to carry investigations and other policing activities effectively. However, all Saudi Arabian policing and investigations are carried by specially trained officers, using modern technology to handle the escalating cases of insecurity in the country. These methods include searching, Interviewing Witnesses, Law Enforcement Observations, use of Physical and Forensic Evidence, Custodial Interrogations, and many more depending on the intensity of the crime or actions.
There are various types of Law courts in Saudi Arabia, all managed by the minister of justice, and by government orders relating to the development of the judiciary. The following is the hierarchical organization of the Saudi Arabian court system: the Supreme Court is the highest appellate court in Saudi Arabia, which has the mandate to review judgments and decisions give out or supported by other appellate courts all in accordance with Sharia. Then it’s followed by Appellate courts that handle inquiries issued by the courts of the first instance. Also, there are other courts other which were formed to solve other cases in various provinces and governorate; Courts of First Instance, General Courts, Criminal Courts, Family Courts, Commercial Courts, and Labor Courts. However, these courts operate according to Shari’ah Procedures to ensure that justice is administered effectively without prejudices.
In Saudi Arabia, there are different types of punishment, ranging from corporal punishment, imprisonment, limb amputation, death sentence, lashes, death by stoning, crucifixion, and many more. However, crimes like blasphemy, homosexuality, treason murder, adultery (for married women), and banditry are among the crimes punished by stoning to death, crucifixion, beheading, and firing to death.
Besides, the Saudi Arabian law does not allow any person to be arrested, searched, imprisoned, or detained, apart from in cases specified by the law. In addition, the country has divided its punishments into three: Boundary or Limit crimes (Hudud) sentence, which includes lashing, life imprisonment, stoning to death, and hand amputation for robberies. Secondly, the retaliation penalties (Qisas) mostly given for crimes like assault and murder with the courts having no actual sentencing process; therefore, in most cases, it is judged as “a-eye-for-an-eye-punishment.” The third punishment allowed by the Saudi Arabian law is the Discretionary Punishments (Tazirat), which is administered according to its severity. When an individual breaks Islamic law, the judge is allowed to issue any type of penalties like imprisonment, corporal punishments, banishment, or lashing depending on the Quran or Sharia guidelines (Allen, 2005).
Saudi Arabian prisons are among the worst prisons in the world due to religion and political influence during sentencing. Further, the Saudi Arabia jurisdiction is not up to par with the principles of HRW (Human Rights Watch), which asserts that the state is greatly subjecting its convict’s repressive rules and denying them rights to appeal and get fair judgments. Even though the international organization has tried to plea Saudi to reform its injustices given to Saudi Arabian prisons, the process has been faced by many objections. Since many of the Saudi Arabian jails are said to be extremely overcrowded, with more than 150 prisoners being assigned a singles room, poor ventilation and no beddings. Hence leading a consistent outbreak of disease and deaths. Recently many of the humanitarians have been complaining of the state negligence in giving prisoners decent medical attention, lack of rehabilitation, poor diets, and ruthless tortures (Al-Rasheed, 2019).
The Saudi Arabian constitution and Sharia law allow for corporal punishments and death penalties, to specific types of crimes. For instance, when one commits, apostasy, treason, homosexuality, espionage, murder, rape, terrorism, drug smuggling, armed robbery, blasphemy, burglary, recidivism, sorcery, disrespecting God (Hirabah) and many more related actions. Professional executioners do the death penalty in Saudi Arabia. For instance, Muhammad Saad al-Beshi was given the mandate by the Sharia law to execute lawbreakers through amputating body limbs, decapitation using a sword, axe, firearm, hanging crucifixion, lashing, slashing and many more inhuman punishments that will lead to convicts death.
Since the country execution laws are primarily based on Sharia or Islamic Quran law, there are no separate treatment or penal code for juveniles in Saudi Arabia. Regardless of age, everybody is treated as an adult when he or she is charged with an offense. Saudi has no set age for a given punishment in the country; either adult or child has committed the crime it’s taken with a similar weight according to Sharia or Islamic laws. Therefore juveniles can face any type of punishment, including capital punishment, death penalty, and lashing. Moreover, punishments, like community service and probation, do not exist in Saudi Arabia. Hereafter, juveniles are treated as adults when implementing justice in the country (Alkhadra, 2017).
Saudi Arabian is among the states that have deep Islamic culture. The country is well known for its tuff application of Quran law when doing anything, especially the legal systems which are entirely derived and based on Sharia Islamic law, Quran, and Sunnah. Since the Quran is stringent on various types of crimes, therefore making Saudi Arabian people follow those beliefs throughout its history up to date in addressing any form of misconduct. The country history culture and politics are also known to strictly observe the medieval texts of the literalist Hanbali school of Islamic jurisprudence since the sixth century. Consequently, anything going against Islamic believes as specified in the Quran is declared a crime or a sin, and it’s severely demurred or punished (Shahidullah, 2014).
One of the major transnational crime affecting Saudi Arabia currently is the upsurge of terrorism across its borders. Many of the terrorists, especially the Islamic extremist groups, have been attacking Saudi Arabian towns and innocent civilians regularly. This includes terrorist groups like ISIS, Al-Qaida, Taliban and many more Islamic extremist groups from the Middle East. For instance, from 2000, Saudi Arabia has faced more than 500 terrorist attacks from Al-Qaida, ISIS, and Daesh terrorist groups as well as individual terrorists.
The state is highly condemned due to its high rate of human right violation. Including human rights abuses like capital punishment, the death penalty, lashing, detaining without trial, denying freedom of belief, and police brutality. More so, imposing severer sanctions and penalties on anybody who goes against them. Conversely, Saudi rules are ruthless despite the country being a member of the United Nations since 1945, but it dramatically progresses to implement ruthless practices to its citizens and emigrants. To address crimes, Saudi Arabia denies all allegations of human rights violations; instead, it applies more ruthless rules to ensure that the information does not reach international humanitarian bodies. This is done through controlling its social media usage, police brutality and use the Quran to justify their acts that criminals should be punished severely and mostly through death, limb amputation, or lashing.
National master research on the comparison between Saudi Arabia and the United States crime rate per 100,000 population:
| Crimes | Saudi Arabia | United States |
| Capital punishment. | 2,014 | 2,014 |
| Murder rate (per million people) | 10.23 | 42.01 |
| Robberies | 2.9 | 146.4 |
| Assaults | 63.2 | 786.7 |
| Execution | 143 | 42 |
| Jails | 104 | 1558 |
| Illicit drug | 30.33 | 58.98 |
| Total crime cases | 84,599 | 11.90 million |
However, the research shows that the United States has high crime rates more than Saudi Arabia. The USA has more than 5times crimes more than Saudi Arabia. The main reason why the USA has high crime rates than Saudi Arabia is a result of the population difference. Whereby the USA is more than five times the size of Saudi similar to a population where the USA has about 298.1 Million and Saudi Arabia 28.6 million peoples. However, this has made a significant variance in terms of crime rates and crime control (Hawkins, 2017).
The low crime rates in Saudi Arabia compared to the USA can be related to harsh Sharia Laws when it comes to solving crime issues. Saudi Arabian Sharia laws ensure that everybody is bonded and adheres to Islamic religious instructions and customs — failure to which one faces severe penalties and punishments, including death sentencing. But in the USA, constitutional laws are well stipulated, and they somehow lenient compared to Saudi Arabia. According to American law, the severe punishment that can be given capital offenses include crimes such as; murder, treason robber with violence among other, while also the American constitution forbids convicts to be subjected to inhuman degradable punishment (Rossi, 2017). An example drag trafficking, fornication among married women, robbery, swearing an oath falsely, and many more are given capital or death punishments. But in the USA, some of these crimes are obsolete while others are treated leniently compared to Saudi Islamic Law (Dammer & Albanese, 2013).
Another reason for lower crime rates in Saudi Arabia is a result of callous policing actions that are used by the authorities to punish lawbreakers and to fight against movements or activists in the country. Correspondingly, court systems, which are entirely controlled by the regime and Islamic laws making them deviate from the United Nations vote of embracing the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, since to them, it violates or contradicts the Quran. For instance, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights indicates that ever country should allow religious diversity and freedom of worship, which is highly objected to the Saudi Islamic state.
Nevertheless, by remaining preservative, Saudi Arabia has been able to coerce crime in a more significant percentage. Since the severe penalties act as control mechanisms of fighting law-breaking and as deterrent factors for incessant crimes of the same nature, although in many cases, its Sharia is subjected to dictatorial acts and violation of human rights. In America, before issuing any punishment, the court must find the truth from the evidence that is laid bare in the courtroom. As a result of democracy, adherence to human rights acts, and an effective judicial system, many Americans are given lenient punishments. After completing the penalty, some even end up repeating similar crimes. But in Saudi Arabia, convicts are treated so harshly that if one survives capital or death penalty, he or she cannot repeat dare to repeat it despite the intensity of the crime.
My country should stop using Islamic laws or Sharia only; it should craft and embrace a constitution which will incorporate Acts and rules stipulated for everybody to read by himself. Currently, many people are facing death sentences as a result of biased Sharia law. If my country will learn from the American judicial process and adopt the constitution, many people will be able to get justice. Also, capital and death sentences will reduce since courts will be instituting the truth from the evidence that is laid in the courtroom. Instead of the current Sharia, which has numerous faults and biases, as many judged offers rulings according to their point of view or Quran ignoring the truth.
From the Saudi Arabian government should abandon rigid and complex Sharia, and copy the USA ways of handling convicts despite the intensity of the crime. It should adopt the following approaches, Deterrence, Restraint, Retribution, and Rehabilitation, by doing this it will be able to solve all criminal cases in a humane way.
References
Al-Rasheed, M. (2019). The Long Drive to Prison: The Struggle of Saudi Women Activists. Journal of Middle East Women’s Studies, 15(2), 247-250.
Alanazi, F., Jones, A., & Menon, C. (2018). Sharia Law and Digital Forensics in Saudi Arabia. Journal of Digital Forensics, Security, and Law.
Allen, T. (2005). Property and the Human Rights Act 1998. Bloomsbury Publishing.
Shahidullah, S. (2014). Comparative criminal justice systems: Global and local perspectives. Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Publishers.
Alotaibi, N. I., Evans, A. J., Heppenstall, A. J., & Malleson, N. S. (2019). How Well Does Western Environmental Theory Explain Crime in the Arabian Context? The Case Study of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. International Criminal Justice Review, 29(1), 5-32.
Alsubaie, M. F. A. (2018). Corporate criminal liability in Saudi Arabia. In Research Handbook on Islamic Law and Society. Edward Elgar Publishing.
Connolly, E. J., Al-Ghamdi, M. S., Kobeisy, A. N., Alqurashi, F., Schwartz, J. A., & Beaver, K. M. (2017). Identifying latent classes of antisocial behavior among youth from Saudi Arabia: An assessment of the co-occurrence between aggression, psychopathy, low self-control, and delinquent behavior. Youth violence and juvenile justice, 15(3), 219-239.
Rossi, P. H. (2017). Under the Gun: Weapons, Crime, and Violence in America. Routledge.
Dammer, H. R., & Albanese, J. S. (2013). Comparative criminal justice systems. Cengage Learning.
Alkhadra, T. (2017). Prevalence of dental caries and oral hygiene status among juvenile prisoners in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia. J Contemp Dent Pract, 18(11), 991-5.
Hawkins, A. (2017). Violent crime in America: a look at factors affecting crime levels in US cities.
