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Discuss this article (22 Comments)Saudi journalist sentenced to 60 lashes for TV show
by This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it on Sunday, 25 October 2009
SAUDI BAN: A Jeddah court has also banned Rozanna Al Yami from leaving the country for two years. (Getty Images)
A female Saudi journalist has been sentenced to 60 lashes for her involvement in a TV show in which a Saudi man bragged about his sex life, it has been reported.
According to the Associated Press new agency, Rozanna Al Yami is believed to be the first Saudi women journalist to be given such a punishment for her work.
She has also been banned by the Jeddah court of travelling outside the kingdom for two years, an Information Ministry official, who asked not to be named, told CNN.
The programme, which was broadcast in July, caused outrage in the conservative country where talk about sex is banned.
In the episode of Lebanon-based LBC television's racy show ‘Bold Red Line’ Mazen Abdul Jawad described how he lost his virginity at 14 and liked to pick up women for sex.
Jawad, who has since been dubbed the Saudi sex braggart, was sentenced to five years in jail earlier this month.
Three friends who appeared on the show with him were given two-year terms and 300 lashes.
His lawyer, Sulaiman al-Jimaie said at the time the conviction was wrong because Jawad should have been tried in a court that specialised in media issues, not a criminal court.
"My client has been presented to the people as a scapegoat to cover up the real culprit LBC," Jimaie said in a statement.
READERS' COMMENTS
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Saudi Responses to Sex
Posted by Greer, Bangkok, Thailand on Thursday 29 October 2009 at 07:09 UAE time
One poster asked for comments from those who have been to Saudi. I have been, and to give some idea of the local attitude to what they see as immodest behaviour, here is an example. My colleagues and I had dinner at a local restaurant in a shopping centre, seated in the restaurant were three girls, apparently of Arabic background. In the restaurant they were seated in the normal open part, not the section reserved for women and families. They happened to finish their meal just before we did and walked out t the main road, but without covering their faces. As we walked out not far behind, we noticed that the reaction of the passing motorists was what one might expect in the west if a girl was walking down the street stark naked! We were extremely surprised, as we knew that those girls had merely walked out without covering their faces...but otherwise were dressed exactly the same as anyone else. The majority of Saudi people are conservative in the extreme, so although I dont think the journalists punishment was either appropriate or necessary, I am not overly surprised. As for the short sighted and rather arrogant comment that Saudi has given the world oil, with the implication that it can do what it likes, the poster should do a little research about oil fields throughout the world before making such statements.
Posted by Greer, Bangkok, Thailand on Thursday 29 October 2009 at 07:09 UAE time
One poster asked for comments from those who have been to Saudi. I have been, and to give some idea of the local attitude to what they see as immodest behaviour, here is an example. My colleagues and I had dinner at a local restaurant in a shopping centre, seated in the restaurant were three girls, apparently of Arabic background. In the restaurant they were seated in the normal open part, not the section reserved for women and families. They happened to finish their meal just before we did and walked out t the main road, but without covering their faces. As we walked out not far behind, we noticed that the reaction of the passing motorists was what one might expect in the west if a girl was walking down the street stark naked! We were extremely surprised, as we knew that those girls had merely walked out without covering their faces...but otherwise were dressed exactly the same as anyone else. The majority of Saudi people are conservative in the extreme, so although I dont think the journalists punishment was either appropriate or necessary, I am not overly surprised. As for the short sighted and rather arrogant comment that Saudi has given the world oil, with the implication that it can do what it likes, the poster should do a little research about oil fields throughout the world before making such statements.
Re : Caning anyone?
Posted by KM, Dubai, UAE on Wednesday 28 October 2009 at 14:01 UAE time
Singapore employs canning as a deterrent sentence, not a torture. The maximum strokes that can awarded in Singapore is 24, and these are for (as you rightly and surprisingly, pointed out) serious crimes, where serious harm are inflicted against others and the general public. So, you do the maths.
Posted by KM, Dubai, UAE on Wednesday 28 October 2009 at 14:01 UAE time
Singapore employs canning as a deterrent sentence, not a torture. The maximum strokes that can awarded in Singapore is 24, and these are for (as you rightly and surprisingly, pointed out) serious crimes, where serious harm are inflicted against others and the general public. So, you do the maths.
Singapore
Posted by Doug on Wednesday 28 October 2009 at 12:05 UAE time
Tell you what FA, you can add me to the list of people seeing Singapore's punishments as stone age. I would also point out though that flogging someone 60 times because they happened to work on the same programme as someone talking about sex is a little different from caning someone for rape and murder.
Corporal punishment is a bit stone age but I think you'll find many people in the West privately think that for the more serious crimes, it might not be such a bad idea. But very few people would support flogging someone for what appears to be an essentially victimless crime.
Also it's worth noting that Singapore keeps its backward laws to itself, whereas Saudi Arabia is actively involved in funding schools across the world that promote its interpretation of the law.
Posted by Doug on Wednesday 28 October 2009 at 12:05 UAE time
Tell you what FA, you can add me to the list of people seeing Singapore's punishments as stone age. I would also point out though that flogging someone 60 times because they happened to work on the same programme as someone talking about sex is a little different from caning someone for rape and murder.
Corporal punishment is a bit stone age but I think you'll find many people in the West privately think that for the more serious crimes, it might not be such a bad idea. But very few people would support flogging someone for what appears to be an essentially victimless crime.
Also it's worth noting that Singapore keeps its backward laws to itself, whereas Saudi Arabia is actively involved in funding schools across the world that promote its interpretation of the law.
Caning anyone?
Posted by FA, Dubai, UAE on Wednesday 28 October 2009 at 11:47 UAE time
Stone age you say? how about this (yet I dont hear anyone condemn Singapore's religion or 'culture'):
Singaporean law allows caning to be ordered for over 30 offences, including robbery, gang robbery with murder, drug use, vandalism, and rioting. Caning is also a mandatory punishment for certain offences such as rape, drug trafficking and for visiting foreigners who overstay their visa by more than 90 days
Posted by FA, Dubai, UAE on Wednesday 28 October 2009 at 11:47 UAE time
Stone age you say? how about this (yet I dont hear anyone condemn Singapore's religion or 'culture'):
Singaporean law allows caning to be ordered for over 30 offences, including robbery, gang robbery with murder, drug use, vandalism, and rioting. Caning is also a mandatory punishment for certain offences such as rape, drug trafficking and for visiting foreigners who overstay their visa by more than 90 days
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