Don't talk Saudi: Kuwait's censorship of activist Salman Al-Khaldy

For many living in the West, freedom of speech, and the ability to state political views without a fear of reprisal, is an expectation. But for many under the rule of an iron thumb, it’s a luxury that can cost them their life as they know it. 

Kuwait is no stranger to imprisoning people who dare to speak out against the state. The small Gulf country has also criminalised wider critiques against its much larger allies.

Article 4 of the Kuwaiti Penal Code’s chapter on state security law says those who perform a “hostile act against a foreign country that exposes Kuwait to the danger of war or severing political relations shall be punished by temporary imprisonment for a period of no less than three years”.

Victims of Kuwaiti censorship include blogger Abdullah al-Saleh who was sentenced in 2017 to five years in prison for 'insulting' Saudi Arabia, MP Abdulhameed Dashti who was sentenced in 2016 to 14.5 years for 'insulting' Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, and Abdulrahman Alajmi who was sentenced in 2015 to four years for 'insulting' Saudi Arabia.

One of the most recent targets of the stifling law is 23-year-old Kuwaiti Salman al-Khaldy. Despite his contributions to his country – which include representing Kuwait in over 40 international science and invention competitions that drew personal praise from ministers – Salman was soon “betrayed” by it.

He was sentenced to five years in Kuwaiti prison and given a 25-year ban from Saudi Arabia after criticising the Kingdom online. 

"Kuwait is no stranger to imprisoning people who dare to speak out against the state. The small Gulf country has also criminalised wider critiques against its much larger allies"

Criticising a 'controversial' Saudi murder

In March 2020, Salman managed to find and watch the banned award-winning documentary ‘The Dissident’ in Kuwait. The film details the assassination of Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi critic and Washington Post journalist who was murdered and dismembered by a Saudi hit squad in Istanbul.

The film left Salman - who decided to pursue a career in politics to “protect” the interests of his people – outraged. He tweeted to his growing number of followers that Khashoggi’s killing was “assassination… at the hands of the Saudi government” and that the film “should guide all the freedom fighters around the world”.

The tweet soon gathered dozens of retweets and comments from accounts he says were mainly Saudi, criticising and reminding him that Saudi “led his country to independence” in 1991 following an Iraqi invasion. Some even warned the aspiring politician that his tweets could land him in jail.

“I told the truth and I stand with the truth, a man was oppressed, and we need to stand with him,” Salman told The New Arab, as he explained that he could never have expected what awaited him.

A Saudi retaliation

In July 2021, Salman received a scholarship to study in Qatar, which he reached by travelling through Saudi Arabia. To his surprise, upon his arrival in the Kingdom, a storm erupted online after he updated his followers on his whereabouts and his tweets about Khashoggi resurfaced.

“There was an incitement campaign, there was a spotlight on me with [Saudi] people saying I’m a threat to them,” Salman explained. The student-to-be “felt in danger” after receiving death threats and left the country the following dawn.

However, when he attempted to return to Kuwait and arrived at the Saudi border in December 2021, he was prevented from entering the kingdom for 25 years. “The Saudi government thought that I would spread my ideas to their people,” Salman explained, highlighting his disappointment that the country home to some of the holiest Islamic sites – including Mecca – could ban him, a Muslim, from entering for “no valid reason”.

The activist said he was told that if he wrote a plea to the Saudi Arabian government, the ban could be revoked. However, Salman refused to do so, holding the belief that he had nothing to apologise for, so decided to turn back to Qatar instead.

Salman later made a video about the border encounter, in which he criticised the Saudi move as “bullying”. It gathered 1.3 million views on Twitter, as thousands of comments flooded in, some of which, he says, were from Kuwaitis, who advised him to keep quiet "because of Saudi’s control over Kuwait".

“I didn’t feel supported. Kuwaitis as people have boundaries you can’t overstep, like Saudi… we know they are stronger than us and they are in control of the country,” he said, describing a power imbalance that would soon turn his life upside down. 

Judgement without justice

On 7 April this year, after the Saudi ambassador in Kuwait filed a legal case against him over his tweets, Salman was summoned for questioning by the ministry of justice. The case cited Article 4 of the country’s state security law. Salman refused to go, fearing that authorities would arrest him if he did.

His case was then referred to the High Criminal Court in the State Security Department on 20 April with the first trial date set for 23 May. Following concerns he could be extradited to Kuwait, he left from Qatar to London on 21 May.

On 6 June, he was sentenced in absentia to five years in prison with hard labour for committing a “hostile act” against Saudi Arabia, which he describes as “a judgement where the most basic form of justice was absent”.

هكذا تكون البلطجة بلا إحترام للسيادة بل وصنع القرار على رأي الذباب الإلكتروني.. فلا عجب من منعي بدخولها ! #ان_تكون_حرا_او_لا_تكون pic.twitter.com/vK0R9q0D7m

— سلمان الخالدي (@SalmanAl_Khald1) December 25, 2021

The Kuwaiti decision left Salman feeling as though he was “sold” by his country, for a country that would never return the favour. He blamed Kuwait for giving Saudi Arabia such power, and described it as “very dangerous” for its development towards “true independence”.

“From Kuwait’s perspective, Saudi Arabia is the only one that protects Kuwaiti interests… as Kuwaitis, we feel we can’t turn our backs on Saudi, even at our own expense,” Salman said.

Salman added that many Kuwaitis who had previously supported him also took a fear-based stance against him, to avoid facing consequences, leaving him feeling entirely alone. “When I arrived here I was really numb from what so unexpectedly happened... I felt sorrow… my life completely turned around… I didn’t deserve this, I deserve better.” 

However, after seeking asylum upon his arrival in the UK, Salman soon began to feel at ease. “Britain gave me protection and inner peace… I can talk… I can be comfortable… there’s no laws [against freedom of speech]… that’s what I needed,” he says.

However, the Kuwaiti national noted that British services have been less than ideal, stating that he has had to wait months for the arrival of his 'application registration card' - a form of ID for asylum claimants - and for the return of his passport. He also stated that his calls and emails are not adequately responded to by authorities.

"The Kuwaiti decision left Salman feeling as though he was 'sold' by his country, for a country that would never return the favour. He blamed Kuwait for giving Saudi Arabia such power"

A brighter future

Upon reflection, Salman hopes his people work towards making Kuwait a truly democratic society, as opposed to what he says is currently a “fake one”.

He added that those in his home country “need to stand with others… with those who disagree with you firstly and then with those who agree with you, that’s if we really believe in democracy”.

NGO’s and rights groups have taken a stand with Salman, as they have called for him to be freed from the sentence placed on him.

“The conviction and sentence brought against Salman should be dropped. Kuwaiti authorities should end practices of judicial harassment against individuals engaging in acts that are protected under the right to freedom of expression,” Ramzi Kaiss, legal and policy officer at Mena Rights, told The New Arab.

Kaiss also called for Kuwait to amend its penal code and other legislation “which contain broad and vague terminology that has enabled the criminalisation of acts that fall under the right to freedom of opinion and expression”.

Saloua Ghazouani, Article 19's Regional Director for Middle East and North Africa, an organisation protecting freedom of expression, also called for the international community to “pressure Kuwait to respect its international human rights commitments and not prosecute individuals who express critical views of the government or any majority orientation in Kuwaiti society,” when talking to The New Arab.

Until he achieves the justice he longs for, Salman says he is working on improving his language skills and hopes to enter university in Britain and begin a political career. His commitment to his own freedom of expression remains solid, and his hope in a brighter future - without the shackles of censorship - continues to push him to strive for the goals he has set for himself.

"I’m a person of opinion, principle and truth…I have ambitions… I have ideas and achievements… I have qualifications that will let me build a great life and future here…God willing, the future is brighter.”