Urgent Appeal: Save the life of Ashraf Fayadh

For the attention of

His Majesty
King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud
The Custodian of the two Holy Mosques
Office of His Majesty the King
Royal Court, Riyadh
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Fax: + 966 - 11 403 3125

Minister of Justice, His Excellency
Dr Walid bin Mohammed bin Saleh Al-Samaani
Ministry of Justice
University Street,
PO Box 7775, Riyadh 11137
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Fax: +966 - 11 401 1741 / 402 031

Your Majesty,
Your Excellency,

We, the undersigned, call on His Majesty King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud to save the life of the poet and artist Ashraf Fayadh.

On 17 November 2015, after being jailed for more than 22 months in the city of Abha, the Saudi-Arabia-born Palestinian poet and artist Ashraf Fayadh was sentenced to death without clear legal charges beyond "insulting the Godly self" and having "ideas that do not suit the Saudi society."

These alleged charges are based on accusations by a man following a personal dispute with the artist, and the complaint of a reader’s mis-interpretation of a poetry book by Fayadh from 2008.

Ashraf Fayadh is an artist and poet who respects and honours the culture and civilization of Saudi Arabia. His poems inspire readers to reflect on issues related to the spirit and life. His commitment as artist and curator supports and helps the creative talent of young artists in Saudi Arabia, contributing to make their talent and achievements known in Saudi Arabia and abroad. With this goal, he co-curated the succesful exhibition Rhizoma (25 young artists from Saudi Arabia) at the prestigious 55th International Art Exhibition of the Venice Biennale in 2013. Earlier that year, he curated and helped to organize the exhibition Mostly Visible (24 artists from Saudi Arabia), as part of Jeddah Art Week, with the goal to show, as he wrote, "the real side of how art can be, simple, authentic, with little funding and lots of self-effort, with the soul of team work, inspired by our own culture, our own lifestyle, issues and concerns, and raising the level of awareness of our society by drawing the attention to the social, popular, and genuine culture."

Ashraf Fayadh was denied access to a lawyer throughout his detention and trial, in clear violation of international and national law.

Respectfully, we, the undersigned, urgently appeal to His Majesty King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud to save the artist’s life and to guarantee him his immediate and unconditional freedom in an act of justice.

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