The BBC reports that Fouad al-Farhan is the first blogger from Saudi Arabia to be arrested, allegedly for the content of his blog.
Though it can’t be proven that he has been arrested as a direct result of what he blogs about “searching for freedom, dignity, justice, equality, public participation and the other lost Islamic values”, the Saudi authorities say that he is being questioned for “violating non-security regulations”.
However, his blog is highly political, and it would not be a surprise if his support for a group of political reformists who were arrested last year has landed him in hot water with the authorities.
The BBC estimates that there are some 500 bloggers in Saudi Arabia, most of whom blog anonymously and under pseudonyms.
Though Farhan was arrested on 10th December last year, it took the authorities two weeks to acknowledge that he was being held.
Yet another case around the globe where blogging can seriously affect your personal freedom.
(Via BBC News)
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this is really bad… blog censorship. Blogs are one of the few ways of free expression left and now that power of freedom of expression is being taken away from them :(
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Blogger solidarity asks for our compromise on a global level. I propose sending the following e-mail to the Saudi ambassador in Brussels (beemb@mofa.gov.sa) against Fouad’s arrest.
More info here: http://catalunyafastforward.blogspot.com/2008/01/llibertat-per-fouad-al-farhan-blocaire.html
Marc Arza
http://www.catalunyafastforward.blogspot.com
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Washingtonpost reports that Fouad al-Farhan has been released by Saudi government on April 26, after spending four months in jail without any charges.