This analysis by Gavan Casey is available in full exclusively to The42 Members.
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WHAT IF IT’S not about the mass executions, the treatment of women as subordinate citizens, the chemical castration of gay people, the torture and the public floggings, the absence of free speech and the criminalisation of protests, the murder of Jamal Khashoggi by state operatives, or the foremost role in the humanitarian crisis in Yemen…but about the friends we make as we enter the post-hydrocarbon era?
Earlier this week in Saudi Arabia, a female PHD student at Leeds University who had returned home to the kingdom on holiday was sentenced to 34 years in prison for having a Twitter account on which she followed and retweeted dissidents and activists.
Salma al-Shehab, 34, a mother of two young children, is the latest victim of Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman’s campaign of repression, as part of which he has targeted Twitter users. Incidentally, Bin Salman indirectly controls a major stake in Twitter through his country’s sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund (PIF).
The Guardian reported on Tuesday that Salma al-Shehab had been held in solitary confinement at various times throughout her trial. At one point, she sought to privately tell the judge something about how she had been handled in custody. She did not wish to divulge the details in front of her father. This attempt to speak with the judge was not permitted.
Tomorrow, Saudi Arabia will once again play stage to one of the biggest sporting events of the year: this one a heavyweight world-title boxing match in which Ukrainian pound-for-pound sensation Oleksandr Usyk will seek to retain the belts he ripped from the grasp of British star Anthony Joshua last September.
A July press release by the event’s promoters, Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing, describes the fight as being “held under the patronage of HRH Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and in line with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 ambitions”, and notes that it is “a second for Joshua in Saudi Arabia” following his successful title rematch with Andy Ruiz Jr in 2019.
The release, which included confirmation of ticket details for Saturday’s bout, was 791 words long. Over half of these words are dedicated solely to the apparent social progression of Saudi Arabia.
And fear not, Matchroom’s release goes to great pains to satisfy any lingering curiosity about Vision 2030: it is a social-reform blueprint which “aims to improve the quality of life of residents and visitors to the Kingdom by developing a vibrant environment for participation and spectatorship in sports and entertainment whilst aiming to transform the Kingdom for a post-hydrocarbon era. The nation has become one of the fastest growing countries in world sport with increased participation levels, investment in elite athletes, a year-round schedule of sport and a rapidly growing commercial sector to support this infrastructure.”
Khalid bin Abdulaziz, one of the event’s co-organisers on the Saudis’ end, adds in Matchroom’s release that he is “proud to secure this event for our country as it continues its incredible transformation”, a sentiment which is echoed throughout ad nauseam.
In a recent interview with The Times, James M Dorsey, a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute of the National University of Singapore and the author of The Turbulent World of Middle East Soccer, told Martyn Ziegler that the true motivation behind Saudi Arabia’s sudden multi-billion-dollar incursion into major sporting events is not to launder its global reputation, but to gain ‘soft power’ by becoming the go-to sports hub in the Gulf Region.
This distinction is not one I had previously considered but, in light of the brazenness with which the kingdom intends to imprison a woman for her use of Twitter, it stacks up, alright…
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