Crime in Saudi Arabia
Encyclopedia
Foreign affairs ministries of different countries state that there is a low rate of crime in Saudi Arabia. However criminology
researcher Dr. Ali Wardak in the book Transnational and Comparative Criminology suggested ranking societies on the basis of official crime
rates is problematic. He argued it is possible in Saudi Arabia
that several criminal complaints are resolved outside formal judicial institutions and as a consequence remain undocumented by the police.
Petty theft
is a problem especially in crowded areas. The nation has strict laws prohibiting drug trafficking; drug trafficking meets capital punishment
. Saudi Arabia has signed all the three international conventions on drug control. To curb money laundering
, improved anti-money laundering laws have been enacted. The country has implemented all the forty recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering
(FATF) for combating money laundering and all the eight recommendations of the FATF regarding terror financing. A Financial Intelligence Unit is also set up for the purpose of monitoring flows of funds.
The most common crime in 2002 was theft, which accounted for 47% of total crime in the nation. Saudi Arabia is a destination point
for workers from South
and Southeast Asia
who are subjected to conditions which include involuntary servitude, non-payment of wages, confinement and withholding of passports as a restriction on their movement. Domestic worker
s are particularly vulnerable because some are confined to the house in which they work unable to seek help. Saudi Arabia is also a destination country for children trafficked
from other Middle East
ern countries like Yemen
, Africa
n countries like Nigeria
, Mali
, Somalia
and Sudan
and Asia
n nations like Pakistan
and Afghanistan
for the purpose of forced begging and involuntary servitude as street vendors. Some Nigerian women were reportedly trafficked into Saudi Arabia for commercial sexual exploitation.
Threat of Islamic terrorism is a matter of concern. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
(DFAT) of the Government of Australia
claimed they received reports that terrorists are masterminding attacks against assets belonging to the Government of Saudi Arabia, oil infrastructure, aviation infrastructure, embassies, hotels, shopping malls and many Western interests such as residential housing complexes, gatherings of foreign tourists for recreational or cultural activities etc. The United States Department of State
reported "There is an on-going security threat due to the continued presence of terrorist groups, some affiliated with al Qaida, who may target Western interests, housing compounds, and other facilities where Westerners congregate". Terrorist attacks in the country targeted both native people and foreigners. DFAT further stated "Terrorist attacks could occur at any time, anywhere in Saudi Arabia, including in Riyadh
, Khobar
, and other major cities".
In 1988, the murder
rate in Saudi Arabia was 1.1 per 100,000 population, the rate of sexual offenses was 21.9 per 100,000 population, and the rate of theft offenses was 70.5 per 100,000 population. In 2002, a total of 84,599 crimes were reported in Saudi Arabia which was 387 crimes for every 100,000 people.
The Saudi legal system is based on Islamic law and thus often prohibit many activities that are not crimes in other nations, but are deemed to be immoral. One of the main organizations enforcing traditional Islamic morality in the kingdom is the Committee for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice. It is difficult to know, with any certainly, how many people have been charged or punished for violating these sort of laws, i.e. the ban on alcohol, pork products, non-Islamic religious symbols or text, public displays of affection, indecent artwork or media images, homosexuality, cross-dressing, fornication or adultery.
Criminology
Criminology is the scientific study of the nature, extent, causes, and control of criminal behavior in both the individual and in society...
researcher Dr. Ali Wardak in the book Transnational and Comparative Criminology suggested ranking societies on the basis of official crime
Crime
Crime is the breach of rules or laws for which some governing authority can ultimately prescribe a conviction...
rates is problematic. He argued it is possible in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
that several criminal complaints are resolved outside formal judicial institutions and as a consequence remain undocumented by the police.
Petty theft
Theft
In common usage, theft is the illegal taking of another person's property without that person's permission or consent. The word is also used as an informal shorthand term for some crimes against property, such as burglary, embezzlement, larceny, looting, robbery, shoplifting and fraud...
is a problem especially in crowded areas. The nation has strict laws prohibiting drug trafficking; drug trafficking meets capital punishment
Capital punishment
Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for an offence. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences. The term capital originates from the Latin capitalis, literally...
. Saudi Arabia has signed all the three international conventions on drug control. To curb money laundering
Money laundering
Money laundering is the process of disguising illegal sources of money so that it looks like it came from legal sources. The methods by which money may be laundered are varied and can range in sophistication. Many regulatory and governmental authorities quote estimates each year for the amount...
, improved anti-money laundering laws have been enacted. The country has implemented all the forty recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering
Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering
The Financial Action Task Force , also known by its French name, Groupe d'action financière , is an intergovernmental organization founded in 1989 on the initiative of the G7. The purpose of the FATF is to develop policies to combat money laundering and terrorist financing...
(FATF) for combating money laundering and all the eight recommendations of the FATF regarding terror financing. A Financial Intelligence Unit is also set up for the purpose of monitoring flows of funds.
The most common crime in 2002 was theft, which accounted for 47% of total crime in the nation. Saudi Arabia is a destination point
Human trafficking in Saudi Arabia
With respect to human trafficking, Saudi Arabia was designated, together with Bolivia, Ecuador, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Burma, Jamaica, Venezuela, Cambodia, Kuwait, Sudan, Cuba, North Korea, and Togo, as a Tier 3 country by the United States Department of State in its 2005 Trafficking in...
for workers from South
South Asia
South Asia, also known as Southern Asia, is the southern region of the Asian continent, which comprises the sub-Himalayan countries and, for some authorities , also includes the adjoining countries to the west and the east...
and Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...
who are subjected to conditions which include involuntary servitude, non-payment of wages, confinement and withholding of passports as a restriction on their movement. Domestic worker
Domestic worker
A domestic worker is a man, woman or child who works within the employer's household. Domestic workers perform a variety of household services for an individual or a family, from providing care for children and elderly dependents to cleaning and household maintenance, known as housekeeping...
s are particularly vulnerable because some are confined to the house in which they work unable to seek help. Saudi Arabia is also a destination country for children trafficked
Human trafficking
Human trafficking is the illegal trade of human beings for the purposes of reproductive slavery, commercial sexual exploitation, forced labor, or a modern-day form of slavery...
from other Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
ern countries like Yemen
Yemen
The Republic of Yemen , commonly known as Yemen , is a country located in the Middle East, occupying the southwestern to southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, and Oman to the east....
, Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
n countries like Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
, Mali
Mali
Mali , officially the Republic of Mali , is a landlocked country in Western Africa. Mali borders Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the Côte d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west. Its size is just over 1,240,000 km² with...
, Somalia
Somalia
Somalia , officially the Somali Republic and formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic under Socialist rule, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. Since the outbreak of the Somali Civil War in 1991 there has been no central government control over most of the country's territory...
and Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
and Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
n nations like Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
and Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
for the purpose of forced begging and involuntary servitude as street vendors. Some Nigerian women were reportedly trafficked into Saudi Arabia for commercial sexual exploitation.
Threat of Islamic terrorism is a matter of concern. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (Australia)
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is a department of the government of Australia charged with advancing the interests of Australia and its citizens internationally...
(DFAT) of the Government of Australia
Government of Australia
The Commonwealth of Australia is a federal constitutional monarchy under a parliamentary democracy. The Commonwealth of Australia was formed in 1901 as a result of an agreement among six self-governing British colonies, which became the six states...
claimed they received reports that terrorists are masterminding attacks against assets belonging to the Government of Saudi Arabia, oil infrastructure, aviation infrastructure, embassies, hotels, shopping malls and many Western interests such as residential housing complexes, gatherings of foreign tourists for recreational or cultural activities etc. The United States Department of State
United States Department of State
The United States Department of State , is the United States federal executive department responsible for international relations of the United States, equivalent to the foreign ministries of other countries...
reported "There is an on-going security threat due to the continued presence of terrorist groups, some affiliated with al Qaida, who may target Western interests, housing compounds, and other facilities where Westerners congregate". Terrorist attacks in the country targeted both native people and foreigners. DFAT further stated "Terrorist attacks could occur at any time, anywhere in Saudi Arabia, including in Riyadh
Riyadh
Riyadh is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of Riyadh Province, and belongs to the historical regions of Najd and Al-Yamama. It is situated in the center of the Arabian Peninsula on a large plateau, and is home to 5,254,560 people, and the urban center of a...
, Khobar
Khobar
Khobar is a large city located in the Eastern Province of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on the Persian Gulf. It has a population of 360,000 and forms part of the greater Dammam metropolitan area along with Dhahran, which together have a combined population of over two million...
, and other major cities".
In 1988, the murder
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
rate in Saudi Arabia was 1.1 per 100,000 population, the rate of sexual offenses was 21.9 per 100,000 population, and the rate of theft offenses was 70.5 per 100,000 population. In 2002, a total of 84,599 crimes were reported in Saudi Arabia which was 387 crimes for every 100,000 people.
The Saudi legal system is based on Islamic law and thus often prohibit many activities that are not crimes in other nations, but are deemed to be immoral. One of the main organizations enforcing traditional Islamic morality in the kingdom is the Committee for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice. It is difficult to know, with any certainly, how many people have been charged or punished for violating these sort of laws, i.e. the ban on alcohol, pork products, non-Islamic religious symbols or text, public displays of affection, indecent artwork or media images, homosexuality, cross-dressing, fornication or adultery.