Update On Mazen Abdul Jawad
Remember Mazen Abdul Jawad, the Saudi divorcee with 4 children who worked for an airline? He became famous, or rather infamous, after appearing on the Bold (or Thick) Red Line program aired by the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation (LBC) in conservative Saudi Arabia. In it he boasted about his various sexual escapades. He spoke of losing his virginity at the age of 14, and since then, developing a love for sex. Surprisingly he did not disguise himself, as other interviewees usually do – by wearing sunglasses, wigs, or strange clothing to hide their identities. Mazen Abdul Jawad was arrested in August last year and subsequently sentenced to 5 years in prison and 1,000 lashes of the cane. Now the lawyer for Mazen Abdul Jawad has revealed that an appeal court has accepted his objections and that he will soon be seeking an acquittal for Mazen Abdul Jawad.
About The Case
Conservative TV viewers were shocked when LBC showed them the bedroom of Mazen Abdul Jawad. The bedroom was decorated with toys of bears and even Mickey Mouse, all arranged in sexually suggestive positions amidst sexual aids, including an Arabic book entitled 101 Questions About Sex. Mazen Abdul Jawad spoke candidly about how he managed to get girls in Saudi Arabia. It seems that he put a picture of his red Mini Cooper car on his cell phone, activate his Bluetooth to attract other Bluetooth devices nearby. And very soon, women would call to ask if the car is for sale. Mazen Abdul Jawad said: “Some go out with me that same night.”
That seems like a novel way to pick up girls, except that Mazen Abdul Jawad forgot to keep quiet about it. Mazen Abdul Jawad was promptly arrested. Police spokesman Suleiman Al-Mutawae said then that speaking about promiscuous acts “is a violation of the sharia regulations on the one hand and against Saudi customs on the other.” Mazen Abdul Jawad also got into trouble on 2 other areas. First, under Sharia law, premarital sex is illegal. Secondly, in Saudi Arabia there is a sex segregation law that prohibits unrelated men and women from mixing together.
Mazen Abdul Jawad has along maintained that he tricked into granting that interview. Perhaps there is some truth, as he did not disguise himself for the interview. Mazen Abdul Jawad was sentenced to 5 years in prison and 1,000 lashes of the cane. Mazen Abdul Jawad was also slapped with a 5-year travel ban. Three other friends of Mazen Abdul Jawad who appeared in the same program were each sentenced to 2 years in prison plus 300 lashes of the cane.
About LBC
Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal is a majority shareholder in LBC. As a result of this episode, the Saudi Government pulled the plug on LBC and ordered it off the air. Saudi TV journalist Rosanna Al-Yami who facilitated the production of this particular show was sentenced to 60 lashes of the cane and slapped with a 2-year travel ban. That would have made Rosanna Al-Yami the first Saudi female journalist to be caned. However, King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud later waived the caning sentence, thus sparing Rosanna Al-Yami from the cane.
The Appeal
Lawyer Suleiman Al-Jumaie based his appeal on the report by the Ministry of Culture and Information on cases of media violation. Suleiman Al-Jumaie said: “We have been waiting for the ministerial committee’s decision for the past one year, being the authority to look into cases of media violations.”
So what did the report say that gives Suleiman Al-Jumaie the basis to launch an appeal on behalf of Mazen Abdul Jawad? Suleiman Al-Jumaie explains: “By the grace of God, the truth has been unveiled with the committee’s decision No. 42/31 dated May 4, 2010, which showed that the television prepared the report taking some important points and subjects, which it can make use of. This means the program contradicted with what has been recorded and this was our contention in our lawsuit against the channel, which produced the program making it different from the original interview that was done with my client.” In other words, Suleiman Al-Jumaie is saying that LBC distorted the interview given by Mazen Abdul Jawad.
Suleiman Al-Jumaie said: “The committee’s decision proved that the channel was wrong.” But what about Mazen Abdul Jawad? Suleiman Al-Jumaie said that the only evidence against Mazan Abdul Jawad was the program that was aired by LBC, which is distorted. Suleiman Al-Jumaie added: “The court (of appeals) has accepted the objection.” Now Suleiman Al-Jumaie wants to seek an acquittal for Mazen Abdul Jawad.
What about LBC? According to Suleiman Al-Jumaie, the Ministry of Culture and Information recognized that the interview Mazen Abdul Jawad gave to LBC was heavily and selectively edited. However, Suleiman Al-Jumaie said that the Ministry of Culture and Information did not hold LBC liable for airing that program seen as violating social and Islamic standards. Does Suleiman Al-Jumaie agree with the Ministry of Culture and Information on this? No, he said that the Ministry of Culture and Information should seek punitive measures against LBC for tampering and distorting Mazen Abdul Jawad’s words, and for airing a distorted version of the interview.
Think About It
Why did Mazen Abdul Jawad agree to give an interview on a taboo subject like sex in Saudi Arabia? Why did LBC produce such a program? And when did LBC choose to air the program inside conservative Muslim Saudi Arabia?
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