I noticed this story over the weekend and found it wanting. Something about it isn’t right, though the subject matter makes it convenient for all sorts of spin. A Saudi diplomat in Los Angeles seeks political asylum because, he believes, his life would be in jeopardy if he returned to the KSA. The reasons for that fear are that a) he is gay and b) has a Jewish friend.
Now, his first fear has something to it. The Saudi government certainly does not want gay diplomats representing the country. It has gay diplomats representing the country already. Most of them are smart enough to not draw attention to themselves. Is it a violation of human rights that someone feels the need to hide his sexual orientation? While it’s not entirely just, I don’t think it rises to the level of a human rights violation. It’s not even a violation in most of the US to discriminate against gays in employment.
I think it likely that Mr Asseri’s future with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs could be jeopardized if his gayness became a topic of conversation within the LA Consulate or more widely. But under danger of being killed? I don’t think so. First, there are thousands of gay Saudis, with hundreds of them working for the government—though most do not reveal their orientations. There are also many gays within the royal family, if there’s any truth to rumors that extend over 20 years. Wasta—influence—helps avoid negative consequences. Mr Asseri did not get his job in Los Angeles without some significant wasta of his own. If he were to keep a low profile, I think there would be no more serious consequences than his losing his job and not getting another within the MFA.
His second reason, a Jewish friend, is arrant nonsense. I’d be utterly surprised if most Saudis in the US didn’t have a Jewish friend or at least acquaintance. Jews are simply part of the fabric of American life; it’s hard to live in the US without getting to know some Jews. Teachers, fellow students, bosses, any could be Jewish. A Saudi’s knowing and befriending a Jew, even a Jewish woman, is not going to get anyone in much trouble at all.
I suspect there’s another angle to this story that’s not being reported. What it is, I don’t know. What is being reported, though, is not sufficient to merit political asylum.
Saudi diplomat seeking asylum: ‘My life is in danger’
Michael IsikoffA ranking Saudi diplomat told NBC News that he has asked for political asylum in the United States, saying he fears for his life if he is forced to return to his native country.
The diplomat, Ali Ahmad Asseri, the first secretary of the Saudi consulate in Los Angeles, has informed U.S. Department of Homeland Security officials that Saudi officials have refused to renew his diplomatic passport and effectively terminated his job after discovering he was gay and was close friends with a Jewish woman.
In a recent letter that he posted on a Saudi website, Asseri angrily criticized his country’s “backwardness” as well as the role of “militant imams” in Saudi society who have “defaced the tolerance of Islam.” Perhaps most provocatively of all, he has threatened to expose what he describes as politically embarrassing information about members of the Saudi royal family living in luxury in the U.S.
If he is forced to go back to Saudi Arabia — as Saudi officials are demanding — Asseri says he could face political persecution and even death.
…
We learn in another article, this time from LA Weekly, that there may be other reasons why Mr Asseri attracted unfavorable attention from his bosses:
… In a posting on a Saudi website he has subsequently threatened to unleash what he said was embarrassing information about Saudi royal family members living the high life in the United States.
Whether this threat came after his problems in the Consulate or before is important to know. The full story behind his problem should be known before we decide he’s being a martyr to a cause.
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September:14:2010 - 11:10
I am glad you have got this piece her on your blog. I ran accross this the other day and question the ‘jewish friend’. There seeems to loopholes in the story. For one, if he gay, he then, is not having a romance with the woman. Also, as conservative a the Gulf may be, religions, espeically the Abrahamic religions are respected.
The article seemed to too incongruous. My intuition tells me there is something else, perhaps a reason that cannot be dislcosed to the public.
September:14:2010 - 14:24
That’s the same thing that went through my head when I read that article. As long as you don’t flaunt your homosexuality, you should do fine in Saudi Arabia. Perhaps he is tired of hiding his sexual orientation, and wishes to live publicly?
September:14:2010 - 14:57
If indeed he has stated publicly that he will reveal politically embarrassing information about the Royal Family and has proof of such information, he would not be looked upon favorably and would likely suffer some sort of consequences.
I also wonder if there is any kind of a link or connection between him and Ali Asseri. Ali Asseri whose background is in Security was the Saudi Ambassador to Pakistan which is a high profile position and then moved to Beijing as Ambassador.
You’re right, John. There is more to this story than meets the eye!
September:14:2010 - 15:15
I feel inspired to say this by the Satan alien horned female on the side of my door. She is beautiful. ahh anyway, “How can you find what isn’t lost?”
September:14:2010 - 16:13
This is odd.
Many homosexuals live discreetly in our nation.
And the second item on the point of Jews is quite silly.
Of course, if a homosexual wished to defiantly live completely honestly in our society that would be impossible. There could be no open homosexual shops or areas such as exist in Berlin, Paris or elsewhere.
But he would not be killed in most situations.
These assertions are hyperbolic.
September:14:2010 - 18:45
Thanks for the opinion on this. I would have accepted the articles at face value, not knowing that these are not generally good enough reasons to get him “killed”.
September:14:2010 - 21:26
John, as u said, there is a whole lot more to it than what the media is focussing on. Gay, while many will deny it, we’ve had the gay police impostor and the Saudi gay gigolo in NY all on the news sites… they were not killed.
Wasta is big, as you know for a guy to go to the US instead of some country where no one can locate on a map.
There might be more to this story, but it seems like he wants to use blackmail to get something out of it… first secretary is not a low ranking diplomat… but now I am preaching to the choir
I have one question John, how do you know about the gays in those circles? do u have a good gaydar?
September:14:2010 - 21:30
I don’t know about the quality of my ‘gaydar’, but I’ve gay Saudi friends who have indicated to me that certain individuals wearing a thobe are not entirely comfortable in that particular garment. There are others that they’d prefer to be wearing, even if those guys happen to be married with children.
September:14:2010 - 21:45
I know John, I hope u know I was just joking with you
I wrote a similar post a couple of days ago btw http://qusaytoday.com/en/2010/09/the-saudi-gay-diplomat/
September:15:2010 - 04:08
According to my sources, Saudi students here, claiming to be gay is a standard claim they use to get refugee status. Rather surprising to me, but I think it has less to do with the realities of their being gay or not, or how gays are treated in Saudi (as long as they are discreet), and more to do with the support available here for that type of claim, and against a country perceived to be draconian about it.
I have had many patients wanting refugee or immigration status, and they essentially get a lawyer who coaches them on the current legislation and its current application; and make whatever claim works. If the claim is denied they appeal, and add new grounds. The idea is to stay in the country building community connections, support, showing one is of good character, working, etc. to bolster future demands. It works.
Iranians successfully claim to be Bahai and at risk of execution due to apostasy. Portuguese used to do the same until the Carnation Revolution and a democratic government with religious freedom made it unworkable.
It is unclear, in the reports I read, whether this Saudi diplomat slammed his government publicly or got in hot water with them before or after his refugee claim. If before, it would bolster the need to make such a claim.
I think the Jewish friend was tossed in for good measure. The idea is to convince the US government to take him in. Gay and judeophilic would play well to the US refugee reviewers. The perception of the Saudi response is a bigger factor for them than the reality.
September:15:2010 - 05:18
I’m wondering if the Saudi gays would want to wear an abaya instead of the thobe!?
September:15:2010 - 06:56
Actually, those who adjudicate asylum requests are pretty hard-nosed. When the asylum-seeker turns to Congress, particularly around election time, is when mayhem ensues. There are many Congressmen who ignore both law and fact to achieve a particular result for political purpose.
September:15:2010 - 08:47
I would agree about those who adjudicate asylum requests, especially after an unpleasant dinner when a woman adjudicator would not leave me alone about whether refugees can successfully lie to a psychiatrist, how much time the psychiatrist spends with the claimant who is requesting an evaluation as part of a dossier, what the training is for it, what the biases are, blah blah, until she incited the wrath of the guest sitting nearby (a member of a far right political party), who directed her comment to stop “talking shop” to me (trust me I kept trying to redirect the conversation), whereupon I had a “She started it” reflex, resulting in a lecture from the hub later, about “Did I know who the woman interrogating me was…? Turns out Ms “send them back where they came from” (mostly Africa at that point) is Palestinian, relatively newly arrived but prominent by Palestinian family and presence in Canada.
On the other hand, the gay interest groups are very supportive and will provide an activist and public pressure strategy to those who claim this reason. I dare say being condemned for judeophilia would attract some powerful groups too. So, all in all, not a bad strategy in that sense, and particularly in an election year. Bahai pressure groups…not so much.
September:15:2010 - 09:38
For those claiming he wont get killed…as being gay is fine as long as you dont flaunt it…how sweet…so a female getting caught with a nonmahrem..even in an innocent situation…is liable to be flogged and potentially killed by her family…but hes safe as long as he dont flaunt it. Life is good for a man in saudi.
September:15:2010 - 10:14
Chiara…
I just have to ask…the Palestinian lady you had dinner with…were you at a political dinner of some sort? The reason I ask is you said your hubby gave you a lecture and I would have thought anyone you are going out with would be known to you…there fore you can brace yourself for that conversation. Obviously at a fundraiser or something where people sit around many tables they are not always known to each other prior to seating.
I loved the “she started it”comment. Made me smile. Sounds like something I would do. LOL!
September:15:2010 - 10:46
I don’t think anyone here pretends that women have an ‘level playing field’ in the KSA.
September:17:2010 - 20:34
Oby-sorry for the late reply, I just saw this.
The dinner was a social one at the home of Palestinian friends. We know the hosting couple, and had met the far right wing lady and her husband before–they are business partners with the Palestinian Muslim host couple, go figure. We hadn’t previous met the other guests and didn’t know who would be there except “some friends over for dinner”. So the Palestinian lady adjudicator took me totally by surprise.
I have thought many times since that I should have handed her my business card, making VERRRRY explicit it was only for phone numbers, NOT assessment or therapy, ostentatiously added the home one, and suggested she call me to get together to discuss it further (giant eye roll!). I’m not sure it would have worked, as she was extremely determined.
LOL at the “She started it”. It really was a reflex, because it was so unfair to address the comment to me, when clearly I was trying desperately not to have this conversation–like I want to talk psychiatry on my social evening out!
I think it was a case of reverse racism (which also annoyed me). She didn’t want to “reprimand” an Arab, so the “white girl” got it. I was once reprimanded by a museum guard (woman) after my African friend touched a sculpture (my friend pretended not to hear–hmmmm), and I have been “reprimanded” about the attitudes of the French when the French woman beside me was clearly the one being addressed. Ah, the “white woman’s burden”! LOL
My husband’s reaction was very unusual, but I think it was because of the general prominence of that particular woman and the hosts. Or maybe it appeared as if I was the one who had “been difficult” in a social setting where harmony is supreme. Hmmm. Ah, the wife’s burden!
September:21:2010 - 17:51
I just read the letter from the diplomat in Arabic:
(1) It was addressed to the King, not the USA
(2) He did not ask for asylum
(3) He does not oppose the government
(4) He never claims to be gay but only lists gayness as one of the accusations and rumours spread against him by his enemies within the consulate
(5) His beef is with the consul and his staff, whom he accuses of, among other things, preventing him from having his medical treatment covered by the government and for discriminating against him (based on tribal/regional differences) and generally making his life intolerable.
September:22:2010 - 18:39
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 22, 2010
USCIRF Concerned About Possible Return of Saudi Diplomat
WASHINGTON, D.C. – A Saudi diplomat, who is seeking asylum in the United States, could very well face an extremely hostile and potentially life-threatening environment if he is returned to Saudi Arabia, cautioned the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) yesterday.
“The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom has spent over 10 years studying conditions in Saudi Arabia, and there is no doubt that imprisonment, torture, cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment are very real possibilities if you publicly disagree with or criticize the country’s cultural and social policies, which are driven by particular, government-picked religious tenets,” said Leonard Leo, USCIRF chair. “There is no tolerance for views or beliefs outside the official line.”
Ali Ahmad Asseri, who has been the first secretary at the Saudi consulate in Los Angeles, has served in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for approximately 12 years. He claims that, at least in part, he was terminated from his job, and that the Saudi government refuses to renew his diplomatic passport, because he openly criticized the Saudi religious establishment on the Internet. According to published reports, Asseri does not subscribe to the official Saudi government view of Islam and his close friendship with a Jewish woman in Los Angeles has caused concern with Saudi consulate officials.
Asseri is openly gay, which, according to the U.S. Department of State, is punishable by flogging or death in Saudi Arabia. Earlier this year, USCIRF confirmed that textbooks posted on the Saudi Ministry of Education’s website continue to teach hatred toward faiths and beliefs other than the Saudi government-backed version of Islam, and, in some cases, actually promote violence. For example, tenth and twelfth grade school books justify killing a homosexual, an apostate, a polytheist, and an adulterer, and a ninth grade text teaches that “Jews and Christians are enemies of the believers….”
During the past year, there also were continued reports of virulently anti-Semitic sentiments expressed in the Kingdom’s official media and in sermons delivered by Saudi government-appointed clerics, who in some cases continue to pray for the death of Jews and Christians, despite having been disciplined for preaching extremist views.
“The Saudi government uses criminal charges of apostasy and criticizing the regime to silence dissidents and persists in severely restricting all forms of public religious expression, other than the government’s interpretation of its version of Sunni Islam. Promoters of political and human rights reforms, as well as those seeking to debate the appropriate role of religion in relation to the state and society, are typically the target of such charges,” said Mr. Leo.
As recommended by USCIRF, Saudi Arabia has been designated a “country of particular concern,” or CPC, by the U.S. Department of State for engaging in systematic and egregious violations of freedom of religion or belief. Although so designated by the State Department since 2004, an indefinite waiver on taking any action as a consequence of the CPC designation has been in place since 2006. USCIRF has recommended that the U.S. government should lift the indefinite waiver of action, or at a minimum extend a limited 180 day waiver, during which time the Saudi government should make measurable progress on religious freedom reforms.
USCIRF is an independent, bipartisan U.S. federal government commission. USCIRF Commissioners are appointed by the President and the leadership of both political parties in the Senate and the House of Representatives. USCIRF’s principal responsibilities are to review the facts and circumstances of violations of religious freedom internationally and to make policy recommendations to the President, the Secretary of State and Congress.
To interview a USCIRF Commissioner, contact Anu Vakkalanka, communications assistant at mnarasimhan@uscirf.gov or
(540) 230-6670
The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom was created by the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 to monitor the status of freedom of thought, conscience, and religion or belief abroad, as defined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and related international instruments, and to give independent policy recommendations to the President, Secretary of State, and Congress.
Visit our Web site at http://www.uscirf.gov
Leonard A. Leo, Chair • Don Argue, Vice Chair • Elizabeth H. Prodromou, Vice Chair
Imam Talal Y. Eid • Felice D. Gaer • Richard D. Land •
Ted Van Der Meid
Nina Shea • William Shaw • Jackie Wolcott, Executive Director
800 NORTH CAPITOL STREET, NW SUITE 790 | WASHINGTON, DC 20002 | 202-523-3240 202-523-5020 (FAX)
September:22:2010 - 19:25
Speaking from personal experience, I recommend taking anything coming from USCIRF concerning Saudi Arabia with large doses of salt. I worked with them in Riyadh. They have an agenda from which they prefer not to budge, even when (especially when?) faced by contradictory fact.
September:25:2010 - 14:40
I agree with John that the USCIRF seems to have a conservative agenda.
I wrote about the gay Saudi diplomat on my blog: http://rasheedsworld.blogspot.com/2010/09/on-gay-saudi-diplomat.html, and think he should be given asylum in the US. I don’t think it will affect US-Saudi relations.
September:28:2010 - 05:31
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