Saudi Arabian Man Gets 1,000 Lashes, Year in Jail, and Fine of $1,330 for Posting Harmless 'Gay' Video to YouTube
Yesterday, I posted about the 27-year-old Saudi Arabian man who was arrested and charged with "homosexuality", among other offenses, after a video he posted to YouTube went viral.
Now we have learned his punishment: "A 27-year-old Saudi man from Jeddah has been sentenced to 1,000 lashes, a year in jail and a fine of 5,000 riyals ($1,330) after appearing in an amateur gay video (above). The film, which lasts 2 minutes and 46 seconds, shows him dressed in a police uniform asking to inspect someone’s driving licence and then flirtatiously demanding 'physical comfort' after saying the licence is expired. He later opens his shirt and rubs his chest, removes his cap flaunting his long hair and waves a gun suggestively. That’s as far as it goes."
The video, if you missed it, AFTER THE JUMP...
Posted Mar. 11,2010 at 1:38 PM EST by Andy Towle in Law Enforcement, News, Saudi Arabia, YouTube | Permalink
Now, how can one survive 1,000 lashes? Is it a leather whip? Isn't that a death sentence? I suppose now we'll get a bunch of flat earthers talking about how it's just as bad in the western world for gays as it is the muslim world. You people are just pathetic.
Posted by: TANK | Mar 11, 2010 1:50:58 PM
Absolutely reprehensible. pathetic. antiquated. and these people are our "allies". We need to not fraternize with these scum at all. Uganda, Saudi Arabia, Niger, China. eff them all. Let them make it on their own in the world!
Posted by: androjai | Mar 11, 2010 1:56:03 PM
Somebody please tell me, where's the fun in fundamentalism? Do you have to have your sense of humor surgically removed at birth, or do they wait until their kids are 13 and lop it off along with their foreskins?
Posted by: MikeMick | Mar 11, 2010 1:56:48 PM
I hate this world, I really do.
Posted by: Ross | Mar 11, 2010 1:56:55 PM
What blows me away is that Saudi government spokesmen wear suits, have Western accents and pretend to be civilized ... while defending something as barbaric and medieval as this.
Posted by: Fred | Mar 11, 2010 1:57:27 PM
A number of trolls the other day were making smarmy comments about this guy's video, like this one:
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"I would have arrested him too! I don't want my armed civil servants acting like Judy Garland's purse fell out their mouth! And that's only one charge amongst others I would arrest the fool for!"
Posted by: Ben Layvey | Mar 10, 2010 12:11:20 PM
---
Who's laughing now?
Posted by: Hank | Mar 11, 2010 1:57:28 PM
Now imagine what the punishment would have been if he had kissed another man! We're talking the typical beheading/hanging that is common in that part of the world. And yet, the flat earthers want to respect the cultural diversity that gives rise to that (and this) kind of barbarism. For its own sake (because every culture is equal, so goes the meme), apparently...which is sociopathic. They want to engage in outreach with muslims who believe that gays should be imprisoned, beaten, tortured and executed. If someone really believes that...you're more than welcome to engage in outreach with them, but I'm more than welcome to consider you a fool and ignore your suggestions for achieving equality.
Posted by: TANK | Mar 11, 2010 1:58:41 PM
I wonder what Johnny Weir would get!
They do stuff like this, and then get offended when we call them savages? Matt Damon hit it on the head in Syriana.
Posted by: MT | Mar 11, 2010 1:58:45 PM
Tank...the lashes are administered in increments over time, usually at the front entrance to the jail. The punisher holds a Koran under is arm to keep from swinging the whip too harshly..the intent is to not leave permanent scarring (although it often does)
Posted by: RB | Mar 11, 2010 2:02:26 PM
Barbarians. Why are we allied with the Saudi regime?
Posted by: Traveler J | Mar 11, 2010 2:02:54 PM
1000 lashes is light punishment considering the strict culture. Im sure she thought she was only having fun, but Brothah-Girl should have remembered where he lives. "Harmless" is referencing a benchmark that does not exist in the Middle East. Take out "Saudi Arabia" and replace with...well....most any city, town and hamlet in the US - it would still be believable.
PS - I liked the music he had playing....already on my Kafir IPod
Posted by: Ftlwater | Mar 11, 2010 2:05:11 PM
"Tank...the lashes are administered in increments over time, usually at the front entrance to the jail. The punisher holds a Koran under is arm to keep from swinging the whip too harshly..the intent is to not leave permanent scarring (although it often does)"
I guess that makes then, huh? How humane... LOL!
Posted by: TANK | Mar 11, 2010 2:07:32 PM
makes it alright, rather.
Posted by: TANK | Mar 11, 2010 2:07:53 PM
"Take out "Saudi Arabia" and replace with...well....most any city, town and hamlet in the US - it would still be believable."
Flat earther alert.
Posted by: TANK | Mar 11, 2010 2:08:55 PM
Where are the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission and Amnesty International on this? Anyone heard anything from them on this yet?
Posted by: Tom | Mar 11, 2010 2:10:12 PM
I totally agree Tank - lashes are an especially sick and inhumane form of punishment because the way they are administered enables the barbarian government to hide the evidence of their brutality.
Posted by: RB | Mar 11, 2010 2:16:35 PM
I think she won't survive. I wouldn't think she would survive not even 200.
Does Saudi Arabia have an embassy on the USA? Can't even understand some "allies".
Posted by: Lexxvs | Mar 11, 2010 2:17:04 PM
The Fool! He sought fame but didn't get far. Don't yell "I'm a Jew" in a room full of Nazis next time. I say make that 10,000 lashes.
Posted by: Ben Layvey | Mar 11, 2010 2:18:57 PM
I am outraged that our government and many U.S. civilians live and have ties to this MONARCHY, and we sit by and let this kind of harsh punishment be tolerated for a victimless "crime"? Are we that bent over backwards for Saudi oil that we can't muster the gumption to show our disdain for this kind of civil liberties issue? No wonder almost every online gay man in the Arab world is deathly afraid to leave the slightest identifying information in his profile. Is there no sanctuary for these people in their own countries?
Posted by: Joseph A. Hayden, JD | Mar 11, 2010 2:22:13 PM
"Don't yell 'I'm a Jew' in a room full of Nazis next time."
No. That's when you need to do it more than at any other time. Consequences be damned, because fuck them. Highlight evil, or else it will operate under the radar, as it does in most cases.
Posted by: TANK | Mar 11, 2010 2:35:06 PM
Remember that one of those "other offenses" was impersonating a police officier.
And on that note...this is US law
It is a crime to falsely impersonate a police officer, a federal officer or employee, or any other public official. Although the laws vary from state to states, many states also consider it a crime to use equipment used by law enforcement officers, such as red and blue flashing lights. It also may be a crime to flash a fake police badge. Possession of a firearm also can enhance the penalty for false impersonation of a police officer.
What are the Penalties for Impersonating a Police Officer?
Depending on state law, impersonating a police officer may be considered either a felony or a misdemeanor. Punishments for impersonating a police officer include:
■Imprisonment up to five years (sometimes more)
■Fines (usually $1000 or more)
■Probation
■Permanent criminal record
http://www.legalmatch.com/law-library/article/impersonating-a-police-officer.html
So leaving aside the 1000 lashes (which is cruel and inhumane to me) the sentence is actually quite consistent with US law.
Posted by: Chitown Kev | Mar 11, 2010 2:35:36 PM
Perhaps some Saudis will believe his sentence is too harsh just as many Americans believed that long prison sentences with hard labor were too harsh for Americans convicted of sodomy only 80 years ago. And I imagine those convicted back then were usually Gay Male Americans.
He may be part of the beginnings of a movement in his part of the world--with his tame video and barbaric punishment he received for it.
Posted by: Derrick from Philly | Mar 11, 2010 2:36:49 PM
Hey Ben Layvey,
On behalf of that young man and all the men and woman obresed in this world.
"FUCK YOU".
I have a better idea.
Why don't we take you out and administer a couple of thousand lashes to your ignorant ass.
Posted by: griffin1573 | Mar 11, 2010 2:37:24 PM
"So leaving aside the 1000 lashes (which is cruel and inhumane to me) the sentence is actually quite consistent with US law."
So if he'd just impersonated an officer for a quick little video like this...without the gay subtext, it's chitownkev's belief that he'd get the same punishment? Or no...maybe, chitownkev's saying that this punishment is just as bad as would befall him in the u.s....flat earther alert! be wary, because they're scary...and devious.
I love the last part so much I had to actually cut and paste it....aside from that beheading and executing gay people because they're gay thing...aaaaaaa, it's just like here in the u.s.
So, aside from how it's different, it's the same! LOL! Did I say they're devious? They are.
Aside from the 1,000 lashes (ONE THOUSAND LASHES), it's just as bad as in the states...huh? ROTFLMAO!
Posted by: TANK | Mar 11, 2010 2:41:24 PM
I hate this world, I really do.
Posted by: Ross | Mar 11, 2010 1:56:55 PM
I can seriously relate to this comment...IF an alien came down, and I had the chance to go -- No hesitation,in a friggin heartbeat. (tho they'd have to be stupid to even come to this planet) This world/mankind is so primitive...what a beautiful wonderful world this could be with an enlightened Humankind..but that aint gonna happen..as long as Religion Poisons peoples thoughts!
Posted by: Disgusted American | Mar 11, 2010 2:42:18 PM