banner
joeyshea.bsky.social
Joey Shea
@joeyshea.bsky.social
1.6K followers 170 following 44 posts
Saudi Arabia and UAE Researcher @HRW • she/her https://www.hrw.org/about/people/joey-shea
www.hrw.org
Posts Media Videos Starter Packs
Pinned
joeyshea.bsky.social
Joey Shea @joeyshea.bsky.social · Apr 24
🚩NEW: UAE authorities have designated as “terrorist” 11 political dissidents & relatives as well as 8 companies they own, reflecting the UAE’s indiscriminate use of overbroad counterterrorism laws and contempt for due process.

See our new report here:

www.hrw.org/news/2025/04...
UAE: Dissidents, Relatives Designated ‘Terrorists’
Emirati authorities have designated as “terrorist” 11 political dissidents and their relatives as well as 8 companies they own, reflecting the country’s indiscriminate use of overbroad counterterroris...
www.hrw.org
1 7 8
Reposted by Joey Shea
kooyjan.bsky.social
Jan Kooy @kooyjan.bsky.social · 8d
"This whitewashing comes amid significant increase in repression... including a crackdown on free speech, which many of these comedians defend but people in Saudi Arabia are completely denied.”

- @joeyshea.bsky.social
US comedians defend decision to play in Saudi Arabia: ‘They’re paying me enough to look the other way’
Usual supporters of free speech are under fire for signing on to Riyadh festival despite the government’s human rights abuses
www.theguardian.com
2 3
Reposted by Joey Shea
kooyjan.bsky.social
Jan Kooy @kooyjan.bsky.social · 20h
“Instead of using Alaa Abdel Fattah’s release as an opportunity to correct course, Egyptian authorities arbitrarily detained journalist Ismail Iskandarani after a lengthy Orwellian questioning over his Facebook posts.”

New from @hrw.org / @amrmagdi.bsky.social ⤵️
Egypt: Journalist Detained over Facebook Posts
Egyptian authorities detained prominent independent journalist Ismail Iskandarani over Facebook posts.
www.hrw.org
11 14
Reposted by Joey Shea
business-humanrights.org
Business & Human Rights Resource Centre @business-humanrights.org · 6d
Migrant workers are the backbone of Saudi Arabia’s renewable energy projects.

But our new research shows they are being exploited and dehumanised in the very industry that should symbolise a sustainable future.

Read the full report ➡️ www.business-humanrights.org/en/from-us/b...
8 7
Reposted by Joey Shea
kooyjan.bsky.social
Jan Kooy @kooyjan.bsky.social · 9d
"Terwijl internationale comedians worden uitgenodigd die zich regelmatig uitspreken over het belang van vrijheid van meningsuiting, lopen Saudiërs die hetzelfde doen het risico gevangengezet of geëxecuteerd te worden, zegt HRW."
’s Werelds beroemdste comedians reizen af naar Riyadh. Maar zullen ze álles zeggen?
De komende twee weken komen tientallen wereldberoemde comedians naar Saudi-Arabië voor het Riyadh Comedy Festival. Human Rights Watch roept ze op geen blad voor de mond te nemen.
www.trouw.nl
2 2
joeyshea.bsky.social
Joey Shea @joeyshea.bsky.social · 15d
Tim Dillon was scheduled to perform but said he was fired after he joked on his podcast about Saudi Arabia’s poor human rights record.

“I am doing this because they are paying me a large sum of money,” Dillon said. “They are paying me enough money to look the other way.”
2
joeyshea.bsky.social
Joey Shea @joeyshea.bsky.social · 15d
🚩Saudi govt is using the Riyadh Comedy Fest to deflect attention from its brutal repression

The festival takes place on the 7th anniversary of Khashoggi's murder

Lineup includes: Jimmy Carr, Pete Davidson and others

@mazjobrani.bsky.social

@sammorril.bsky.social

www.hrw.org/news/2025/09...
Saudi Arabia: Riyadh Comedy Festival Whitewashes Abuses
The Saudi government is using the Riyadh Comedy Festival 2025 from September 26 to October 9 to deflect attention from its brutal repression of free speech and other pervasive human rights violations.
www.hrw.org
8 34 48
joeyshea.bsky.social
Joey Shea @joeyshea.bsky.social · Aug 11
Saudi authorities had executed at least 241 people in 2025 as of August 5, with 22 executions in the last week alone, according to Reprieve. Reprieve reported that the number of executions in 2025 would exceed all prior records if executions continue at the same rate.
joeyshea.bsky.social
Joey Shea @joeyshea.bsky.social · Aug 11
Rampant due process violations and systemic abuses against defendants in Saudi Arabia’s courts and criminal justice system make it highly unlikely that any of those executed in 2025 received a fair trial.
1
joeyshea.bsky.social
Joey Shea @joeyshea.bsky.social · Aug 11
Saudi authorities executed 241 ppl in 2025: an unprecedented surge without due process

The execution of Turki al-Jasser, a journalist who exposed corruption, raises concerns the Saudi govt is using the death penalty to crush peaceful dissent
@aalodah.bsky.social @hrw.org
www.hrw.org/news/2025/08...
Saudi Arabia: Executions Surge in 2025
Saudi authorities have been carrying out an unprecedented surge in executions in 2025 without apparent due process.
www.hrw.org
1 3 2
joeyshea.bsky.social
Joey Shea @joeyshea.bsky.social · Jun 2
GCC countries are exposing migrant workers to yet another deadly summer of extreme heat conditions without adequate protection.

Migrant workers are unnecessarily dying, experiencing kidney failure, and suffering from other chronic illnesses.

www.hrw.org/news/2025/06...
Gulf States: Protect Workers from Extreme Heat
Gulf Cooperation Council countries are exposing migrant workers to yet another deadly summer of extreme heat conditions without adequate protection.
www.hrw.org
1 3
joeyshea.bsky.social
Joey Shea @joeyshea.bsky.social · May 14
Saudi authorities, FIFA, and other employers should ensure that all migrant worker deaths, regardless of perceived cause, time, and place are properly investigated and families of deceased workers are treated with dignity, and receive fair and timely compensation.
1 2
joeyshea.bsky.social
Joey Shea @joeyshea.bsky.social · May 14
Saudi authorities have failed to adequately protect workers from preventable deaths, investigate workplace safety incidents, and ensure timely and adequate compensation for families, including through mandatory life insurance policies and survivors’ benefits.
1 1 2
joeyshea.bsky.social
Joey Shea @joeyshea.bsky.social · May 14
🚩NEW: @hrw.org finds scores of migrant workers in Saudi Arabia died in gruesome yet avoidable workplace accidents like falling from buildings, electrocution& decapitation

Deaths are erroneously classified as “natural”&are neither investigated nor compensated

www.hrw.org/news/2025/05...
Saudi Arabia: Migrant Workers Electrocuted, Decapitated, and Falling to Death at Workplaces
Scores of migrant workers in Saudi Arabia die in gruesome yet avoidable workplace-related accidents, including falling from buildings, electrocution, and even decapitation
www.hrw.org
1 1 3
joeyshea.bsky.social
Joey Shea @joeyshea.bsky.social · Apr 24
“The UAE government rejects the existence of political opposition or any opinion that contradicts its policies, so it seeks to silence all voices,” said one individual.
1 3
joeyshea.bsky.social
Joey Shea @joeyshea.bsky.social · Apr 24
The move represents an escalation of the UAE's transnational repression, targeting not only dissidents but also their family members.
1 1 2
joeyshea.bsky.social
Joey Shea @joeyshea.bsky.social · Apr 24
HRW searched for the individuals & companies on global terror and financial sanctions lists, inclg the UN Global Sanctions list, the European Union Sanctions list & the Consolidated List of Financial Sanctions Targets in the UK.

None of them are included in these lists.
1
joeyshea.bsky.social
Joey Shea @joeyshea.bsky.social · Apr 24
HRW found that all 8 companies are solely registered in the UK & are owned or previously owned by exiled Emirati dissidents/their relatives

The authorities did not inform them prior to the designation, nor was there any opportunity to respond or contest the allegations.
1
joeyshea.bsky.social
Joey Shea @joeyshea.bsky.social · Apr 24
Only 2 of the 11 have been convicted or accused of a terrorist offense though both under questionable circumstances: One was convicted in absentia as part of the grossly unfair UAE94 mass trial of dissidents in 2013. The other was accused in a separate case related the UAE94 case
1
joeyshea.bsky.social
Joey Shea @joeyshea.bsky.social · Apr 24
🚩NEW: UAE authorities have designated as “terrorist” 11 political dissidents & relatives as well as 8 companies they own, reflecting the UAE’s indiscriminate use of overbroad counterterrorism laws and contempt for due process.

See our new report here:

www.hrw.org/news/2025/04...
UAE: Dissidents, Relatives Designated ‘Terrorists’
Emirati authorities have designated as “terrorist” 11 political dissidents and their relatives as well as 8 companies they own, reflecting the country’s indiscriminate use of overbroad counterterroris...
www.hrw.org
1 7 8
joeyshea.bsky.social
Joey Shea @joeyshea.bsky.social · Mar 11
20 human rights groups, including @hrw.org , call on Bulgarian authorities to suspend plans to deport Saudi HRD Abdulrahman al-Khalidi to Saudi Arabia.

Bulgarian authorities would violate the Bulgarian, European& international law obligation of nonrefoulement.

www.hrw.org/news/2025/03...
Bulgaria: Saudi Activist at Risk of Deportation
Bulgarian authorities should suspend any plans to deport Saudi human rights defender Abdulrahman al-Khalidi to Saudi Arabia, and should allow his resettlement to a third country.
www.hrw.org
8 40
Reposted by Joey Shea
bpward.bsky.social
Ben Ward @bpward.bsky.social · Mar 7
With talk in Europe now of rearmament and the need for new security structures, it's vital European leaders and institutions keep human rights at the centre of their efforts. Democracy depends on it. My new piece for @hrw.org

www.hrw.org/news/2025/03...
Europe’s Democratic Future Depends on Human Rights
It’s been a deeply sobering and troubling few weeks for people who care about the future of human rights, democracy, and the rule of law in Europe.
www.hrw.org
40 73
joeyshea.bsky.social
Joey Shea @joeyshea.bsky.social · Mar 7
Earlier this week an Emirati court upheld an abusive 15-year sentence against prominent Emirati human rights defender Ahmed Mansoor.

The UAE continues to target a man who courageously stood up to his abusive govt even when very few would dare.

www.hrw.org/news/2025/03...
UAE: Ahmed Mansoor’s 15-Year Sentence Upheld
An Emirati court upheld an abusive 15-year sentence on March 4, 2025, against the prominent Emirati human rights defender Ahmed Mansoor, who was convicted following a fundamentally unfair trial.
www.hrw.org
1 22 58
joeyshea.bsky.social
Joey Shea @joeyshea.bsky.social · Mar 5
None of the detainees were present, and only one of the defendants’ lawyers was able to attend the session.

Little is known about the conditions for the 53 defendants because most are denied visits and calls from family member
1 2
joeyshea.bsky.social
Joey Shea @joeyshea.bsky.social · Mar 5
Given that the charges are based solely on defendants’ peaceful practice of their human rights and that the convictions were based on a fundamentally unfair trial, Emirati authorities should immediately overturn the convictions and release all defendants
1 1 2
joeyshea.bsky.social
Joey Shea @joeyshea.bsky.social · Mar 5
🚩NEW: Yesterday a UAE court rejected all appeals by those convicted in the UAE84 unfair mass trial, upholding the unfair convictions & abusive sentences of 53 HRDs & political dissidents.

The decision reveals the travesty of the UAE’s justice system.

www.hrw.org/news/2025/03...
UAE: Unfair Mass Trial Convictions Upheld
An Emirati court on March 4, 2025, rejected all appeals by people convicted in the United Arab Emirates’ second largest unfair mass trial, upholding the unfair convictions and abusive sentences of 53 ...
www.hrw.org
1 6 5