Tuesday, June 25, 2002 7:42 AM

**Saudi-Arabia: Human Rights Violations Overshadow King ¹s Anniversary**

(idea) The 20th anniversary of the enthronement of Saudi-Arabia ¹s King Ibn Abdul Aziz Fahd on June 13 was overshadowed by severe human rights violations, says the International Society for Human Rights. “Torture, executions and all kinds of cruel punishments such as public flogging are common practice. Apostasy from Islam carries the death penalty,” stated the Frankfurt based human rights organization.

There is zero tolerance for non-Muslim believers. Any public non-Islamic religious practice is prohibited. Out of fear of being persecuted by the religious police, the Muttawah, only a small minority of the more than 500,000 Christian expatriates in Saudi-Arabia dare to join private prayer meetings. Last summer in Jeddah, 14 Christians were incarcerated for months without legal charges. The human rights organization challenges King Fahd to abolish torture and to introduce international human rights standards in his country, such as religious freedom and women ¹s rights.