Saudi Arabia still deprives the Bidoons of many of their rights, such as the full right to work, higher education and others.
According to the European-Saudi Organisation for Human Rights, the suffering of the marginalized groups “Bidoon” continues, due to the government oppression, deprivation, racism and discrimination against them. Some Bidoon activists stated that they are subjected to government harassment, forcing them to leave the Kingdom. They stressed that the only solution is the immediate naturalisation of those eligible, especially those with higher educational degrees.
The organisation also indicated that there has been no development in regarding the deprivation of nationality, despite repeated promises by the authority to solve their problem. In addition, the Saudi authorities target defenders of Bidoon rights with the aim of silencing their voices.
The suffering of Bidoon children in obtaining their basic right to education appeared at the beginning of the school season in September 2019, as videos were circulated of children expelled from school on the first day of school, on the pretext that they did not have identification papers, including the video of the girl, Nawar Al-Enezi.
In the same context, Sanad Human Rights Organisation called on the concerned authorities to stop the marginalisation of people of the country whose legitimate rights of naturalisation have been deprived, who numbered three million. This prompted some United Nations special rapporteurs to address the issue of deprivation of nationality, as the Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants, the Special Rapporteur on minority affairs, and the Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination and xenophobia, sent a letter to the government of Saudi Arabia in February 2019, referring to the case of both the Palestinians Khatem Faraj Allah and his father, Majed Faraj Allah, who have become stateless by de facto. The special rapporteurs also stressed that the right to nationality is recognized, guaranteed and protected by international law.
The Al Saud regime has the worst human rights record in the world in marginalising tribes, as the Saudi regime has been ignoring years long demands of marginalsed tribes in the Kingdom, to end the injustice on them, which reflects the blatant crimes of the House of Saud and the racial discrimination that contradicts International laws and human rights charters.
Heads of the tribes of “Qahtan”, “Hamadan”, “Bani Khaled” and “Anza” have taken action through human rights and media platforms, in the hope of obtaining their rights. For several decades, the Bidoons in Saudi have been suffering, where they lack the most basic rights granted to ordinary citizens in any country that respects human rights.
The Bidoon are made up of various displaced tribes, and their number in the Kingdom is more than 150 thousand people, including the tribes of “Anza”, “Shammar”, “Bani Khaled” and “Al-Asa’ada” from “Otaiba” and they are spread in the north of the Kingdom, and they are Arab tribes of nomadic Bidoon who live on the Saudi borders, and their suffering began when the political borders were set between the countries of the region.
They are also present in the south of the Kingdom, including the tribes of “Al Katheer” and “Al-Musabin” and some tribes of “Al-Awalaq”, “Al-Nassien”, “Khalifa”, “Al-Karb”, “ Hammam, “Balharith” and some “Qahtan” and “Hamadan” tribes. Due to their marginalisation for 35 years, an entire generation of Bidoon has come to feel that citizenship is no longer of personal benefit to them, but rather to their children and grandchildren.
The Bidoon live under extremely difficult humanitarian, economic, and social conditions. They suffer from illegal treatment, thus making it more difficult for the humanitarian cases that require urgent intervention from the state to amend their situation.
A tribe Sheikh from Enza said, those who do not hold a nationality from the displaced tribes, are living very tough conditions; their children are not treated in hospitals, they have difficulty in education, and they do not find job opportunities, which makes them dependent on society. Moreover, those who have been naturalised are subject to Article 9, which states that their children do not obtain military or official jobs, and they are not entitled to receive education or treatment, and banks do deal with them at all.
