One was sentenced to 11 years, another had to flee the country, a third could be arrested at any moment. And what were Manahel, Maryam and Fawzia al-Otaibi’s ‘crimes’? A few social media posts that outraged Saudi Arabia’s conservatives
, staying with a friend near the Bahrain border, when her phone rang. As soon as she heard the male voice on the other end of the line, she realised that returning had been a terrible mistake.
Fawzia had been preparing herself for what might come – but when the news struck, the “world became dark before my eyes”, she says. She told the family that she was being tortured and humiliated: “They were taking revenge on her because she was a woman.” The Manahel who Fawzia knew was adventurous, fearless and outspoken. “I feel that they succeeded in breaking her and killing her dreams and her passion for life. Her soul is no longer what it was.”
Fawzia says their parents always supported them. But after the police arrested Maryam and Fawzia they became scared and worried for their daughters. The police also told them the behaviour of their daughters was their responsibility and that they would be punished too. While Fawzia was living in Dubai, life in Saudi Arabia was becoming increasingly difficult for her sisters. Maryam was forced out of her job at a government ministry and placed under a travel ban. After she posted about what was happening to her, an arrest warrant was issued.
It was a time of fear and frantic dialogue with family and lawyers, trying to discover what had happened to Manahel. “I couldn’t sleep,” says Fawzia. “I used to close the doors tightly and didn’t go out much.” Separated from her family and in exile, Fawzia moved to Edinburgh in 2023. She chose the city, she says, so she could feel close to Manahel, who always dreamed of living there. “She read about it in so many books, about the friendly people, the scenery and the history.”
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