http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/11/world/meast/saudi-arabia-twitter-jail/index.html?hpt=hp_t2 Two men were found guilty in Saudi courts this week for, among other offenses, messages they posted on Twitter. On Monday, one Saudi man was sentenced to 10 years in prison for using Twitter to encourage protests and undermine the country's leadership, according to Saudi Arabian state news agency SPA. "The accused had sent invitations via Twitter to participate in protests and gatherings against the Kingdom," read SPA's statement, quoting Saudi Justice Ministry spokesman Fahad Al-Bakran. Al-Bakran added how the unnamed man, already serving a three-year jail sentence, was convicted of utilizing websites that are "hostile to the government and that promote deviant ideologies." Saudi officials often use the phrase "deviant ideologies" when describing al Qaeda or al Qaeda-linked groups. On Sunday, another man, accused of insulting King Abdullah and inciting protests via social media sites like Twitter, was sentenced to eight years in jail. According to SPA, he's also barred from travel and from posting messages on social media sites for eight years after his release. The man, also unidentified by SPA, was found guilty of "inciting relatives of Saudis arrested for security reasons to protest their imprisonment by tweeting and via posting videos on sites like YouTube." In the West, we have limits on freedom of speech, but it appears that the limits in Saudi Arabia are much stricter than our own. There's a fine line between prosecuting someone for promoting violence and prosecuting someone for protests or dissent. I'm guessing the monarchy is starting to feel the pressure of the Arab Spring.
