«De Forente Nasjoner og Saudi-Arabia. To menneskerettslige motpoler?» En analyse av Saudi-Arabias forhold til FNs menneskerettigheter mellom 2008 og 2014.

Abstract

Abstract. Between the establishment of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948 and until today, a comprehensive set of rights has been put together by the UN. As a totalitarian system with a conservative interpretation of Islamic law, Saudi Arabia has often been on the receiving end of critisism in questions related to human rights. On the other hand the country has a mutually depending relationship with a lot of nations around the world, first and foremost as a result of the countrys massive export of oil. The main objective of this research is to look further into how the authorities in Saudi Arabia and the UN have communicated in human rights issues related to Saudi-Arabia. Examples of sources to this type of information are reports about the situation in Saudi Arabia written by one of the two sides, speeches related to the issue, reports from UN sessions or statements to the press. These sources will then show us if the communication is colored by interests other then human rights, or if it proves to be characterized by honesty and confrontation.