Preliminary reading of the royal orders (2)

The recently issued royal orders are a new qualitative achievement, added to previous achievements, and are an important step within the framework of the state's structural and administrative reforms...

A short time ago, the name of the (Public Prosecution and Investigation Authority), which was linked to the Ministry of Interior, was changed to the name (Public Prosecution), which is directly linked to the Prime Minister and has complete independence. This is an essential step towards achieving the separation of powers, which was widely criticized by international human rights organizations. The Ministry of Interior was the one who arrested through the criminal investigation officers in the security services, and it is the one who investigated and prosecuted before the courts, through the Public Prosecution and Investigation Authority. This does not conform to international judicial standards, which consider it fair and just for one party not to arrest and investigate at the same time. This amendment led to the separation of powers, an authority that arrests (the executive authority, the security services, criminal investigation officers), an authority that investigates and prosecutes before the courts (the Public Prosecution), and an authority that rules (the judicial courts).

In addition, the Public Prosecution and the Attorney General’s direct connection to the Cabinet will give the agency greater flexibility and faster movement, shortening many administrative bureaucratic procedures, and leaping over all the routine, monotonous work that crowds the corridors of some public sector halls, and leading to the speed of passing information horizontally, vertically, upwards, and then downwards in the form of decisions, which is expected to ultimately lead to raising the efficiency and sufficiency of the agency’s employees’ performance. The legal reading of these orders, the separation that took place, and the establishment of the State Security Agency show that the matter is not just a separation for the sake of separation, but that there are legal and rights dimensions added to the security dimension, which relates to the tasks of the Ministry of Interior in maintaining security and order, and working to devote oneself to controlling internal security and focusing on it, and combating ordinary crime, by protecting society from it before it occurs (the preventive aspect), which should receive the greatest attention, and the largest percentage (in some countries it reaches 70%), and the therapeutic aspect remains, which are the procedures that take place after the crime has occurred and the matter is over, and these should not exceed 30% but rather be less than that, and the success of any security agency is determined by the high percentage of the preventive aspect, and the low percentage of the therapeutic aspect, and combating crime in the aforementioned manner suffered greatly, as a result of the Ministry of Interior’s preoccupation with combating terrorism, at the expense of combating crime to some extent. These measures will also enhance the Kingdom's international competitiveness, because the Kingdom is approaching the application of international standards related to human rights, security and judicial procedures, and the rights of the accused from the time of his arrest until the time of pronouncing the verdict for him or against him. It also does not put everyone in one framework, because it has separated between ordinary crimes that can be committed by a citizen or resident, and do not affect patriotism and citizenship, because they are crimes committed for specific reasons and circumstances, and have penalties commensurate with them, and between state security crimes, which have a specific character, and their perpetrator also has a specific character, and specific goals, different from other crimes....

An important matter remains regarding the reform and development of the tasks and duties of the State Security Agency, because this separation makes the time more appropriate than before, and enables decision-makers, more than ever before, to seize the opportunity of the separation to develop the mechanisms of the State Security Agency's work, and codify the crimes and penalties that fall within its jurisdiction, and reduce the scope of interpretation in it, to achieve justice and fairness, and give priority to good faith in what is proposed by citizens, and open channels of communication and contact, and interact with what is issued by public opinion in public affairs, and raise the ceiling Freedoms, expanding the circle of participation, increasing the area of what is permissible, and reducing the area of what is forbidden, so that the reform contract is completed in this aspect, and I am certain that this will not be absent from the minds of our leaders, may God protect them. May God protect our leaders, our country, and our people from all harm.