Article 23 of the Saudi Implementing Regulations of the Criminal Procedure Law
المادة 23 من اللائحة التنفيذية لنظام الإجراءات الجزائية · الفصل الثاني: القبض على المتهم
The article explains that enabling a detainee to contact whomever he wishes to notify is by the method the officer or investigator assesses, and that notifying the detained employee's superior is done by whoever ordered his continued detention.
Official text (Arabic)
This article has not been amended since the law was issued.
1- يُمكّن الموقوف من الاتصال بمن يرى إبلاغه بالطريقة التي يقدرها رجل الضبط الجنائي أو المحقق بحسب حالة كل قضية وملابساتها.
2 - يكون إبلاغ مرجع الموظف الموقوف - الوارد في الفقرة (2) من المادة (السادسة والثلاثين) من النظام - من قِبل من أصدر أمر استمرار توقيفه.
This is the official Arabic wording, the only legally binding version. We do not translate the law itself; the explanation below is ours. Official source: Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers
Article 23 explained in plain English
This article of the Regulations complements the accused's right, set out in Article 22, to contact whomever he sees fit to notify, and deals with two matters:
- How the detainee contacts: the detainee is enabled to contact whomever he sees fit to notify, but by the method that the criminal investigation officer or the investigator assesses according to the circumstances of each case. The right to contact is fixed, while its means and manner are determined by the circumstances of the case.
- Notifying the detained employee's superior: if the detainee is an employee, notifying his superior (his employer) as provided in paragraph 2 of Article 36 of the Law is done by whoever issued the order for the continuation of his detention.
The practical meaning is that the detainee is not deprived of communicating with whomever he wants to notify, but the body handling the case chooses the suitable method, such as the contact being supervised or by a certain means, without the article specifying particular means. As for the employee, the burden of notifying his workplace under this paragraph does not fall on him, but on whoever issued the order continuing his detention.
This article does not state when the superior must be notified or what follows from it, which is for Article 36 of the Law. It is followed by Article 24, which sets the grounds for detention during investigation. Anyone whose relative is detained and who has not been able to communicate with him may consult a lawyer specializing in criminal cases.
Practical example
An employee of a government body in Riyadh was detained, and an order was issued continuing his detention. The body that issued the continuation order is the one that notifies his workplace. The employee asked to contact his wife, and the investigator enabled him to do so by the method he saw as suitable to the circumstances of the case.
Translated from our Arabic explanation with machine assistance. For guidance only; it does not replace advice from a lawyer on your situation.
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Frequently asked questions about Article 23 of the Saudi Implementing Regulations of the Criminal Procedure Law
Is a detainee entitled to contact his family?
Yes. He is enabled to contact whomever he sees fit to notify, by the method the criminal investigation officer or the investigator assesses according to the circumstances of the case.
Who notifies the workplace of a detained employee?
Whoever issued the order continuing his detention, under paragraph 2 of this article.
More articles on Rights of the Accused and Detainee
- Article 20
The article fixes the start of the twenty-four-hour period in Article 34 of the Law: from the time of arrest for the criminal investigation officer, and from the time the accused reaches him for the investigator.
تبدأ مهلة الأربع والعشرين ساعة المشار إليها في المادة (الرابعة والثلاثين) من النظام بالنسبة لرجل الضبط الجنائي من وقت القبض على المتهم، وتبدأ المهلة بالنسبة للم
- Article 22
The article requires informing the accused on arrest or detention of its reasons, his right to a representative or lawyer, and his right to contact whomever he wishes to notify, and obtaining his signature.
يجب أن يعرّف المتهم عند القبض عليه أو توقيفه بما يأتي: أ) أسباب القبض عليه أو توقيفه. ب) حقه في الاستعانة بوكيل أو محام في مرحلتي التحقيق والمحاكمة. ج) حقه في ا
- Article 25
The article regulates the Authority's oversight of prisons and detention places, what to do on finding someone held unlawfully, receipt of complaints, the daily report, and the contents of the registers.
1 - إذا تبين لعضو الهيئة المختص بزيارة السجون وأماكن التوقيف وجود مسجون أو موقوف بصفة غير مشروعة، فعليه الرفع عن ذلك لرئيس دائرة التحقيق التي يتبعها لاتخاذ اللا
- Article 26
The article requires the prison or detention director to draw up a record of an oral complaint and report it to the Authority's member, and requires visiting members to check the complaints register and sign it.
1- إذا قدم المسجون أو الموقوف شكوى شفهية إلى مدير السجن أو التوقيف؛ فيعد المدير محضراً بذلك موقعاً من المشتكي يتضمن ما ذكره من تظلم وأسبابه، ويلحق بالشكوى ملخص
- Article 27
The article allows reporting orally or in writing a person held unlawfully or in an undesignated place even if the reporter has no interest, and requires the Authority to send a member at once.
1- يُقبل الإبلاغ عن وجود مسجون أو موقوف بصفة غير مشروعة أو في مكان غير مخصص للسجن أو التوقيف بحسب ما نصت عليه المادة (الأربعون) من النظام؛ مشافهةً أو كتابة، ولو
- Article 40
The article makes notifying the accused of the contents of letters, postal and telegraph messages under Article 59 of the Law the task of the investigator or whoever he delegates.
يكون تبليغ المتهم بمضمون الخطابات والرسائل البريدية والبرقية - وفقاً للمادة (التاسعة والخمسين) من النظام - عن طريق المحقق أو من يندبه.
The texts are reproduced from the official website of the Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers for reference; where they differ, the officially published Arabic text prevails. This content is not legal advice.