Activist and former diplomat Hassan al-Basham was arrested and sentenced to three years' imprisonment on charges of "insulting the divine self and spreading atheism." Denied medical attention, he died in custody.
human rights activism
Hassan al-Basham was an Omani human rights activist who was first taken into custody in September 2015 over a series of social media posts. He was accused of using the internet to spread ideas harmful to religion and of insulting God. A lengthy process followed in which he was tried for various crimes of speech, and in February 2016, he was ultimately convicted and sentenced to three years in prison on the charge of using the internet for anti-religious purposes.
He died in custody in 2018, reportedly due to health complications arising from low blood sugar, an ailment which was evidently neglected while he was in prison.
Hassan made more than one attempt to appeal the rulings that got him imprisoned, but it was to no avail. Although one charge for which he was fined, insulting the sultan, was revoked, he was made to serve his time.
Before Hassan could finish his sentence, tragedy struck: he died in custody in 2018, reportedly due to health complications arising from low blood sugar, an ailment which was evidently neglected while he was in prison.
Hassan had been an active voice of dissent in Oman even prior to his imprisonment and death. He had been arrested before in 2011 and 2013 for participation in the protests of the Arab Spring.
Oman: Prison for Online Critics - Human Rights Watch
Oman: Death in custody of Mr. Hassan Al-Basham - International Federation for Human Rights
Oman casts itself as an Islamic sultanate. The structure of its family and personal status law makes deconversion from Islam near impossible, and apostates can be forcibly divorced, disinherited, and deprived of child custody. Freedom of religion extends only as far as it does not disrupt "public order." Islam is the state religion and Islamic religious law the main source of legislation. Blasphemy against Islam can result in imprisonment, as can other religion-related offenses ostensibly designed to prevent "incitement."