Saudi Gazette report JUBAIL — In the absence of laws to control online content, gruesome, bloody and horrific photos and video clips of murder, torture and rape flood social media websites, Al-Watan daily reported. Psychology professor at King Saud University in Riyadh Dr. Abdullah Al-Hariri said people who publish such material should be held accountable for their actions. "Such scenes are against human instinct and nature and can have a damaging psychological effect, especially on children and women, that may be difficult to treat," he said. He believes that any person who publishes such material should be referred to the law and tried. “These people have aggressive behavior and they suffer from negative personalities, which they try to fulfill by publishing such gruesome scenes in complete disregard to religious and societal values. People who view these scenes can be subjected to depression, anxiety, apprehension of others and other negative thoughts," he said. Law professor at King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah Dr. Omar Al-Khooli said the lack of strict and deterrent laws for such behavior only aggravates the problem. He pointed out that there are no laws that criminalize the publishing of violence, murder and other horrific scenes because such scenes are not directed at specific people nor do they degrade the dignity of the viewer. "These scenes are simply violent scenes to which viewers react differently. Some viewers may be affected by a scene of a person slapping another, while other viewers may not be moved by scenes where 10 people are killed or burned to death," he said. He explained that concerned bodies should pass deterrent laws to limit the publishing of such scenes and monitor and track down those who do so and hold them accountable. “The concerned bodies have the means to limit or ban the publishing of gruesome scenes, which I believe is the ideal solution,” he added.
