NEW DELHI: A group of exiled Saudi dissidents have announced the formation a new Opposition party to push for political reforms at home. The move coincides with a rare address to the UN by veteran Saudi ruler King Salman.

The new party, called National Assembly Party or NAAS, was announced at a time when Riyadh is gearing up to host the G20 Summit in November.

The dissident group, in a statement, said “We announce the founding of the National Assembly Party, which aims to establish a path to democracy as a governing system in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia.” 

Saudi Arabia is an absolute monarchy that does not tolerate any political opposition, but the formation of the National Assembly Party on the anniversary of the kingdom’s founding came amid a growing state crackdown on dissent and freedom of expression.

Saudi Arabia has long faced international criticism over its human rights record. NAAS decried the Saudi authorities' reliance on "repression and violence" to block the scope of politics amid the security forces' control of private and public spaces and the absence of an independent judiciary. 

The document was signed by several prominent Saudi activists, including London-based professor Madawi al-Rasheed; Abdullah Alaoudh, a Saudi academic who is also the son of jailed Islamic scholar Salman al-Awda, and Shia activist Ahmed al-Mshikhs.

The absence of an independent judiciary, the government's tight control of the local media and "muzzling of public opinion" were other factors that led to the group's formation, the party statement said.