Maryam Al-Otaibi is a Saudi human rights defender and the older sister of Fawzia and Manahel Al-Otaibi. She has been a vocal proponent of women’s rights and freedoms in Saudi Arabia, particularly with regard to the country’s male guardianship system, which imposes limitations on women’s rights.

In 2016, she refused her father’s demand to retract a complaint of domestic violence filed against her brothers, who had abused her in retaliation for her activism. Al-Otaibi was arrested on 18 April 2017 and charged with “filial disobedience” following her father’s complaint. On 31 July 2017, she was released from prison after more than 100 days.

In 2020, Maryam was arrested for her activism and participation in a campaign demanding the end of Saudi Arabia’s restrictive policies on women. She was detained and subsequently sentenced to a substantial prison term for “attempting to destabilise the kingdom” and “spreading false information.” During her period of incarceration, Maryam reportedly endured inhuman conditions, including allegations of torture and physical abuse. Her trial was characterised by significant due process violations, including the denial of access to legal counsel and the failure to meet international standards for fair trials. After her release on 10 February 2021, the Saudi authorities placed her under an arbitrary and open-ended travel ban.

When more than 50 complaints to various Saudi institutions failed to lift the travel ban, Al-Otaibi took to social media to express her grievances. As a result, the Riyadh District Court convicted her on 22 June 2022 of “preparation, storage, and transmission of material impinging on public order” under Article 6 of the Anti-Cybercrime Law of 2007. The court sentenced her to four months in prison, fined her SAR 100,000 (USD $26,660), confiscated her mobile phone and closed her Twitter account.

She is currently free from prison, but under travel ban.