Planned flogging of Saudi blogger postponed again
Saudi Arabia has postponed the flogging of blogger Raif Badawi for a second time, following a medical assessment that showed he was unfit to face the punishment.
Badawi, 31, was to be flagellated on schedule on Friday; however, the enforcement of the punishment was suspended for a week after doctors advised against the move on health grounds, Amnesty International stated on Thursday.
“Instead of continuing to torment Raif Badawi by dragging out his ordeal with repeated assessments, the authorities should publicly announce an end to his flogging and release him immediately and unconditionally,” said Boumedouha, the deputy director of Amnesty International’s Middle East and North Africa Program.
He added, “Raif Badawi is still at risk. There is no way of knowing whether the Saudi Arabian authorities will disregard the medical advice and allow the flogging to go ahead.”
Badawi’s persecution began in 2008 after he co-founded the “Free Saudi Liberals” website, on which he criticized the influential Saudi clerics who preach Wahhabism, a radical ideology that originated in Saudi Arabia.
Although his lawyers appealed for a retrial, the sentence was upheld last May. He was sentenced to 1,000 lashes, to be carried out in 20 sessions in front of a mosque, ten years of imprisonment, $266,000 in fines, a 10-year ban on overseas travel after his release, and a 10-year ban from participating in visual, electronic and written media after his release.
The Saudi blogger received his first 50 lashes at a square outside al-Jafali Mosque in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah, located 955 kilometers (593 miles) southwest of the capital, Riyadh, on January 9. The second round of the punishment, scheduled to be carried out a week later, was suspended on health grounds.
Criticism of Wahhabi clerics is viewed as a red line as they play a vital role in supporting Riyadh’s policies.
International human rights organizations have lashed out at Saudi Arabia for failing to address the rights situation in the kingdom. They say Saudi Arabia has persistently implemented repressive policies that stifle freedom of expression, association and assembly.
MP/HJL
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