“UK evading responsibility towards citizens because of business interests"
The son of a British old man jailed in Saudi Arabia says the Foreign Office is allowing UK business interests to get the way of helping to free his father.
Simon Andree’s father, Karl Andree, has been in prison in Saudi Arabia since August 2014. Simon says British diplomats are not seeking to put enough pressure on the Saudis because of concerns about damaging relations with the country.
“My father is at the bottom of a list, he’s at the bottom of the pecking order,” Simon told the state-funded BBC. “I feel that the business dealings with Saudi Arabia and the UK are probably taking priority over it.”
Karl’s children say he is already weakened as a result of cancer as well as having asthma, and fear that the lashes will kill him.
“All I can say is that the primary responsibility of the British government is to their citizens. He’s a British citizen and I ask that the government plead for his clemency, for him to be released. He’s done his time and I just fear that these lashes are unjustified for his age and for his current health condition,” Simon stressed.
The Foreign Office has said it is actively seeking the release of Andree.
Last month, leaked diplomatic cables revealed that Britain conducted secret vote-trading deals with Saudi Arabia to ensure both states were elected to the UN human rights council.
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