Austrian protestors demand release of Saudi blogger

Saturday, 07 February 2015 9:48 AM [ Last Update: Saturday, 07 February 2015 9:48 AM ]

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Austrian Protestors Demand Release of Saudi Blogger

Homa Lezgee
Press TV, Vienna

Saudi Arabia is under increasing pressure in Vienna following the brutal punishment of blogger Raif Badawi.

Badawi has been sentenced to 10 years in prison and one-thousand lashes for blogging against Wahabism, the ruling ideology that’s blamed for advocating radical militancy around the world.

Amnesty International has been campaigning for his liberation, staging protests outside the Saudi embassy in Vienna.

Officials have called on Austria to withdraw from the Saudi-funded King Abdullah International Centre for Inter-religious Dialogue.

Austrian politicians have been publicly asking how Saudi Arabia can have a dialog centre here in Vienna and simultaneously persecute a free speech activist back home.

Demonstrators including members of Austria’s Green party took part in a rally outside the dialog centre, calling for its closure. The organisation’s spokesman came out to meet them.

The Austrian Foreign Minister and president have called for restraint. As officials warned Saudi Arabia could relocate the headquarters of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting countries (OPEC) away from Austria, protestors said they expect their government to put human rights before the benefits of diplomatic and economic ties with Riyadh.

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