Austrians call for release of Saudi activist
People have taken to the streets of the Austrian capital to call for the jailed Saudi blogger Raif Badawi to be freed, Press TV reports.
The demonstrators, including members of Austria’s Green party, gathered outside the Saudi-funded King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz International Centre for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue (KAICIID ) in Vienna on Friday, calling for the closure of the center.
“We’re concerned about all forms of human rights abuse. As a matter of fact we support without any exception the Universal Declaration of Human rights,” said Peter Kaiser, KAICIID’s director of communications.
The Austrian officials have called for restraint, warning that Saudi Arabia could relocate the headquarters of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting countries (OPEC) away from Austria.
The protesters further urged Vienna to put human rights before the benefits of diplomatic and economic ties with Riyadh.
“Badawi was charged and brutally tortured for nothing. He didn’t make a criminal offence. He was trying hard to initiate dialog and that is punishable in his country,” said one protester.
The blogger's persecution began in 2008 after he co-founded the “Free Saudi Liberals” website, where he criticized influential Saudi clerics who follow Wahhabism, a sect which originated in Saudi Arabia.
Although his lawyers appealed for a retrial, the verdict was upheld last May. His sentence included 1,000 lashes in 20 weekly installments, a 10-year prison term, one-million-riyal fine ($266,000), 10-year ban on overseas travel after his release, and 10-year ban from participating in visual, electronic and written media after his release.
He 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 was suspended on health grounds.
Criticism of Wahhabi clerics is viewed as a red line as they are instrumental 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.
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