Senators to Saudi Arabia - Go Ahead & Flog, Just Don't Do It In Public [View all]

[kpete]

Senators call on Saudi Arabia to cancel public flogging of blogger
Eight senators wrote a letter to King Abdullah warning that further human rights violations could threaten relationship
January 17, 2015 12:15PM ET
by Al Jazeera Staff

A group of high-ranking U.S. senators slammed Saudi Arabia for its plans to publicly flog blogger Raif Badawi and indicated that further repression of peaceful political dissidents in the oil-rich kingdom could jeopardize their close partnership.

In a letter to Saudi King Abdullah obtained by Al Jazeera, eight Senators urged “the immediate halt to this barbaric punishment and the immediate release of Mr. Badawi,” who was sentenced to 10 years in prison and 1,000 lashes on charges that he insulted Islam in an online forum he founded.

“We value the important partnership between the United States and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on many critical issues,” the senators wrote. “However, any further violence or criminal proceedings against Saudi citizens exercising nonviolent freedoms of speech and religion will unfortunately be a source of continued divergence between our countries.”

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The senators who signed the letter were Richard Durbin, D-Ill.; Patrick Leahy, D-Vt.; Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H.; Marco Rubio, R-Flor.; Dianne Feinstein, D-Cali; Ron Wyden, D-Ore.; Mark Kirk, R-Ill.; and Barbara Boxer, D-Calif.


http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2015/1/17/senate-saudi-blogger.html