Raif Badawi, the Saudi blogger jailed for criticizing Islam, has had his weekly lashes delayed for a fifth time according to Amnesty International.
He was sentenced to 10 years in jail and 1,000 lashes, to be delivered in batches of 50 every week.
He was flogged for the first time on Jan. 9. However, the next five flogging sessions were postponed. At least two of the postponements were due to medical reasons.
Well – they’re going to look like complete ogres and complete fools as well if they go ahead with it after this. They’re in a hot spotlight, and that situation isn’t going to get any better for them.
Amnesty International is calling for Badawi’s sentence to be quashed and for him to be released immediately and unconditionally so he can join his family in Canada.
Damn right. And his lawyer, too, Waleed Abu Al-Khair.
This threat of flogging being left hanging over Raif’s head like the proverbial Damocles’ sword, week after week – is it not tantamount to mental torture? I think it is, and that point needs to be more volubly made.
Good point, Kausik.
Absolutely, and I have made that point. I made it pretty volubly last week I think. But basically that’s why I keep saying “until he’s on the ground in Montreal” – he has that sword hanging over him until he’s out of Saudi Arabia altogether.
And, if you think about it, so do all Saudis. If someone can be punished this ferociously just for uttering some liberal thoughts in public, no one can be confident.
In Saudi Arabia, *not* flogging someone is news.