Brussels, 12/01/2015 (Agence Europe) - On Friday 9 January, the European Union criticised the public lashing, in Jeddah the same day, of blogger and activist Raif Badawi, who was the winner of the Reporters without Borders award in 2014. The public lashing was part of the sentence condemning him to 10 years of imprisonment and 1,000 lashes last September, after he argued for liberal measures in Saudi Arabia and for the celebration of St Valentine's Day. The 1,000 lashes will be given over 20 weeks. “Corporal punishment is unacceptable and contrary to human dignity”, said the spokesperson for High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini in a press release.
“The process of judicial reform undertaken by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia opens the possibility for improved protection of individual rights”, Mogherini's spokesperson stated. In this context “the EU calls on the Saudi authorities to suspend any further corporal punishment for Mr Badawi”, the spokesperson said, also calling for the Saudi authorities to consider, in the context of the reform, “putting an end to the use of lashing, a punishment that is not in conformity with the relevant international conventions on human rights”, including the Convention against Torture, which Saudi Arabia has ratified.
Recalling the recent commemoration of the 30th anniversary of the adoption of the UN Convention against torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatments or punishments, Mogherini's spokesperson stated that the EU reiterated its strong objection to any such treatment or punishment. (CG)