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URGENT APPEAL the Case of Raif Badawi

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URGENT APPEAL the Case of Raif Badawi URGENT APPEAL The Case of Raif Badawi To the attention of: Special Procedures, United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner May 1, 2019 Related mandates Arbitrary Detention Freedom of opinion and expression Freedom of peaceful assembly and of association Human rights defenders Torture Victims Name: Raif Badawi ​ Type: Individual ​ Sex: Male ​ Date of birth: 13/01/1984 ​ Nationality: Saudi Arabia ​ Affiliation or activity: Human rights-related activity ​ Submitted by Name: The Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights & The Human Rights Foundation ​ Type: NGOs ​ Email: [email protected] ​ Describe the activities of the group/community, civil society or other entity: The Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights (RWCHR) is a unique international consortium of parliamentarians, scholars, jurists, human rights defenders, NGOs, and students united in the pursuit of justice, inspired by and anchored in Raoul Wallenberg’s humanitarian legacy – how one person with the compassion to care and the courage to act can confront evil, prevail, and transform history. Our Chair, the Honourable Professor Irwin Cotler, serves as Raif Badawi’s international legal counsel and has power of attorney. The Human Rights Foundation (HRF) is a nonpartisan nonprofit organization that promotes and protects human rights globally, with a focus on closed societies. HRF unites people in the common cause of defending human rights and promoting liberal democracy. Contact persons of the group/community, civil society or other entity: Irwin Cotler- Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights. Email: [email protected] Céline Assaf Boustani – Human Rights Foundation Email: [email protected] Disclosure Does the alleged victim agree to have his name disclosed in a letter that may be sent to the Government, or others, such as intergovernmental organisations including United Nations entities, businesses, military or security companies? Yes ​ Does the alleged victim agree to have his name appear in a public report to the Human Rights Council? Yes ​ Please confirm that the victim, or the victim's family, or the victim's legal representative is in agreement that the case can be dealt with through the regular procedure of the Working Group. Yes ​ The identity and the details of the victim's case can be communicated to the Government concerned. Yes ​ The identity of the victim can be published in the communications report to the UN Human Rights Council. Yes ​ Case details Country where the incident allegedly occured/is occuring/might occur: Saudi Arabia ​ District: Jeddah ​ Short chronological summary of the incident: In 2006, Raif Badawi launched an online forum called “Saudi Arabian Liberals,” to encourage discussion of social issues in Saudi Arabia. In March 2008, Mr. Badawi was arrested and released twice under the Anti-Cyber Crime Law, which criminalizes the production of material impinging on public order and religious values. In early 2009, authorities imposed a travel ban on him and froze his bank accounts. In 2011, a well-known Saudi sheikh, Abdul-Rahman al-Barrak, issued a fatwa against Mr. Badawi. On June 17, 2012, Mr. Badawi was arrested, and authorities shut down his website shortly thereafter. On December 17, 2012, Jeddah Criminal Court Judge Muhammad al-Marsoom prevented Mr. Badawi’s lawyer, Waleed Abu al-Khair, from representing his client, and recommended Mr. Badawi be tried for apostasy, which carries the death penalty. The apostasy charge was dropped after Mr. Badawi demonstrated to the court on July 24, 2013 that he is, in fact, a Muslim. On July 29, 2013, Mr. Badawi’s lawyer was again barred from the court, and Judge Fares Al-Harbi sentenced Badawi to 600 lashes and 7 years in prison. The case was eventually sent back to the criminal court, which convicted Mr. Badawi on May 7, 2014 for a blog post about Valentine’s Day and comments on his Facebook page supporting freedom of expression, his conception of liberalism, and women’s rights. The court significantly increased his sentence to 10 years in prison, 1000 lashes, a 1 million riyal fine and a 10-year ban on travel and all journalistic activity. The court ordered the 1000 lashes to be inflicted every Friday in rounds of 50 lashes in front of the public after prayers at Al-Jaffali mosque in Jeddah. On September 1, 2014, the Court of Appeals upheld the sentence. On January 9, 2015, Mr. Badawi was lashed 50 times in public before hundreds. After an international outcry, Saudi authorities suspended the remaining lashes, citing medical reasons. On June 7, 2015, per the King’s request, the Supreme Court reviewed and upheld Mr. Badawi’s final sentence. Mr. Badawi was ultimately targeted due to his peaceful promotion of human rights. He was arrested and convicted for founding a website dedicated to educating civil society of their rights and duties, and promoting open dialogue on a wide variety of issues, such as human rights, freedom of expression, tolerance, the concept of liberalism and the influence of religion on politics. He was also convicted for his online posts supporting freedom of expression, his conception of liberalism, and women’s rights. Moreover, the Anti-Cyber Crime Law has been increasingly invoked by authorities to arrest and detain individuals for their human rights work like Mr. Badawi. Has the incident been reported to the relevant authorities? Yes ​ Please include details of any complaints filed or any other action taken by the alleged victim or anyone else on their behalf? In terms of domestic remedies sought, Badawi’s lawyer, Waleed Abu al-Khair, successfully appealed the initial July 29, 2013 sentence, arguing that the judge was temporary and not impartial since he publicly insisted that Badawi be charged with “apostasy” prior to his assignment to the case. As a result, on December 11, 2013, the Court of Appeal reversed the lower court decision and sent the case back to the Criminal Court to be reviewed again, which later delivered a much harsher sentence on May 7, 2014. Regarding international remedies sought, on September 4, 2015, the WGAD concluded that Badawi’s deprivation of liberty is arbitrary within categories II and III as established by WGAD and requested that the government take the necessary steps to remedy the situation and bring it in conformity with the standards and principles of international norms. In December 2016, a clemency appeal by Badawi’s international legal counsel, the Honourable Professor Irwin Cotler, was hand-delivered to the King of Saudi Arabia, Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, who raised several concerns. In March 2018, the clemency appeal was hand-delivered to the Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman, who raised several remaining concerns, including that Badawi’s father opposes his release and how to distinguish Badawi’s release on free expression grounds from those imprisoned for extremism. The clemency appeal was then revised, demonstrating that Badawi’s opinions were peaceful and moderate, as opposed to those of extremists; Badawi’s father has no legal standing in this case as the criminal court dismissed his complaint against Badawi; and that the duty to determine clemency rests solely with the “worldly sovereign,” royal authorities. In November 2018, the revised clemency appeal was conveyed to the relevant Saudi authorities along with a summary of legal arguments. Despite these submissions on behalf of Badawi, he remains arbitrarily detained, while his health continues to significantly deteriorate. Has the Government taken action to prevent or investigate the incident, punish the perpetrators, or ensure compensation to the alleged victim? No ​ Arbitrary Detention Date of arrest 17/06/2012 Place of arrest Jeddah What reasons were given for the arrest? No reason was provided at the time of arrest. However, it was later revealed that Badawi was charged with apostasy and the offences under Paragraph 1 of Article 6 and Article 9 of the Anti-Cyber Crime Law. Paragraph 1 of Article 6 provides for “imprisonment for a period not exceeding five years and a fine not exceeding three million riyals or to either punishment [for the] production, preparation, transmission, or storage of material impinging on public order, religious values, public morals, and privacy, through the information network or computers.” Article 9 stipulates: “Any person who incites, assists or collaborates with others to commit any of the crimes stipulated in this Law shall be subject to a punishment not exceeding the maximum punishment designated for such crimes, if the crime is committed as a result of said incitement, assistance or collaboration, and he shall be subject to a punishment not exceeding half the maximum punishment designated, if the intended crime is not committed.” What was the legal basis for the arrest? According to the Permanent Mission of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to the United Nations Office in Geneva, the Jeddah Criminal Court had issued a summons, as per Article 140 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of 2001, for Badawi to appear in person on charges under Articles 6 and 9 of the Anti-Cyber Crime Law (see above). The Criminal Court subsequently ordered Badawi’s arrest under Articles 123 and 141 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of 2001 because he allegedly did not attend the initial trial proceedings. Date of detention 17/06/2012 Duration of the detention June 17, 2012- present Places of detention (indicate any transfer and the current place of detention) Mr. Badawi was originally detained in the General Prison in Briman, Jeddah and was transferred to a more tightly controlled maximum-security prison, Dhahban Central, in December 2015. Reasons given for the detention According to the Permanent Mission of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to the United Nations Office in Geneva, Mr. Badawi was found guilty of: “producing material prejudicial to public order, violating the sanctity of religion and the respect due to religious authorities, casting doubt upon the foundations and values of religion, fomenting discord and conflict among sections of society, deriding the tenets of Islam and disparaging and attacking the sacrosanct religious beliefs and values of society.
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