Obama Should Highlight Human Rights with Saudi King

Washington

Ahead of President Obama’s meeting with King Salman of Saudi Arabia on Friday, Freedom House joined other human rights organizations in calling on the President to highlight human rights in discussions with the Saudi leader: 

“If the United States is serious about confronting violent extremism, U.S. relations with Saudi Arabia should give priority to calling for greater tolerance for political pluralism and independent civil society in that country,” said Mark P. Lagon, president of Freedom House. “President Obama should press King Salman to release imprisoned human rights activists, including Waleed Abu al-Khair, Mohammed al-Qahtani, and Raif Badawi, and support the passage of the Law of Association that allows civil society to operate freely.”

Background:

In their letter to President Obama, Freedom House and other human rights groups said, “We have watched with alarm as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia continues to severely restrict basic civil and political rights. We remain deeply concerned with many of the government’s policies that, if maintained, will erode the internal stability of Saudi Arabia and its neighbors.  

“Your administration has highlighted the key role that independent civil society plays in advancing human rights and delegitimizing violent extremism. However, bilateral relations with Saudi Arabia have not adequately incorporated this as a policy priority. The U.S.-Saudi alliance must not only address the shared challenges of today, but anticipate and prevent the regional crises of tomorrow. Peaceful civil society organizations in Saudi Arabia must be able to operate freely, as U.S. foreign policy cannot succeed unless civil society succeeds.” 

In recent years, the Saudi government has closed a number of human rights organizations and sentenced human rights defenders to lengthy prison terms. Nine of the eleven co-founders of the Saudi Arabian Civil and Political Rights Association have been imprisoned, while the remaining two have been charged and could face more than a decade in prison if convicted. Saudi courts used the country’s anti-terrorism law to sentence Waleed Abu al-Khair, the founder of the Monitor of Human Rights in Saudi Arabia, to 15 years imprisonment. 

Bahrain and Kuwait have arrested and convicted human rights defenders who have criticized Saudi policies.

Click here to read the letter.

Saudi Arabia is rated Not Free in Freedom in the World 2015,  Not Free in Freedom of the Press 2015, and Not Free in Freedom on the Net 2014.