A Saudi man who set up a website that ridiculed some of the kingdom's religious practices has been sentenced to 600 lashes and seven years in jail.

A court in Jedddah found Raif Badawi guilty of violating Saudi Arabia's cybercrime law and insulting Islam. The sentence also included three months' jail for the crime of 'Uquq (disobeying a parent) – apparently because of disputes Badawi has had with his father.

Badawi has been imprisoned since June last year, having been initially detained on charges that included "setting up a website that undermines general security" and ridiculing Islamic religious figures. 

He edited a website known as "Saudi Arabian Liberals" which published an article about Valentine's Day (celebration of which is banned in the kingdom) and another suggesting that al-Imam Mohamed ibn Saud University had become "a den for terrorists"

One article, which mocked the kingdom's religious police, ended sarcastically with the words: "Congratulations to us for the Commission on the Promotion of Virtue for teaching us virtue and for its eagerness to ensure that all members of the Saudi public are among the people of paradise."

Raif Badawi

  
At a hearing before Jeddah District Court on December 17, a judge reportedly ordered Badawi to "repent to God". When he refused, the judge referred the case to a higher court, recommending that it try Badawi for apostasy – a charge that carries the death penalty. 

The threat of execution appeared to be lifted in January when a court rejected the apostasy charge. Part of the evidence for Badawi's supposed apostasy was that he had pressed the "Like" button on a Facebook page for Arab Christians. 

Badawi had been harassed for several years, Human Rights Watchsays:

"In March 2008, authorities arrested Badawi and questioned him about his website, but released him a day later. In May 2008, Badawi was formally charged with 'setting up an electronic site that insults Islam' and he left the country. He returned when prosecutors apparently decided to drop the charges, he told Human Rights Watch. In 2009, the authorities barred Badawi from traveling abroad and froze his business interests, depriving him of a source of income, he told Human Rights Watch.

"On March 18, 2012, the well-known cleric Sheikh Abdulrahman al-Barrak issued a religious ruling declaring Badawi an 'unbeliever … and apostate who must be tried and sentenced according to what his words require'. 

"Al-Barrak claimed that Badawi had said 'that Muslims, Jews, Christians, and atheists are all equal,' and that even if these were not Badawi’s own opinions but 'an account of the words of others, this is not allowed unless accompanied by a repudiation' of such words.

"Badawi and other contributors to his website declared May 7, 2012, 'A Day for Saudi Liberals,' hoping to spark an open discussion on distinctions between 'popular' and 'politicised' religion, Su'ad al-Shammar, the website's director, told Human Rights Watch.

Badawi's wife, Ensaf, who now lives in Lebanon, told the BBC last January of the personal cost of the case, with friends and family distancing themselves or even turning against them.

She said she received threatening messages after the court recommended trying him for apostasy. 

"Two or three days after Raif's hearing, I started to receive phone calls from unknown people, saying 'we are going to kill your husband'. But I didn't respond to them."

    
Posted by Brian Whitaker
Wednesday, 31 July 2013