Saudi Arabia: Detainees

(asked on 22nd September 2020) - View Source

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Saudi counterpart on (a) Loujain al-Hathloul and (b) other women’s rights campaigners who are on trial in Saudi Arabia.


Answered by
James Cleverly Portrait
James Cleverly
Home Secretary
This question was answered on 30th September 2020
We remain concerned about the continued detention of women's rights activists in Saudi Arabia. We have raised the detention cases, including Loujain al-Hathloul, at senior levels with the Saudi authorities. We regularly raise areas of concern with the Saudi authorities through Ministers, our Ambassador and Embassy in Riyadh. The UK, along with other embassies in Saudi Arabia, consistently attempt to attend the trials of women's rights defenders, and have been denied access since October 2018. The UK signed a statement at the UN Human Rights Council on 15 September, calling for the release of women's rights defenders. Lord Ahmad raised the women's rights defenders during his call with Dr Awwad al-Awwad, the President of the Saudi Human Rights Commission, in June. The Foreign Secretary also raised their cases in March when he visited Riyadh.
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