You know, we have an important bilateral relationship with Saudi Arabia. Among other things, we were recently involved in an arms sale of some $13 billion worth of armaments to Saudi Arabia. We have security co-operation with them with respect to the volatile Middle East and the like, and a recent delegation from Saudi Arabia was visiting here in Canada.
The case of Raif Badawi is more than a standing breach of an important bilateral relationship by Saudi Arabia. They want us to respect our agreements with them in the matter of arms sales; well, they need to respect, concurrently, agreements that they have with us. In the matter of torture and detention, we are both state parties to the torture convention. Therefore, when they are involved in the torturing of Raif Badawi, they are breaching, in effect, obligations to us as part of that convention.
I would also say that I take seriously the fact that sharia law.... I'm not saying that they are violating Canadian law; I am saying that the manner in which they have persecuted and prosecuted Raif Badawi is a violation of Islamic law. It's a violation of the Arab Charter on Human Rights, to which they are a signatory. As they would wish us, and rightly so, to respect the tenets of Islamic law and the Arab Charter on Human Rights, I would hope that they will exemplify the importance of Islamic law and the Arab Charter on Human Rights and release Raif Badawi.
It's interesting that as I was speaking two days ago to the Liberal International consortium, they awarded their human rights award to Raif Badawi, and singled out, in awarding him, the fact that he has stood up for universal human rights—freedom of expression, freedom of religion, the right to a fair trial—those universal values that characterize us, whether we are in Canada or in Saudi Arabia. The Arab Charter on Human Rights and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, to which Saudi Arabia subscribes, both speak of the importance of these fundamental freedoms, which were criminalized.
Therefore I would hope that Saudi Arabia, if they do not release Badawi on the grounds on which he should be released—grounds of justice and humanity—will at least understand that for their own self-respect, in their own self-interest, they should release Badawi.