Amnesty International: Netherlands Remains Silent on Human Rights Issues in Saudi Arabia

The persecution of human rights defenders in Saudi Arabia has greatly increased since 2011. The Dutch government however, remains silent about this. This was concluded by Amnesty International in a new report. All the Netherlands has done in this case is silent diplomacy. There are no indications that it has any effect. As the Netherlands reacts publicly on human rights offenses in Iran, Egypt and Russia, this creates the impression that the Netherlands uses double standards. By not making optimal efforts to deal with Saudi Arabia’s human rights offenses, it betrays the human rights defenders in the country. A poll carried out found that two thirds of the Dutch population considers that the Netherlands have to support Saudi Arabian human rights defenders publicly. www.amnesty.nl/nieuwsportaal/nieuws/nederland-laat-saudische-mensenrechtenverdedigers-in-de-kou-staan