Raif Badawi: The West is not doing enough to support a hero of liberalism
Few rulers can match the House of Saud’s strategy for quelling discontent. They simply lack the funds for it. When King Salman came to the throne in January, he initiated a public giveaway that will ultimately total more than £21bn. Public sector workers received two months’ salary as a bonus; literary and sports clubs were blessed with plentiful grants. The last time Saudi citizens were shown such largesse coincided with the 2011 Arab uprisings, and its effect this time seems likely to be much the same as ever: a lull in the airing of grievances about rights and political freedoms.