Ensaf Haidar joins London vigil for her husband, blogger Raif Badawi
Wednesday 17 May, 1:00 pm—2:00 pm

English PEN and Reporters Without Borders (RSF) are honoured to be hosting author and activist Ensaf Haidar, the wife of imprisoned blogger Raif Badawi, in London this month.

Join us for a special vigil at the Embassy of Saudi Arabia on 17 May, a month ahead of the fifth anniversary of Raif Badawi’s arrest, to continue calling for his immediate release.

Vigil for Raif Badawi
1-2pm, Wednesday 17 May
Embassy of Saudi Arabia, London*
RSVP: cat@englishpen.org

English PEN has been holding regular vigils at the Saudi Arabian Embassy in London since blogger Raif Badawi was first flogged more two years ago, on 9 January 2015, calling for his release and for his sentence to be quashed. Our colleagues at RSF joined forces on these vigils shortly after the opening of their UK bureau last year.

This month’s vigil is also co-sponsored by Bread and Roses TV, Campaign Against Arms Trade, Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain, Index on Censorship, One Law for All, PEN International, the Peter Tatchell Foundation, the Publishers Association, and the Society of Authors.

We are delighted to be joined by Ensaf Haidar for a special vigil: please come along to show your ongoing support for Raif and his family and help spread the word. #FreeRaif

* Activists are asked to meet at the Curzon Street entrance to the Embassy. (note: the postal address of the Embassy is 30-32 Charles Street, Mayfair, London, W1J 5DZ).

Spread the word

If you’re unable to join us in person you can still show your support for Raif Badawi by sharing details of his case and calling for his freedom on social media. Please use the hashtag #FreeRaif and follow @raif_badawi

Take part in our ongoing photo action

English PEN and the Raif Badawi Foundation for Freedom are inviting individuals and organisations all over the world to show their ongoing support for Badawi and his family by sharing a photo of themselves holding a poster or message of solidarity.

We are aiming to get 1000 images to represent the 1000 lashes to which Raif has been sentenced. As well as helping to raise and maintain awareness of his case, these photos will serve as a powerful visual representation of the widespread support for Raif and his family.

Please share your photo, ideally with details of where it was taken (eg Embassy of Saudi Arabia, London, UK).

Download our #FreeRaif poster

Send us your photos

Via Twitter:

Please share your photo with the hashtag #FreeRaif and tag @englishpen
Via Facebook:

Please tag English PEN Writers at Risk in your photos, and use the hashtag #FreeRaif

Via Email:

Please email your photos, with the subject line ‘Free Raif photo’ and details of where it was taken (eg Saudi Embassy, London, UK) to cat@englishpen.org Please also send copies to the Raif Badawi Foundation for Freedom – info@fondationraifbadawi.org