Prince
Charles and PM fly to Saudi amid growing row over UK flag tributes
Prince
Charles and David Cameron are flying to Saudi Arabia on Saturday to
pay tribute to the late King Abdullah amid a growing row over the decision to
mark his death by flying flags at half-mast on public buildings in London.
The
sign of respect for the monarch has drawn sharp criticism from some prominent
politicians and human
rights campaigners because of Saudi Arabia’s abuses of free speech and women’s
rights, and the country’s role as a cradle of Islamist extremism.
The leader of the
Scottish Conservatives, Ruth Davidson, posted a message on Twitter condemning
the move as “a steaming pile of nonsense”, and the Ukip MP Douglas Carswell
said it showed Whitehall officials held immoral values far from those of the
British public.
No
10, the houses of parliament and Westminster Abbey are among the buildings in
London where the government guidance has been followed after Abdullah’s death overnight on Thursday.
The tribute was paid
even though the sentencing of a Saudi blogger to 10 years in jail and 1,000
lashes for insulting Islam has thrust the country’s dismal human rights record
into the spotlight in recent weeks.
Carswell blamed the “Sir
Humphreys who run British foreign policy” for the tribute, saying they were out
of touch with public feeling.
“It is an extraordinary
misjudgment by the out-of-touch elite in Whitehall who think it is appropriate
to do this,” he said.
“On the day that flags
at Whitehall are flying at half-mast for King Abdullah, how many public
executions will there be?”
Caroline Lucas, the
Green MP, said: “I think many people will wonder why, if the government feels
the UK’s relationship with Saudi Arabia is so close as to warrant the lowering
of our flag at the death of its king, those ties are not being used much more
effectively to secure the basic rights and freedoms of the citizens of that
country.”
Labour MP Paul Flynn
said the tribute was “liable to bring infantile fawning over royalty into
disrepute”. It was evidence of the establishment’s “extraordinary subservience”
to foreign royals.
Kate Allen, Amnesty
International’s UK director, said: “No one is flying flags for the scores of
people Saudi Arabia executes each year after unfair trials, and we should focus
on the human rights reality in Saudi Arabia, not the emblems of diplomacy.
“When the flags are run
back up their flagpoles the UK government needs to move on from the tributes
and put on public record their desire to see sweeping human rights reform under
King Salman.”
The Department for
Culture, Media and Sport said it had asked government buildings to fly the
union flag at half-mast for 12 hours, in line with protocol that says this is
appropriate following the death of a foreign monarch.
Abdullah, thought to be
aged about 90, died after two decades in power in the world’s biggest oil
exporting country. He has been succeeded by his 79-year-old half-brother,
Salman.
One
Westminster source said the decision, which was widely criticised on social
media, was taken at the behest of Buckingham Palace. A spokesman for the palace
confirmed that it was consulted about decisions to fly flags at half-mast, but
said that No 10 and the Foreign Office were consulted too.
In a statement to
Salman, the Queen – now the world’s oldest monarch – said she was saddened to
learn of the death.
She said: “Your
distinguished brother Abdullah had devoted his life to the service of the
kingdom and the service of Islam. He will be long remembered by all who work
for peace and understanding between nations and between faiths.”
The prime minister said
he was “deeply saddened” and that the ruler would be “remembered for his long
years of service to the kingdom, for his commitment to peace and for
strengthening understanding between faiths”.
Former leader Tony Blair
said Abdullah was a “stable and sound ally ... a patient and skilful
moderniser” in a turbulent time in the region.
Ironically, at the Saudi
embassy, their flag was flying at full mast. Saudi Arabia does not observe
official mournings and in the kingdom flags were not flying at half-mast.
Asked to justify its
decision to fly its flag at half-mast, Wesminster Abbey said in a statement:
“We always fly a flag. It is at half-mast because the government has decided to
fly their flags at half-mast today.
“For us not to fly at
half-mast would be to make a noticeably aggressive comment on the death of the
king of a country to which the UK is allied in the fight against Islamic
terrorism.
“Nor would it have done
anything to support the desperately oppressed Christian communities of the
Middle East for whom we pray constantly and publicly.”
Carswell’s comments were
not endorsed by his party leader, Nigel Farage. A spokesman for Farage said:
“Lowering a flag is an issue of diplomatic protocol, respect for an ally in the
war on terror.
“We should forcefully
take up the issue of human rights with the new not the dead king.”
Source : http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/jan/24/prince-charles-and-pm-fly-to-saudi-amid-growing-row-over-uk-flag-tributes
Analysis
- Preposition of time
Day
: On Saturday
On
Thursday
- Preposition of place and position
Of
place : In London
Of
position : the
houses of parliament and Westminster Abbey are among the buildings
Name
: Mitha Soviani Putri
Class
: 4 SA 04
NPM : 18611708
