The King of Saudi Arabia, the Sultan of Brunei, Sheikh Ahmad Hmoud Al-Sabah of Kuwait, the Emir of Qatar… with guests like these, the royal wedding is beginning to look like a business breakfast for Prince Andrew.
Friday’s line-up appears to be a Who’s Who of the enemies of democracy. Take King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia: his regime, supported by a vast network of secret police, denies freedom of association, the press and belief; according to Human Rights Watch, arbitrary detention is commonplace. In Brunei, the Internal Security Act allows police to hold a suspect without charge or trial for up to two years; and should the Sultan’s Minister of the Interior brand a newspaper report “malicious”, it can fine printers, publishers, editors and writers a hefty $40,000 for their mistake. Unsurprisingly, the Sultan of Brunei enjoys a phenomenally good press.
Press freedom and freedom of expression (for which, read “criticism of the government”) are non-existent in Qatar, too. Here, arbitrary arrest and detention without charge are routine.
Oh, and if the Windsors had their way, the Crown Prince of Bahrein would also attend Prince William’s and Kate Middleton’s wedding – but he was otherwise engaged, watching his government’s kicking and clubbing to death of protesters in the streets of his kingdom.
How can the Windsors overlook such a damning charge sheet? Simple: oil. As a cynic might put it, what is it about these oil-rich, arms-buying, dictators that first attracted Your Royal Highness?
Forget “ethical foreign policy”, this is about grubby money. To be fair, the Royal family is protecting more than Prince Andrew’s brief. The Queen and her family are issuing wedding invitations to their friends, but also the nation’s allies. It’s a shame that some of them should hold in contempt some pretty fundamental values. But it’s a shame that the Windsors seem willing to overcome.
Can the rest of us? Already, one loud voice of protest, belonging to the indefatigable human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell, can be heard: “The invitations should be withdrawn immediately, as a mark of respect for those who have been murdered, arrested, jailed and tortured.” I don’t want to rain on a young couple’s parade – but Tatchell’s absolutely right.
Source : http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/cristinaodone/100085098/is-this-is-a-royal-wedding-or-a-business-breakfast-for-prince-andrew/
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