Saudi Arabia urged to spare man sentenced to death over Facebook post

"I plead for mercy for the wrongs committed by my son. Please forgive him and send him back to us."

Speaking through tears, Rasamanickam Yogalakshmi made a desperate plea for the life of her eldest son, Anojan Sivarasa. The 24-year-old migrant worker is facing the death penalty in Saudi Arabia after an appellate court found him guilty of blasphemy against Islam and the Prophet Muhammad over a comment he made on Facebook.

The case has sent shockwaves through Sri Lanka, sparking widespread concern and civil society petitions across the country. Multiple political parties and government bodies have co-ordinated diplomatic efforts seeking clemency.

However, the family has had no updates on his condition since 28 September. The Sri Lankan government has instructed the family to refrain from making further statements while diplomatic efforts take place.

Saudi authorities have not published an official execution timeline, and it remains unclear when the sentence will be carried out. Saudi Arabia has a history of carrying out executions without warning families or foreign embassies, only informing relatives after the sentence has been carried out.

Anojan was prosecuted after a dispute on social media following an incident that took place during a Hindu pilgrimage in Sri Lanka. In late June, footage of a young Muslim man kicking a dog following Hindu pilgrims circulated widely on social media, triggering religious arguments online.

During the exchange, a user posted derogatory remarks about a Hindu deity, leading Anojan to post a response in Tamil insulting the Prophet Muhammad.

Although Anojan promptly deleted his comment and posted an apology video, it was screenshotted and brought to the attention of his employer and Saudi officials, leading to his arrest in July.

His personal devices were subsequently seized, and his social media accounts were deleted by Saudi officials.

"People in Saudi Arabia knew nothing about this matter. It was individuals in Sri Lanka who sent emails to the company where my brother worked. I do not even wish to mention who those people are," Anojan's brother, Hamsidan Sivarasa, BBC Sinhala.

The company employing Anojan notified the authorities in Saudi Arabia who registered a case against him, according to Hamsidan.

Anojan was initially sentenced to five years in prison as well as a fine of 3m Saudi riyals (about $0.8m; £0.6m) by the Al-Ahsa Criminal Court. An appeal submitted on Anojan's behalf seeking to reduce his sentence was rejected, according to Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath.

The case took a drastic turn on 17 September after Saudi prosecutors filed an appeal for Anojan to be prosecuted under Sharia law instead of the country's cybercrime legislation. The appellate court granted the prosecution's request, increasing his sentence to the death penalty.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Sri Lanka confirmed it is taking all available steps to assist Anojan.

His family met President Anura Kumara Dissanayake at the Presidential Secretariat on 21 September. The president assured them that the government would spare no effort to obtain a general pardon for him, instructing diplomatic channels to engage Saudi authorities.

The case has brought together cross-religious support. Senior Buddhist leaders, the Mahanayake Theros of the Ramanna Nikaya and the Amarapura Maha Nikaya, together with Hindu religious leaders, handed over a memorandum to the Presidential Secretariat calling for urgent state intervention.

In addition, a four-member Sri Lankan legal delegation is travelling to Saudi Arabia this week to meet Anojan's local defence lawyers.

"There are two law firms in Saudi Arabia handling Anojan's case. We are going there to meet the lawyers from these two firms, discuss the case and plan what can be done next," one of the team, Upul Kumarapperuma, MP, told BBC Sinhala.

Back home, communication between Anojan and his family has completely ceased.

"My brother hasn't called for two days." Hamsidan said on 28 September. "We informed the embassy and asked officials to look into the matter and update us. They said they would check. We are still waiting, as we have not yet received a response."

In Saudi prisons, inmates on death row typically lose access to personal mobile devices, with formal calls strictly facilitated through prison authorities.

Human rights organisations have repeatedly raised concerns regarding severe sentences for online speech in Saudi Arabia.

In July 2023, Mohammed Al Ghamdi, a retired Saudi school teacher, was sentenced to death over his comments on multiple social media platforms, according to the United Nations.

"The death sentence against Mohammad bin Nasser al-Ghamdi, who has a total of just 10 followers on both of his anonymous Twitter accounts and is accused of nothing other than expressing his opinions on social media, is ludicrous," Philip Luther, Amnesty International's Research and Advocacy Director for the Middle East and North Africa, said at the time.

Al Ghamdi's ruling was overturned, and he was sentenced to 30 years in prison, according to ALQST for human rights, an independent non-governmental organisation defending and promoting human rights in Saudi Arabia.

There are more than 10 million foreign workers in Saudi Arabia, according to the International Organisation for Migration (IOM). Rights groups emphasise that low-wage migrant workers face distinct vulnerabilities in the Saudi legal system due to language barriers and lack of proper legal representation.

Executions for blasphemy are relatively rare compared with those for drug offences or murder handed down by courts in Saudi Arabia.