Death by stoning sentence on appeal

SAUDI authorities have agreed to consider an appeal against the sentence of death by stoning imposed on a 45-year-old Sri Lankan maid for adultery, Sri Lanka’s deputy foreign minister said yesterday, welcoming the decision as a big victory. The married woman, who had been working as a domestic helper in Riyadh since 2013, was convicted by a Saudi court in August. Her partner, also a Sri Lankan migrant worker, was given a lesser punishment of 100 lashes because he was single.

Sri Lankan Deputy Foreign Minister Harsha de Silva said Colombo had appealed to Riyadh’s central appeal court, which had agreed to send the case back to the provincial court to reconsider the sentence. “They [Saudi Arabia] have agreed to reopen the case,” De Silva told parliament. “This can be considered a big victory. We will provide her with legal counsel and bear all the costs for legal counsel.”