The New York-based rights group urged EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton and other European officials who were meeting with Gulf counterparts, including Saudi Arabia, in Manama yesterday to condemn the convictions.
Eastern Province has seen occasional protests by minority Shias over the past two years against alleged discrimination and negligence, which the Riyadh government denies.
“Sending people off to years in prison for peaceful Facebook posts sends a strong message that there’s no safe way to speak out in Saudi Arabia, even on online social networks,” Joe Stork, HRW’s deputy Middle East director, said in a statement.
Saudi Interior Ministry officials were not immediately available for comment.
