Canada concerned over Afghan facing death for being a Christian Last Updated Tue, 21 Mar 2006 16:37:37 EST CBC News Canada has joined the list of countries closely watching a court case in Afghanistan, where under Islamic law a man could be sentenced to death for converting to Christianity. INDEPTH: Shariah law "Canada will continue to encourage the Afghan government to adhere to its human rights obligations," Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Pamela Greenwell told Reuters Tuesday. Italy and Germany, two other Western countries with troops stationed in Afghanistan, have also started to express concern over the case amid calls that their troops be pulled out. INDEPTH: Canada in Afghanistan Abdul Rahman became a Christian 16 years ago while working in Germany, but he was charged with rejecting Islam only in February, when his family denounced him during a custody battle over his two children. Rahman, 41, is now in jail in Afghanistan and faces the death penalty unless he agrees to convert back to the faith in which he was raised, said the judge at the Shariah court. (Shariah is the legal code of Islam, based on the Qu'ran.) INDEPTH: Afghanistan "We will invite him again [to renounce Christianity] because the religion of Islam is one of tolerance," trial judge Ansarullah Mawlazezadah told the BBC on Sunday. "We will ask him if he has changed his mind. If so, we will forgive him." The accused man's mental state will also be taken into account before the court passes sentence, Mawlazezadah added. Constitution may prevent president's intervention About 99 per cent of the 28 million citizens of Afghanistan are Muslim, and conservative Muslims dominate the country's judicial system. The nation's constitution, drafted after the ultra-conservative Taliban government was forced from power four years ago, is based on Shariah law. That factor makes it hard for liberals such as President Hamid Karzai to intervene in the Rahman case, though he is dependent on financial aid and military support from the West to fight off continuing threats from Taliban militants. Western nations hint at pulling out troops On Tuesday, politicians from Italy and German signalled they are unhappy that a man could be put to death merely for being a Christian. Germany has about 2,700 soldiers stationed in Afghanistan. Italy has 1,775, compared to Canada's 2,200. A former president of Italy, Francesco Cossiga, has proposed the country pull its troops out unless Rahman's life is spared. "It is not acceptable that our soldiers should put themselves at risk or even sacrifice their lives for a fundamentalist, illiberal regime," Cossiga wrote in an open letter to Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who faces a re-election battle next month. Two German cabinet ministers have expressed similar concerns. On Monday, U.S. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack also addressed the Rahman case. "Tolerance, freedom of worship, is an important element of any democracy," he said. "These are issues, as Afghan democracy matures, that they are going to have to deal with increasingly." http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2006/03/21/afghan-christian060321.html Islam is a religion of tolerance... "Convert to islam or else you die" Wtf?
From what I read, it is illegal to convert FROM Islam. That said, I think that's pretty fucked up too. There's no reason that man should be killed. Then again, I am against the death penalty in general. However, I'm REALLY against it in this case. It's so sad. And Muslims wonder why their religion has such a negative stigma attached to it. Peace & Love
Anyone ever read "Small Worlds" by Terry Pratchett. Makes a mockery of this sort of religion? (not islam per se but the style of religion, I don't want to get Terry's house nuked). I'm finding Islam more and more offensive as a religion everyday. A 15 year old girl in the UK has taken her school to the European court of human rights because the school says she must wear her uniform. Uniforms are there for a reason. They hide wealth and poverty because all kids wear the same clothers. They hide religion, class, race etc. They show that every child in that school is part of that school. If a child is wearing uniform and goes to a shop in a mall of a lunchtime and steals from the shop or causes damage or commits a crime that child is instantly traceable to that school. If the child is wearing normal attire the shop owner has no way of finding out who that child was. I wonder whether the muslim girl wears the same clothes of a weekend. She is clearly a pawn used by her parents in the religious battle going on in the world today. Muslims need to realise that their religion doesn't affect us all and should abide by the laws of the land.
Dunno... It's kindof like the conservative christians. They believe that by converting to another religion you are going to suffer in hell for all eternity, so why not make it a crime to convert? (this is from their p.o.v. not mine.) Oh, the book is called "small gods" not "small worlds"... and the main message is that there is a heirachal organization that springs around a religion, that slowly is used only as a means of power (instead of spreading the message) and before long the organization is more important than the message, the message suffers, and before long all you have left out a million adherents to a religion is one true believer (because in the book he's too simple to think he's being lied too)... That isn't like Islam at all. Islam isn't a monolithic religion like roman catholicism, it's more of a bunch of franchises, like mcdonalds, or evangelical christianity... oh, and a state-actor (the school) should not have the right to trample someone's religious beliefs. It's like asking jews not to wear Yamukas, or jew-locks (what are those curls called anyways), or like asking christians not to wear a cross (although crosses aren't a requriement for the religion)
Kids in our schools aren't allowed to wear crosses as they are counted as jewellery. Not allowed. Religion should be kept out of school.
by the teachers...agreed. However, that is a horrific abuse of freedom if kids cannot wear a cross(or a whatever your religion wears). thats...unspeakable. Is that all schools in the UK? or just yours?
why is it unspeakable? If you don't wear a cross to school are you suddenly going to be attacked by vampires? If you don't wear a head scarf in school are you going to be struck down by lightning. People are far too scared of their religions. If God is this great being then why in every religion are people afraid of what power (s)he has. If God is as good as they say (s)he is then not wearing a cross is not going to mean you will end up in a burning pit of hell (or Milton Keynes as I like to call it). Schools in the UK have waned a bit on the headscarf bit but have stopped short on the full islamic dress code. As for crosses, they are not allowed because they are jewellery. Over here in the last census over 10000 people put down their religion was Jedi Knight. This makes it an official religion (or should do). Should kids be able to go to school with light sabers?
Why is it unspeakable? Government is interfering with the freedom of religion. I dont see what your point is about the lightning or vampires. You won't get hit by lightning if government revokes your freedom of speech either...should we allow that? and a yarmulka/headscarves are hats...which are banned in many places...you make an exception because they are for religion. Samething with the cross being jewellery. It gets special protection because of its religious connotations. What harm does a small cross dangling under someones shirt do? Lightsabers? Well when they invent them. Yes, as long as they are disabled so they cant be used as a weapon. Safety first.
I don't make any allowances for these. Our government does but I don't. I as a non believer in any religion have to follow the rules and wear a uniform but someone can say "God tells me I have to wear this headscarve or cross so I'm going to" is allowed to wear what they want. Imaginery voices again. Schizos.
Well, there it is. You may not believe...but dont shit on the rights of others to believe what they want. Dont force your beliefs on others. Especially if you ever plan to complain about religious people forcing their religion on you.
I always thought that freedom of religion and freedom of speech are inseperable. Without one, you logically can't have the other. It's interesting to note that most societies had some form or another of head covering... i t'ink it's so you don't judge someone's opinions based around whether they are bald or not (like the barristers and judges in england and their powder wigs, or birkas/turbans).
right on, and just for common knowledge for your questions posed earlier, we are aloud to wear crosses, and most schools allow all religious attire. it was just a recent issue with one school. i know for definate my school did, because there would be uproar because we had a high popluation of islamic students. this is just one particular case in which i do not agree with the school, but i completely against school uniform which we ahve across most of the UK.
Islam has nothing good to show for its existance to date. It was and is a political movement and not a religion. It embraces empire, wants to dictate law and advocates violence. TOtally UN cool man...
government controls the schools--they are just enforcing the law in keeping gov.and religion and it's symbals out of school.
government should not interfere in religion or education, let's people freely choose their own faith.
That sounds like a good idea, the government should issue everyone uniforms based on what state they live in. A different color for a different state! That would really help everything out. Interstate crimes could easliy be tracked down. Nobody would get made fun of because of poverty. And even better... no more self expression!
yes i agree with gary.newelluk and monolith above, uniforms emphasize on equality of rich and poor, indiscrimination, and more important: IDENTITY, student would identify themselves with one school and fight for the glory and dignity of all student in a particular school as a whole.
On the other hand you would be creating an 'us vs. them' mentality that when carried out to extremes (like schools with football rivalries) can and does result in violence. Also, there are people (myself included) who would do anything to destroy the high school they were in, so they might be more inclined to commit antisocial behavior.
