"...Pressure from outside has embarrassed the Algerian government very much."
An update on this story. "Algeria - Christians acquitted in blasphemy case," from Compass Direct News, October 29:
ISTANBUL, October 29 (Compass Direct News) – A court in northwestern Algeria today acquitted three Christians charged with blaspheming Islam and threatening a member of their congregation who re-converted to Islam.
The acquittal was announced in a court at Ain El-Turck, 15 kilometers (nine miles) west of the coastal city of Oran. The defendants believe the judge’s decision to acquit was due to the spurious evidence used against them.
The acquittal also comes as part of a larger trend of the Algerian government bowing to negative international media attention and government condemnations of such cases, they said.
Defendant Youssef Ourahmane said that as a result, a recent government crackdown against evangelical Christians has eased off in recent months.
“We had noticed the last four or five months the government is trying to back down a little bit,” Ourahmane said. “I think the pressure on them has been strong, such as condemnations from the U.S. and foreign ministries from France, Italy, Switzerland, Austria and Spain. This pressure from outside has embarrassed the Algerian government very much.”
Algerian courts have handed several suspended sentences to local evangelicals in the last year under a recent presidential decree that prohibits proselytizing Muslims. No Christian, however, has served prison time on religious charges.
Ourahmane, Rachid Muhammad Essaghir, and a third man were charged in February with “blaspheming the name of the Prophet [Muhammad] and Islam” and threatening the life of a man who claimed to have converted to Christianity but who “returned” to Islam when his fundamentalist ties were exposed.
The first hearing of the three men took place on Oct. 21 in Ain El-Turck. A lawyer appointed by the Ministry of Religion also joined the hearing and surprised the defendants by supporting their plight.
The lawyer affirmed the rights of religious minorities such as Christians in Algeria. The Christians present said she would like the case to be closed.
A prosecutor in the case had sought three years of prison for the three men and a fine of 50,000 dinars (653 euros) for each.
Taking the stand last week, the three men were asked whether they had blasphemed Muhammad and threatened Shamouma Al-Aid, the convert and plaintiff. Al-Aid had professed Christianity from July 2004 through July 2006, when he attended a church near Oran. It was there that he met the Christians, against whom he later filed the blasphemy complaint.
Essaghir, an evangelist and church elder for a small community of Muslim converts to Christianity in Tiaret, has been one of the most targeted Christians in Algeria.
In the last year he has received three sentences, one for blasphemy and two for evangelism. Police stopped Essaghir and another man in June 2007 while transporting Christian literature. As a result they were convicted in absentia in November 2007 and given a two-year sentence and 5,000-euro fines. The Protestants requested a retrial, and the charges were dropped at a hearing in June.
Asked if he could explain why he and other Christians were under fire by Islamists, he told Compass that Muslims felt menaced by the existence of Christianity and its rise in Algeria.
“We are attacked because Muslims feel threatened by us,” said Essaghir. “There are many people who are coming to Christ.”
When the three accused Christians met Al-Aid, he claimed that his family was persecuting him, so they took him in to their church community. But in 2006 the Christians learned that Al-Aid in fact had links with Islamic fundamentalists.
After excommunicating Al-Aid, in October 2007 the three Christians were summoned by police when Al-Aid registered his complaint that they had insulted Muhammad and Islam and threatened his life.
“But the accusations against us are unfounded,” Essaghir told Compass last week by phone. “There is no proof, but we are being condemned because there is no justice.”
Ourahmane said that Al-Aid had shown the police text messages to support his claims, but that police said the number had not been registered with telecommunications services.
With their fresh acquittal, the three Christians could open a case against Al-Aid for bringing a case against them based on spurious evidence, according to Algerian law.
Instead, they want to offer their forgiveness, Ourahmane said.
“We have decided to forgive him and will communicate we are all ready to help him if he needs any help,” he said. “We are in touch with him through one of our team members, and if he is thirsty or hungry we are more than happy to help.”
I do not consider it blashemy to speak the truth about Muhammad and Islam, because they are not sacred entities - only the One True God is deserving of such a thing.
No one should hold someone who murders, steels, rapes children and lies "sacred", as Muhammad did; and Islam means "submission to allah", and since allah is a false god, then allah is not sacred either.
Blashemy does not apply to either of these blokes.
FRom the article:
“We had noticed the last four or five months the government is trying to back down a little bit,” Ourahmane said.
“I think the pressure on them has been strong, such as condemnations from the U.S. and foreign ministries from France, Italy, Switzerland, Austria and Spain. This pressure from outside has embarrassed the Algerian government very much.”
This is worth noting.
Remember Ali Sina, on the power of ridicule?
Kafir governments should pour it on, hot and strong, whenever Muslim entities violate the human rights of apostates and of non-Muslims.
The condemnation should be icily rational, relentless, and be seen to be informed by an understanding of (and obvious disdain for) all the myriad bizarre barbarities of sharia.
No more flattery and beatings-around-the-bush.
Besides words, I am sure that once we manage some Islamosavvy governments, we can come up with suitable Consequences that can be inflicted as necessary.
Yay! A good story! About time!
Today's news (Melbourne): The Age carried a story about two Nigerians, one a Moslem imam, the other a Christian pastor - who started the "Moslem-Christian Dialogue Centre in Nigeria. (Note which name comes first.)
Long story, blah blah blah, sorry, can't do links, but:
" 'There is more than one way to truth, and remamber what Jesus said about loving their neighbours,' " said the Christian pastor, James Wuye, referring to "Christian fundamentalists who think their religious path is the only truth." Imam Ashafa, the Moslem imam, the story went on, "has a similar message for Islamic extremists."
Well, that was neatly sidestepped. What could the "similar" message" be? Have I missed something? Are Moslems supposed to love people, I mean people including non-Moslems? Where is that in the Koran? Can anyone help me? If that is true then we can breathe again; we just have to make sure they KNOW that part...
Notice the responce of the Christians: following exactly, the teachings of the TRUE religion of peace
From above quote
With their fresh acquittal, the three Christians could open a case against Al-Aid for bringing a case against them based on spurious evidence, according to Algerian law.
Instead, they want to offer their forgiveness, Ourahmane said.
“We have decided to forgive him and will communicate we are all ready to help him if he needs any help,” he said. “We are in touch with him through one of our team members, and if he is thirsty or hungry we are more than happy to help.”
unquote
Romans 18 -21
18.If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.
19.Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay," says the Lord.
20.On the contrary: "If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head."
21.Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
If you turn on the lights, the roaches scatter.
The West should always put pressure on Islamic governments. It doesn't always work, but in this case it appears to have.
I hightly doubt the three will sue the other man. First they are guielty of the crime and they will lose the suit. The racist swizz have no right to critid any moslim country untril they clean they own house of the racist islamistphodic by banning the swizz people party.