Recently in Zanzibar Category

Not that Muslims have any desire to place mosques on sites that are important to non-Muslims that jihadis have targeted. Oh, no. That never happens. (And certainly not at Ground Zero, you greasy Islamophobe, you.) "Zanzibar Muslims, Officials Stop Church Building, Erect Mosque," from Compass Direct News, August 6 (thanks to all who sent this in):

NAIROBI, Kenya, August 6 (CDN) -- On an island off the coast of East Africa where the local government limits the ability of Christians to obtain land, officials in one town have colluded with area Muslims to erect a mosque in place of a planned church building.

On the Tanzanian island of Zanzibar, Pastor Paulo Kamole Masegi of the Evangelistic Assemblies of God had purchased land in April 2007 for a church building in Mwanyanya-Mtoni, and by November of that year he had built a house that served as a temporary worship center, he said.

Masegi intended for the house to serve eventually as his family's home within the church compound, but on Nov. 11, 2007, his congregation began to worship there.

Soon area Muslim residents objected, saying they didn't like seeing the church in the area, said Pastor Lucian Mgaywa of the Church of God in Tanzania.

"This was the beginning of the church's tribulations," Pastor Mgaywa said.

In August 2009, local Muslims began to build a mosque just three feet away from the church plot, Pastor Mgaywa said. In November 2009, Pastor Masegi began building a permanent church structure. Angry Muslims invaded the compound and destroyed the structure's foundation, the pastors said.

Church leaders reported the destruction to police, who took no action - and also refused to release the crime report for court purposes, Pastor Masegi said. When he would inquire about the case, he said, the station head would inform him that the district police chief had the crime report and therefore it was not available.

"So it's not possible to take the file to the court, because doing so would amount to defending Christianity," the station police chief told him, according to Pastor Masegi.

With the district police chief sealing off any possibility of a court hearing, the church was unable to proceed with plans for building a permanent structure. In the meantime, construction of a mosque was well underway. It was completed by the end of December 2009....

Memo to gay rights activists who compare opponents of gay marriage to the Taliban: maybe it's time to rein in your rhetoric. From The Guardian, with thanks to Teri:

A law banning gay sex has come into effect in Zanzibar, with homosexual men threatened with 25-year jail terms and lesbians facing seven-year sentences.

"This is what we have been aspiring for. If the government takes such steps, the country will really move ahead," said Sheikh Muhammed Said, a local Islamic leader.

The law was brought into effect by President Amani Karume's signature last week, the attorney general's office said. Parliament passed the bill in April.

The islands, a semi-autonomous part of Tanzania, are largely Muslim.

Travel agencies that specialise in trips for gays and lesbians have threatened to boycott Zanzibar.

I think they would be wise to do so, if they value the health and freedom of their clients.

From Reuters, with thanks to FreedomNowNews:

A spate of weekend bombings on Zanzibar, which hosted visiting German President Johannes Rau on Monday, hit the homes of local political and religious leaders and a restaurant being used by Western diplomats, police said.

There were no casualties from the homemade bomb blasts at the house of Zubeir Ali Maulid, a cabinet minister in the Tanzanian semi-autonomous island's government, and the home of Zanzibar's Mufti and top Islamic leader, Harith bin Khelef, said police spokesman George Kizuguto.

A grenade hurled at the Mercury restaurant landed on the dinner table of a British diplomat on Saturday evening, but failed to go off. An American diplomat and about 25 foreigners were also dining in the restaurant at the time, police said.

Rau, who is on a tour of Africa, is making a one-day visit to the Indian Ocean island of one million people to meet government leaders, welfare groups and visit historical sites.

Police said they suspected the Society for Islamic Awareness (UAMSHO), a religious movement which has been at loggerheads with the government recently, was behind the weekend explosions.

UAMSHO has been angry with the Tanzanian government since it appointed Khelef as Mufti over a religious leader who had been chosen by the islanders. The weekend blasts followed bomb attacks last week on a church, a school bus and a number of electric transformers.

Kizuguto said five Muslim leaders held over last week's attacks would be charged in court on Monday.

"We are still investigating those involved in the weekend activities," he said.

In January 2002, four people were seriously injured on Zanzibar when suspected Islamic militants attacked bars and stores selling alcohol with firebombs.