Tunisia passes progressive constitution

.... "Egyptian constitutional politics has been a winner-take-all game; Tunisian politics has been more consensual — though consensus has been difficult to achieve," said Nathan Brown, an expert on Egyptian law at George Washington University. "The Tunisian experience is one that is more likely to give birth to a functioning democracy."

The overthrow of the Muslim Brotherhood government in Egypt by the military in July and subsequent violent repression was a stern warning to Tunisia, said Yahyaoui of Bawsala, and it helped the various parties find a compromise.

"The only people who won something out of what happened in Egypt was Tunisia," she said. "Ennahda saw what happened to the Brotherhood and they didn't want to see the same scenario in Tunisia." [The Associated Press] Read more

34% of women say men are justified in hitting wives if they argue back: Pakistan survey

.... The most widely accepted reason for wife beating among women in Pakistan is arguing with the husband (34%). 28% of women agree that a husband is justified in beating his wife if she neglects her in-laws and 18% agreed that a husband is justified in beating his wife if she burns the food.

Similar to the pattern among women, men are least likely to agree that burning the food is a valid reason for wife beating.

The majority of men (19.8%) felt that the most justified reason for beating their wife was the wife going out without telling him.

They also show similar levels of support for the other five reasons (16-20%), although at much lower levels than among women. [The Express Tribune] Read more

Muslims Vote Labour, Anglicans Are Tories, New Study Into Religion And Politics Concludes

Catholics are left wing, Anglicans are Tories and the Muslim vote is 'Labour's to lose', according to a new poll.

Think tank Theos claims to have carried out the first in-depth analysis into the relationship between religion and politics in Britain.

Catholics were found to be the most left-wing of Christian groups and more pro-welfare than Anglicans, who were said to be more authoritarian in their political values.

Non-religious people are most consistently libertarian, taking a strong line against censorship and are sceptical about management and the fair distribution of wealth. [The Huffington Post UK] Read more

Egypt's censorship of comedian Bassem Youssef sends 'wrong message'

.... According to Youssef himself, the show's cancellation was not a direct order by the army-backed government that was installed after Morsi's overthrow last July, but the product of an environment in which dissent is strongly discouraged.

"You can always implement some sort of a mood, without actually giving direct orders," Youssef said in an interview with the Observer. "It is about creating a certain atmosphere that would make this acceptable or doable, and I think it reflects badly on everybody. Even if the people in authority do not do it, it reflects badly on the freedom of speech in Egypt." [The Guardian] Read more

Extremist religion is at root of 21st-century wars, says Tony Blair

.... On Saturday, Jonathan Eyal, the international director of the Royal United Services Institute, took issue with Blair's analysis and any implication that western governments were not informed before invading Iraq of the sectarian violence that was likely to be stirred up.

"Predicting when religious differences may descend into outright violence is never easy," he said. "But it's just fallacious to claim that those who ordered and led the 2003 Iraq war lacked access to the necessary information about the complexities of that country's ethnic and religious divisions, or could have ever assumed that they could complete their intervention without rekindling religious bloodshed."

He added: "It was not the lack of sufficient knowledge about history and religion which led to the Iraqi debacle, but the lack of restraint among politicians who had all the relevant information at their fingertips." [The Guardian] Read more

Why the great Sunni-Shia conflict is getting ever closer to the surface

.... The way in which what is going on in the Middle East has become a religious war has long been obvious. Just take this radio exchange, caught at the ground level earlier this month, between two foreign fighters in Syria, the first from al-Qa’eda’s Islamic State in Iraq and Syria [ISIS], the second from the Free Syrian army [FSA].

‘You apostate infidels,’ says the first. ‘We’ve declared you to be “apostates”, you heretics. You don’t know Allah or His Prophet, you creature. What kind of Islam do you follow?’

To which the FSA fighter responds, ‘Why did you come here? Go fight Israel, brother.’ Only to be told, ‘Fighting apostates like you people takes precedence over fighting the Jews and the Christians. All imams concur on that.’ [The Spectator] Read more

Maajid Nawaz: enlightened liberalism swamped by a tide of intolerant Muslims

His Grace reported on this a few days ago: Petition to deselect LibDem candidate Maajid Nawaz for tweeting Jesus and Mo cartoon. He said then: "To be deselected by a political party and barred from standing for Parliament merely for articulating a religious opinion or supporting a particular theological doctrine is an offence to all that is reasonable, honourable and just," and readers and communicants were encouraged to sign the petition supporting Mr Nawaz.

On that day, the two petitions stood at 5,476 in favour of deslecting him, and only 1,150 supporting his right to a) not be offended by a cartoon; b) to say so; and c) to tweet so, with a link to the Jesus and Mo cartoon. Is Parliament really to be purged of those who hold or express religious views to which a few others may object? [Archbishop Cranmer] Read more

The Liberal Democrats face a true test of liberty

The real scandal in the Liberal Democrats is not leading the news. Extremists are menacing the career and life of a Liberal Democrat politician and respectable society hardly considers these authentically scandalous threats to be a scandal at all. The scandal, in short, is that there is no scandal.

.... The campaign against him is now a test for the Liberal Democrat leadership. It should defend freedom of speech in all cases except when speakers espouse violence. If Clegg cannot say that a polite protest against the cowardice of the BBC does not justify death threats, he will lose the right to call himself a liberal.

I am glad to say his local party in Hampstead and Kilburn has backed Nawaz already. I hope that come the next election all Hampstead voters of all persuasions will consider voting for him.

Some arguments matter more than party politics. The right of democratic representatives and democratic publics to speak their minds without fear of retribution is one of them. [Guardian Cif] Read more

Pakistani court condemns mentally ill Briton to death for blasphemy

Pakistan has handed a death sentence for blasphemy to a 69-year-old Briton with a history of mental illness, even though his lawyers were barred from the courtroom partway through the trial, the lawyers said on Friday.

Accusations of blasphemy are surging in Pakistan, according to an Islamabad-based think-tank, the Center for Research and Security Studies. Many analysts see the claims as score-settling or a front for property grabs.

The charges are hard to fight because the law does not define what is blasphemous and presenting the evidence can sometimes itself be considered a fresh infringement.

Blasphemy is punishable by death in Muslim-majority Pakistan. [Reuters - FaithWorld] Read more

Blasphemy case: Briton in Pakistan sentenced to death

A court in the Pakistani city of Rawalpindi has sentenced a 70-year-old British man to death after convicting him of blasphemy.

Muhammad Asghar was arrested in 2010 after writing letters to various people claiming to be a prophet, reports say.

His lawyers argued for leniency, saying he has a history of mental illness, but this was rejected by a medical panel.

Pakistan's controversial blasphemy laws carry a potential death sentence for anyone deemed to have insulted Islam. [BBC] Read more

The world's most ancient Christian communities are being destroyed

Like many Coptic Christians in Egypt, Ayman Nabil Labib had a tattoo of the cross on his wrist. And like 17-year-old men everywhere, he could be assertive about his identity. But in 2011, after Egypt's revolution, that kind of assertiveness could mean trouble.

Ayman's Arabic-language teacher told him to cover his tattoo in class. Instead of complying, the young man defiantly pulled out the cross that hung around his neck, making it visible. His teacher flew into a rage and began choking him, goading the young man's Muslim classmates by saying, "What are you going to do with him?"

Ayman's classmates then beat him to death. False statements were given to police, and two boys were taken into custody only after Ayman's terror-stricken family spoke out.

Ayman's suffering is not an isolated case in Egypt or the region. [THE WEEK] Read more

Minister urges agenda change for German Islam Conference

Germany's interior minister has criticized the German Islam Conference for focusing too much on Islamophobia.

.... De Maiziere said in an interview on Wednesday with the German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung that he did not think the conference should be repeated after criticising the event. He said, instead of focusing on racism and Islamophobia, it should focus on security concerns and Islamist extremism.

De Maiziere said he will invite Islamic organizations for a pre-interview, to discuss their expectation from the conference. He stated "if we decide to display another conference, we don’t need to title it as “Islam Conference." He added “We should discuss how we can get good outcome from the conference, not who is going to attend." [World Bulletin] Read more

Hérouxville’s André Drouin delivers warning at charter hearings

His message was bluntly worded and direct: get moving on ridding Quebec of religious accommodations or face the perils other countries have.

André Drouin, the former Hérouxville city councillor who became an international figure in his battle for secularism, made an appearance Wednesday at the committee examining Bill 60.

He has not changed a bit.

Off the top, the veteran of several commissions on the issue including Bouchard-Taylor put MNAs of all stripes in their place, saying he's heard all the arguments — pro and con — before.

"There are no more guidelines today then there were seven years ago," Drouin, wearing his trademark checkered shirted, told a hushed room.

"We are spinning in circles and the more we spin the deeper the hole gets and we can no longer get out. It's not too late. It's not too deep.

"I have the impression our elected officials are scared to take a stand, to say, my man or woman, put your beliefs aside for six or eight hours a day and the other seven hours you can practise. [MONTREAL GAZETTE] Read more

Assembly Floor Erupts Over Constitution Article on Religion

.... Article 6, as passed originally, says the “state protects religion, guarantees freedom of belief and conscience and religious practices, protects sanctities, and ensures the neutrality of mosques and places of worship from partisan instrumentalisation.” (Click for a full English translation of the draft constitution)

The text was then amended, however, on January 5 after a dispute between leftist member Monji Rahoui and Islamist member Habib Ellouz, with the latter calling Rahoui an “enemy of Islam” while on a radio program.

Rahoui claimed the remark caused him to receive death threats. The assembly then amended Article 6 to include a ban on takfir, or accusing someone of being a nonbeliever, and as well as a ban on “inciting violence.” [Tunisia Live] Read more

Muslim defendant must remove veil to give evidence, jury hears

A Muslim woman accused of witness intimidation has been ordered by a judge to remove her veil if she chooses to give evidence.

Rebekah Dawson, 22, attended the start of her trial at Blackfriars Crown Court in London on Wednesday wearing a full-face veil.

Judge Peter Murphy warned the jury hearing the case that it was “quite wrong” to be prejudiced against anybody because of their expression of religious faith.

He said Ms Dawson was “fully entitled” to dress as she chose and warned them to put aside any personal feelings they had about her attire.

However, he told jurors that he had ruled that she must remove her veil if she chooses to give evidence. [The Telegraph] Read more

Warsi sounds warning over persecution of Christians in Middle East saying it has become a 'global crisis'

Minister for Faith Baroness Warsi described ‘a rising tide’ in attacks on Christians in the war-torn regions of Egypt, Iraq and Syria where they often become ‘scapegoats’ for events taking place thousands of miles away.

Warsi, a mother of five and the daughter of Pakistani immigrants, pointed out that Christian minorities are threatened by Muslim majorities in the very places that gave rise to Christianity. [Daily Mail] Read more

Judge warns jury of wrongful prejudice over defendant's Muslim face veil

.... He added: "It would be quite wrong to be prejudiced against anybody because of their expression of their religious faith. It is very important you understand that."

He continued later: "I emphasise that Rebekah Dawson is fully entitled to dress in any way she chooses. If you have any feelings about that put them aside because they have nothing to do with the case."

Murphy was speaking as he upheld a ruling he gave last September that Dawson could stand trial wearing a full face veil but had to remove it while giving evidence. [The Guardian] Read more

The Illiberal Democrats

There is plenty of material which one should be free to share, but which might be said to cause gratuitous or unnecessary offence. But Maajid Nawaz was making an important point about censorship and blasphemy taboos – and the Lib Dems’ response helps illustrate why that point needed to be made.

In some instances one might retweet genuinely aggressive satire in order to make a free speech point – in the wake of death threats for example. But Jesus and Mo really should not be seen as something which has to be hedged round with such caution and anxiety. [Harry’s Place] Read more

In defence of Maajid Nawaz, blasphemy and (funny) cartoons of Mohammed

I've been a fan of the webcomic Jesus and Mo for years. The idea is a simple one: the two religious figureheads J Christ and Mohammed share a house and discuss matters of religious philosophy, often in arguments with a wise atheist barmaid at their local. It's funnier than I've made that sound.

It is, of course, irreligious and arguably blasphemous. (In its very first edition or episode or whatever you call it, Mo points out that it's forbidden to depict him pictorially. Jesus asks what he's doing in a cartoon, reasonably enough, and Mo claims he's a body double.) It's also very clever, informed by philosophical and religious argument, and – as mentioned – funny. [The Telegraph] Read more

Muslim Activists Round On Lib Dem Candidate Maajid Nawaz

The Muslim director of a think-tank credited with Tommy Robinson's departure from the EDL has received "credible" death threats after tweeting a cartoon of the Prophet Muhammed.

British Muslim campaigners have now told HuffPost UK they fear a split in the community over Maajid Nawaz's Quilliam Foundation's endorsement of the ex-EDL leader's genuine 'conversion' from anti-Islam activity.

The row has spiralled since last week when Nawaz tweeted a cartoon from 'Jesus and Mo' series, with the caption: "This is not offensive & I'm sure God is greater than to feel threatened by it.” [The Huffington Post UK] Read more

Al-Qaeda-linked jihadists impose Islamic rules, ban music, shisha in Syrian province

An Al-Qaeda-linked group has issued new decrees restricting the personal freedoms of the Syrians in the areas under its control in Raqqa province. New laws prohibit music and smoking cigarettes and shisha. Violators will be “punished by sharia law.”

The Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (abbreviated as ISIS or ISIL) has issued four statements that decree new laws on Monday. The new laws come into force three days later, the group said, i.e. January 23.

Starting on that day, women are obliged to wear the niqab, or full face veil, and cover their hands with gloves. They will also not be allowed in public without a male guardian. Walking late at night will also be prohibited for the women of Raqqa, the first and only city to have fallen completely under the jihadist group’s control. [RT/TV-Novosti] Read more

Liberals clarify stance on charter: No niqabs, burkas or chadors for authority figures

.... Drainville described the Liberal position Tuesday as “convoluted, confused, complicated and incomprehensible.”

“The fundamentalists want an unreasonable, religious accommodation and we say, ‘Oh no, we are going to set guidelines for accommodations to avoid abuse.’

“The best way to fight fundamentalism is to adopt the Charter of Quebec Values,” the PQ minister said. “It is very, very clear because it states the state is non-religious, while the fundamentalists want a religious state.”

“Is there anyone in Quebec who thinks we have a religious state?” Couillard said in response. “No. We do not have a religious state in Quebec and we don’t want one.” [MONTREAL GAZETTE] Read more

'Racialising' Islam

At the end of December 2013, a host for Liberty GB radio (Liberty GB is a British political party) was charged by West Midlands Police (England) with "racially aggravated harassment." Tim Burton's supposed crime was a Twitter post in which he described Fiyaz Mughal (who runs an "anti-Islamophobia" website/organisation called Tell MAMA) as "a mendacious grievance-mongering taqiyya-artist"

Fiyaz Mughal's (or Tell MAMA's) latest claim (as of the 14th of January) is that Tim Burton has also been guilty of "racialising Muslims."

Now why did Tim Burton describe Fiyaz Mughal as a "a mendacious grievance-mongering taqiyya-artist"? He did so because it was revealed that Mughal had been deceiving the public about nonexistent "hate crimes" against Muslims (as first revealed by Telegraph journalist Andrew Gilligan).

More specifically, Tell MAMA had published misleading statistics on "anti-Muslim incidents" in the wake of the Islamic murder of soldier Lee Rigby. In terms of detail, Mughal was publicly criticized by the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) and the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) [American Thinker] Read more

Petition to deselect LibDem candidate Maajid Nawaz for tweeting Jesus and Mo cartoon

Is this cartoon offensive?

The BBC thinks so. On their Sunday morning programme The Big Questions on 12th January, the producers opted not to display it to viewers even though the Jesus and Mo satirical comic strip was the very topic of debate.

By doing so, they chose to manifest and perpetuate a certain hyper-sensitivity to an imagined sharia compliance with which very few British Muslims actually accord, let alone the vast majority of non-Muslims.

By censoring this innocuous image, the BBC is inculcating the whole nation with the belief that depictions of Mohammed are haram - forbidden - and that everyone - people of all faiths and none - must respect and obey this precept. [Archbishop Cranmer] Read more

UK Islamic group condemns website featuring cartoons of Prophet Mohamed and Jesus

One of the most influential Islamic organisations in the UK has slammed a website that publishes cartoons featuring Prophet Mohamed and Jesus.

The website, Jesus and Mo, features a weekly comic strip in which the two prophets debate and joke about the central tenets of Islam and Christianity.

The Muslim Association of Britain (MAB) published a statement saying that the images were "extremely offensive to believers" of the two faiths and "potentially inflammatory," and urged the website's operators to take down the comics at once. [Ahram Online] Read more