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PeteWaldo
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Maldives: Man Attacked Threatened with Death for Freedom of Conscience aka "Apostasy"
But what are Muslims like in the exact opposite of a "power vacuum", in which a country even mandates that all of its citizens be Muslims, by its constitution? Why is it we can find the "cruelest of people" in a place like that?
Maldives: Man Attacked, Threatened with Death, for Freedom of Conscience
By R.E.A.L. Organization •
In the Muslim-majority nation of Maldives, a man stunned an audience during questions and answers period in a lecture given by an Islamic cleric, by stating that he had chosen freedom of conscience not to follow Islam. The man, Mohamed Nazim, was promptly attacked, taken into custody, and has been threatened with death and beheading, or other punishments for choosing his freedom of conscience. Maldives media are reporting that it is the first time in many hundreds of years that a Maldivian has publicly renounced Islam, since Sultan King Hassan IX converted to Christianity in 1552 and was deposed.
The Maldives constitution mandates that all citizens of Maldives must be Muslims. A December 2009 study showed the Maldives (with a 99 percent literacy rate) to be in the top 5 percent of the worst nations for religious freedom. It is a nation that has been building its criminal law based on Sharia law, and whose Parliament bans non-Islamic houses of worship. There have been repeated reports on Maldives government publicly whipping of women and the Maldives is in the bottom rankings of nations with a global gender gap.
The Maldives is also a nation that, on May 13, 2010, was elected to be part of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC).
The Haveeru newspaper reported that Mohamed Nazim came up to ask a question of Islamic cleric Zakir Naik, stating “Dr Zakir Naik. I am a Maldivian. I am still struggling to believe in religion. That is why I just came to the front of this row. I was born a Maldivian. My parents taught me the religion of Islam. They are good practitioners, actually. I read a lot of books. I have read the translation of Quran. Yet, I still do not believe in a religion. So what do you say, [about] my verdict in Islam?”
Mohamed Nazim (left/standing), who declared his atheist status to the public, questions Dr Zakir Naik during the Q&A session. (Photo: Maldives Haveeru Newspaper)
Islamic cleric Zakir Naik asked “are you a Muslim?” and Mohamed Nazim replied “I am not.” Zakir Naik has a long history of calling for the death penalty for “apostates” in both Muslim majority nations and other parts of the world.
The Haveeru newspaper reported that Zakir Naik responded by stating: “according to Prophetic traditions, every child is born as a Muslim and that a Muslim is one who submits his/her will to God. In Islam, death penalty should not necessarily be evoked on every person who leaves Islam, but to those who propagate the non-Islamic faith and speak against Islam, he added.”
The Haveeru newspaper report states that his question “sparked comments of hatred from an angry crowd of around 11,000 with many calling to kill him and attack him, while Naik was answering the question. Several people rushed towards Nazim, who was sitting at a back row after moving away from the microphone, as an official of the Islamic Ministry tried to escort him out. Police, however, came between Nazim and the crowd and escorted him into custody.” The Haveeru newspaper report also stated that a crowed gathered outside the police station and demanded that Mohamed Nazim be handed over to the crowd. The Haveeru newspaper report stated that “They shouted anti-atheism slogans and called for Nazim’s beheading.”
In a separate report, the Haveeru newspaper stated that Maldives Islamic Ministry would arrange for religious “counseling” for Mohamed Nazim while he is in custody.
Another report by the Haveeru newspaper stated how Maldives lawyers felt that Mohamed Nazim deserved such counseling before receiving the death penalty or other punishments, stating that: “While some local lawyers claim Nazim is eligible for punishment both by Maldives laws and Islamic Shari’a, others argue only Shari’a could be evoked on him. Mohamed Ibrahim Waheed, a defense lawyer said Nazim must first be counseled giving him the chance to repent before considering capital punishment. ‘First, he should be counseled. If he does not take the advice and repent, the penalty stated in Shari’a should be evoked on him. According to Shari’a, the punishment for apostasy is death,’ he said. Waheed further argued that Nazim could be charged under the Religious Unity Act, for disrupting the religious unity of the country. A state prosecutor who wished to remain anonymous said Nazim could be prosecuted for legal disobedience.”
The Maldives newspaper Minivan News reports that a Maldives Islamic group is calling for the death of Mohamed Nazim. Minivan News reports that “The Islamic Foundation has called for self-declared apostate Mohamed Nazim to be stripped of his citizenship and sentenced to death if he does not repent and return to Islam…Today the Islamic Foundation of the Maldives issued a press statement calling on judges to give Nazim the opportunity to repent ‘and if he does not, then sentence him to death as Islamic law and Maldivian law agree.’"
Much more at the link:
Maldives: Man Attacked, Threatened with Death, for Freedom of Conscience :: Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.)
So Jamal regarding the - to borrow your phrasing "cruelest of people" - that wanted to behead poor Mohamed Nazim for simply not wanting to believe in Muhammad (indeed would have likely torn him to pieces if he had been handed over to the angry mob), wouldn't you agree that all of those people that wanted to murder poor Mohamed are pure moral reprobates that are devoid conscience? That such are devoid of civility or humanity?
That all of those that would engage in the murder of others, simply for leaving Islam, are necessarily filled with the spirit of Satan, and are thus doing Satan's bidding?
What about "Dr" Zakir Naik, the famous Greek Sophist styled entertainer, and champion of the death penalty for "apostasy". Would it be a stretch to suggest he is the very embodiment of pure evil, for advancing that mob's interests in the cold-blooded murder of innocents for "apostasy", in the name of his "Allah"?
Do you believe that it is a good and loving God that is guiding such people, or Satan?
But what are Muslims like in the exact opposite of a "power vacuum", in which a country even mandates that all of its citizens be Muslims, by its constitution? Why is it we can find the "cruelest of people" in a place like that?
Maldives: Man Attacked, Threatened with Death, for Freedom of Conscience
By R.E.A.L. Organization •
In the Muslim-majority nation of Maldives, a man stunned an audience during questions and answers period in a lecture given by an Islamic cleric, by stating that he had chosen freedom of conscience not to follow Islam. The man, Mohamed Nazim, was promptly attacked, taken into custody, and has been threatened with death and beheading, or other punishments for choosing his freedom of conscience. Maldives media are reporting that it is the first time in many hundreds of years that a Maldivian has publicly renounced Islam, since Sultan King Hassan IX converted to Christianity in 1552 and was deposed.
The Maldives constitution mandates that all citizens of Maldives must be Muslims. A December 2009 study showed the Maldives (with a 99 percent literacy rate) to be in the top 5 percent of the worst nations for religious freedom. It is a nation that has been building its criminal law based on Sharia law, and whose Parliament bans non-Islamic houses of worship. There have been repeated reports on Maldives government publicly whipping of women and the Maldives is in the bottom rankings of nations with a global gender gap.
The Maldives is also a nation that, on May 13, 2010, was elected to be part of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC).
The Haveeru newspaper reported that Mohamed Nazim came up to ask a question of Islamic cleric Zakir Naik, stating “Dr Zakir Naik. I am a Maldivian. I am still struggling to believe in religion. That is why I just came to the front of this row. I was born a Maldivian. My parents taught me the religion of Islam. They are good practitioners, actually. I read a lot of books. I have read the translation of Quran. Yet, I still do not believe in a religion. So what do you say, [about] my verdict in Islam?”
Mohamed Nazim (left/standing), who declared his atheist status to the public, questions Dr Zakir Naik during the Q&A session. (Photo: Maldives Haveeru Newspaper)
Islamic cleric Zakir Naik asked “are you a Muslim?” and Mohamed Nazim replied “I am not.” Zakir Naik has a long history of calling for the death penalty for “apostates” in both Muslim majority nations and other parts of the world.
The Haveeru newspaper reported that Zakir Naik responded by stating: “according to Prophetic traditions, every child is born as a Muslim and that a Muslim is one who submits his/her will to God. In Islam, death penalty should not necessarily be evoked on every person who leaves Islam, but to those who propagate the non-Islamic faith and speak against Islam, he added.”
The Haveeru newspaper report states that his question “sparked comments of hatred from an angry crowd of around 11,000 with many calling to kill him and attack him, while Naik was answering the question. Several people rushed towards Nazim, who was sitting at a back row after moving away from the microphone, as an official of the Islamic Ministry tried to escort him out. Police, however, came between Nazim and the crowd and escorted him into custody.” The Haveeru newspaper report also stated that a crowed gathered outside the police station and demanded that Mohamed Nazim be handed over to the crowd. The Haveeru newspaper report stated that “They shouted anti-atheism slogans and called for Nazim’s beheading.”
In a separate report, the Haveeru newspaper stated that Maldives Islamic Ministry would arrange for religious “counseling” for Mohamed Nazim while he is in custody.
Another report by the Haveeru newspaper stated how Maldives lawyers felt that Mohamed Nazim deserved such counseling before receiving the death penalty or other punishments, stating that: “While some local lawyers claim Nazim is eligible for punishment both by Maldives laws and Islamic Shari’a, others argue only Shari’a could be evoked on him. Mohamed Ibrahim Waheed, a defense lawyer said Nazim must first be counseled giving him the chance to repent before considering capital punishment. ‘First, he should be counseled. If he does not take the advice and repent, the penalty stated in Shari’a should be evoked on him. According to Shari’a, the punishment for apostasy is death,’ he said. Waheed further argued that Nazim could be charged under the Religious Unity Act, for disrupting the religious unity of the country. A state prosecutor who wished to remain anonymous said Nazim could be prosecuted for legal disobedience.”
The Maldives newspaper Minivan News reports that a Maldives Islamic group is calling for the death of Mohamed Nazim. Minivan News reports that “The Islamic Foundation has called for self-declared apostate Mohamed Nazim to be stripped of his citizenship and sentenced to death if he does not repent and return to Islam…Today the Islamic Foundation of the Maldives issued a press statement calling on judges to give Nazim the opportunity to repent ‘and if he does not, then sentence him to death as Islamic law and Maldivian law agree.’"
Much more at the link:
Maldives: Man Attacked, Threatened with Death, for Freedom of Conscience :: Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.)
So Jamal regarding the - to borrow your phrasing "cruelest of people" - that wanted to behead poor Mohamed Nazim for simply not wanting to believe in Muhammad (indeed would have likely torn him to pieces if he had been handed over to the angry mob), wouldn't you agree that all of those people that wanted to murder poor Mohamed are pure moral reprobates that are devoid conscience? That such are devoid of civility or humanity?
That all of those that would engage in the murder of others, simply for leaving Islam, are necessarily filled with the spirit of Satan, and are thus doing Satan's bidding?
What about "Dr" Zakir Naik, the famous Greek Sophist styled entertainer, and champion of the death penalty for "apostasy". Would it be a stretch to suggest he is the very embodiment of pure evil, for advancing that mob's interests in the cold-blooded murder of innocents for "apostasy", in the name of his "Allah"?
Do you believe that it is a good and loving God that is guiding such people, or Satan?