IDEA 39
Dealing with Blasphemy (B)
In things that prejudice the tranquillity or security of the state, secret actions are subject to human jurisdiction. But in those which offend the Deity, where there is no public act, there can be no criminal matter, the whole passes between man and God, who knows the measure and time of His vengeance. … This mischief [of inquiring into hidden sacrileges] arises from a notion which some people have entertained of revenging the cause of the Deity. [Baron de Montesquieu. The Spirit of Laws, Book XII, Chapter 4]
Following on from last week’s post, I provide now a few examples from wikipedia.org/wiki/Blasphemy_law on what Muslim countries consider blasphemous and how they deal with such cases.
Article 98(f) of the Egyptian Penal Code, as amended by Law 147/2006 states the penalty for blasphemy and similar crimes: Confinement for a period of not less than six months and not exceeding five years, or a fine of not less than five hundred pounds and not exceeding one thousand pounds shall be the penalty inflicted on whoever makes use of religion in propagating, either by words, in writing, or in any other means, extreme ideas for the purpose of inciting strife, ridiculing or insulting a heavenly religion or a sect following it, or damaging national unity.
Article 156(a) of Indonesia’s Criminal Code forbids anyone from deliberately, in public, expressing feelings of hostility, hatred, or contempt against religions with the purpose of preventing others from adhering to any religion, and forbids anyone from disgracing a religion. The penalty for violating Article 156(a) is a maximum of five years of imprisonment.
An Islamic theocracy, Iran derives its law against blasphemy from Sharia. The law against blasphemy complements laws against criticizing the Islamic government, insulting Islam, and publishing materials that deviate from Islamic standards.
Article 6 of Kuwait’s cybercrime laws mention a punishment of up to 12 months in prison and a 20,000 KWD (US$66,000) fine for insulting “God, the Holy Quran, Prophets, the Noble Companions of Prophet Muhammad, Wives of the Prophet, or persons who are part of the Prophet’s family.”
The crime of apostasy is defined in section IV (entitled Act of Indecency toward Islam) of the Mauritanian Penal Code, established under the order of 9 July 1983. Article 306, paragraph 1 of the criminal code indicates, “Every Muslim guilty of the crime of apostasy, either by word or by action of apparent or obvious, will be invited to repent within three days.”
More people are on death row or serving life sentences for blasphemy in Pakistan than in any other country in the world. The anti-blasphemy laws in Pakistan are quite complicated. Offenders may be vigorously prosecuted. Chapter XV of the Pakistan Penal Code deals with “offences relating to religion”: §295. Injuring or defiling [a] place of worship, with intent to insult the religion of any class. §295-A. Deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting Its religion or religious beliefs. §295-B. Defiling, etc., of [the] Holy Qur’an. §295-C. Use of derogatory remarks, etc., in respect of the Holy Prophet. §296. Disturbing [a] religious assembly. §297. Trespassing on burial places, etc. §298. Uttering words, etc., with deliberate intent to wound religious feelings. §298-A. Use of derogatory remarks, etc., in respect of holy personages. §298-B. Misuse of epithets, descriptions and titles, etc., reserved for certain holy personages or places. §298-C. Person of the Qadiani group, etc., calling himself a Muslim or preaching or propagating his faith: There is a death penalty for blasphemy in Pakistan (only under section 295 c). Those prosecuted are usually minorities such as Ahmadiyya and Christians but it seems that they are also increasingly other Muslims. Persons accused of blasphemy as well as police, lawyers, and judges have been subject to harassment, threats, attacks, and murders when blasphemy is the issue.
In Sudan, in May 2005, the authorities arrested Mohammed Taha Mohammed Ahmed, and charged him with violating section 125. Ahmed was the editor-in-chief of a daily newspaper Al-Wifaq. The paper had published an article about a 500-year-old Islamic manuscript which says the real name of Mohammed’s father was not Abdallah but Abdel Lat, or Slave of Lat, an idol of the pre-Islamic era. A court fined Al-Wifaq eight million Sudanese pounds—the paper was shut down for three months—but acquitted Ahmed. Ahmed was found decapitated in September 2006.
In Turkiye, on 1 June 2012, pianist Fazil Say came under investigation by the Istanbul Prosecutor’s Office over statements made on Twitter, declaring himself an atheist and retweeting a message poking fun at the Islamic conception of paradise. On 15 April 2013, Say was sentenced to 10 months in jail, reduced from 12 months for good behavior in court. The sentence was suspended, meaning he was allowed to move freely provided he did not repeat the offence in the next five years. On appeal, Turkiye’s Supreme Court of Appeals reversed the conviction on 26 October 2015, ruling that Say’s Twitter posts fell within the bounds of freedom of thought and freedom of expression.
Download the PDF version for free at Ideas Inspired by the Qur’ān – Mont Redmond complete version, or purchase a hard copy at Ideas Inspired by the Qur’an: Redmond, Mont: 9781738842506: Books – Amazo
