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blasphemy
Indonesian Muslim Mobs Burn 3 Christian Churches in Central Java
By Mary Phillips-Sandy - AOL NewsBlasphemy or freedom of expression? A mob rampage in Central Java, a province of Indonesia, destroyed Christian churches and schools in the city of Temanggung, 250 miles east of Jakarta, the Herald Sun reported. Parked cars were also set on fire, and other buildings were damaged with stones. Police used tear gas to disperse the rioters. The violence began in a Temanggung courtroom, where Antonius Richmond Bawengan was being sentenced on blasphemy charges. He has been in custody since October and is accused of distributing materials that described two Islamic holy sites, the Black Stone in ...
Opinion: Preventing a Blasphemy Pandemic
By not in system - AOL NewsPandemics have two key components: a novel and infectious agent and an oblivious populace. This week's rally in which more than 40,000 Pakistani citizens declared their support for blasphemy laws makes one wonder: Do Pakistan's blasphemy laws have the potential to turn into a pandemic for the Islamic world? These laws sprung into the limelight in November 2010 when Asia Bibi, a Christian mother of five, was sentenced to death after she was accused of blaspheming Prophet Muhammad. The stakes were raised when Salman Taseer, the governor of Pakistan's largest province, Punjab, publicly called ...
Islamic Leader to Pope on Blasphemy: Mind Your Own Business
By Dana Kennedy - AOL NewsAn influential Islamic leader says Pope Benedict XVI should mind his own business after the pontiff called on Pakistan to repeal its anti-blasphemy laws. "The pope has given a statement today that has not only offended the 180 million Muslims in Pakistan, it has also hurt the sentiments of the entire Islamic world," said Hafiz Hussain Ahmed, a senior leader of Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam. "This is an interference in Pakistan's internal matters. ... We respect the pope, being head of Christians and their religion, but he should also refrain from interfering in Muslims' religious affairs," he said, ...
Suspected Killer of Pakistani Governor Spoke Openly of Plans
By Hugh Collins - AOL NewsThe police officer accused of assassinating Pakistani governor Salman Taseer reportedly spoke to other police about his plans and had previously been identified as a security risk. Malik Mumtaz Qadri is accused of shooting Taseer, governor of Punjab province, in Islamabad on Tuesday. Qadri, who was part of Taseer's security detail, said afterward that he was angered by Taseer's work to loosen the country's blasphemy laws, according to media reports. Police suspect 12 people, including six police officers, of abetting the crime by failing to stop the shooting. Qadri had previously been ...
Salman Taseer Buried Amid Tight Security in Pakistan
By Theunis Bates - AOL NewsThe assassinated governor of Pakistan's Punjab province, Salman Taseer, was buried in Lahore this morning under tight security, as the country came to terms with a killing that has exposed the dangers faced by Pakistanis who dare speak out against Islamic extremism. Family, friends and members of the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party -- including Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani -- gathered in the grounds of the colonial-era Governor's House to pay their last respects to the outspoken secular politician. Absent, however, were numerous religious party leaders and clerics, some of whom had ...
Salman Taseer Apparently Killed Because of Stance on Pakistan's Blasphemy Law
By Torie Bosch - AOL NewsThe governor of Pakistan's Punjab province, Salman Taseer, was assassinated Tuesday by one of his own security guards. The shooting took place in the Pakistani capital of Islamabad. When the shooter was arrested, he allegedly told the police that the reason he assassinated his boss was that Taseer supported changes to Pakistan's so-called "blasphemy law." Under this highly controversial statute, people who insult Islam can be sentenced to death. Want to know more about blasphemy laws? Surge Desk put together a little primer on them. Where are they found? Laws against insulting religion ...
Pakistani: Christian 'Wrongly Sentenced' to Die
By Deborah Hastings - AOL News
(Nov. 22) -- A Pakistani Christian mother sentenced to hang for committing blasphemy is not guilty and should be granted clemency by President Asif Ali Zardari, a top government official says. Minority Affairs Minister Shahbaz Bhatti stepped into an international controversy that already includes the pope and human rights organizations. Bhatti, who investigated the case at the president's behest, says his inquiry indicates that Asia Bibi, a 45-year-old mother of five, was falsely accused. "I am convinced that she is innocent and she was wrongly sentenced to death," Bhatti said, according to ...
'South Park' Bleeped Over Muhammad Episode
By David Gibson - Politics DailyAnyone who has ever watched an episode, or even just 10 seconds, of the biting satire of "South Park," the cartoon show for adults that airs on cable's Comedy Central channel, knows that its language is as crude as the animation, and that no topic is sacrosanct -- especially not religion. So it was no surprise when the creators of "South Park," Trey Parker and Matt Stone, included Islam among their targets in a two-part show to mark the program's 200th episode. ...
So This is Blasphemy? I'll be Darned
By David Gibson - Politics DailyThe Center for Inquiry (CFI), one of the leading organizations promoting secular humanism, stirred the pot a bit last September when it announced a "Blasphemy Contest" on the occasion of the first annual Blasphemy Day, on Sept. 30. Entrants were challenged "to create a phrase, poem, or statement that [is] considered blasphemous" in 20 words or less. "Blasphemy" is defined on the site as "the act of denying or scoffing at God or God's alleged attributes." The contest drew 1,000 entries from 650 participants and, as we reported, it drew fire from within the atheist community, including withering ...
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