Liam
Admin
Inscrit le : 19 Mar 2007
Messages : 31
Localisation : England
|  Sujet: Teddy bear row in Sudan  Lun Déc 03, 2007 6:45 pm | |
|  Teddy bear row- A contraversial subject
A British primary school teacher was charged yesterday in Sudan with "insulting religion and inciting hatred" after allowing children in her class to name a teddy bear Muhammad.
Sudan's ambassador to London was summoned to the Foreign Office last night as the state prosecutor said Gillian Gibbons, 54, from Liverpool, would appear before judges in Khartoum today. She has been held by police since Sunday, accused of insulting the prophet Muhammad. Despite her colleagues insisting it was an innocent mistake, Sudan's deputy justice minister confirmed yesterday that a charge had been laid. "The investigation has been completed and the Briton Gillian was charged under article 125 of the penal code," said Abdel Daim Zamrawi, speaking to the official Sudan news agency in Khartoum. "The punishment for this is jail, a fine and lashes. It is up to the judge to determine the sentence."
Timeline of events following
August= Gillian Gibbons arrives in Khartoum to teach at Unity high school
September= Asks her class to name a teddy bear; pupils choose the name Muhammad
November= Ministry of education officials inform school about a complaint over the toy's name
November 25= Gibbons arrested
November 27= Seven-year-old boy who suggested calling bear Muhammad backs Gibbons
November 28= Gibbons charged with "insulting religion"; Britain summons Sudan's ambassador for talks
November 29= Foreign Office expects an acquittal; instead Gibbons is found guilty and sentenced to 15 days in jail
Recently
Gillian Gibbons, the British teacher jailed for allowing her pupils to name a teddy bear Muhammad, left Sudan tonight hours after receiving a presidential pardon.
The two British Muslim peers, Lord Nazir Ahmed and Baroness Sayeeda Warsi, who secured her release after meeting Omar Hassan al-Bashir, Sudan's president, accompanied her amid tight security.
This morning, Gibbons was handed over to the British embassy after more than a week in custody, ending what threatened to turn into a full-scale diplomatic row between Britain and Sudan.
Now, Gibbons is returning home to Englad, after a short sentence.
_________________
Liam Lewis (site admin)
Music is the voice of the soul. Feel it flow through your spirit as you listen to its rhythmic beating, and epic melodies. |
|
