IRFN (Jan. 8-Jan. 15): England Moves to Abolish Blasphemy Law

Jan 15, 2008

International Religious Freedom Archive
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1. Serbia: Church Deemed "Not Orthodox”, Denied Legal Status (Jan. 8)
2. Indonesia Increasingly Blends Religious and Political Decisions (Jan. 8)
3. Uzbekistan: Jehovah's Witnesses Fined, Threatened with Death (Jan. 9)
4. England Moves to Abolish Blasphemy Law (Jan. 9)
5. Chechen President Demands Increase in Islamic Programming (Jan. 10)
6. Turkmenistan: Jehovah's Witness Sentenced for Conscientious Objection (Jan. 10)
7. Afghanistan: Journalism Student Held on Charges of Blasphemy (Jan. 12)

Features: Religious freedom in Israel: a report from Reuters.

Opinion: Is an Islamic orphanage better for children than a Christian mother? Watani discuss the problems facing Coptic children in Egypt.

Update: Nadia Eweida, the British Airways employee who was banned from wearing a cross to work, has lost a religious discrimination suit against the airline. The Telegraph reports on the decision.

1. Serbia: Church Deemed "Not Orthodox", Denied Legal Status
January 8
Belgrade, Serbia
B92 reports that Serbia has denied a request for legal status from the Montenegrin Orthodox Church, leaving the Montenegrin community in Serbia worried about the government's attitude towards ethnic and religious minorities. Serbia's Ministry of Religion explained that the Montenegrin Orthodox Church was not recognized by other Orthodox churches. Members of the Montenegrin community have sent letters of protest to both the country's President and Prime Minister, and hope that the Ministry's decision will be overturned.

2. Indonesia Increasingly Blends Religious and Political Decisions
January 8
Jakarta, Indonesia
Agence France-Presse reports that Indonesia is attracting increased attention for outlawing what it has termed "deviant sects". Last year, authorities issued official rulings which classified four Islamic sects as "deviant", jailing or detaining the sects' leaders. The official bans were based on fatwas issued by Indonesia's Council of Ulemas, an umbrella group of Muslim organizations. Non-Muslim Indonesian view this as a worrying sign of the government's acceptance of religious opinions in affairs of state.

3. Uzbekistan: Jehovah's Witnesses Fined, Threatened with Death
January 9
Kagan, Uzbekistan
Forum 18 reports that a community of Jehovah's Witnesses, which has been trying for the past two years to obtain legal registration, has met with harassment and fines, all while having their registration denied. Following a police raid in August 2007, ten members of the community were fined the sum of five years' minimum wages and threatened with death. In November 2007 and early January 2008, bailiffs arrived to seize property as payment for the fines. Unregistered religious activity is illegal in Uzbekistan, yet officials have not been able to give any reason why the Jehovah's Witnesses should be denied legal status.

4. England Moves to Abolish Blasphemy Law
January 9
London, UK
The BBC reports that the British government is currently in consultation with the Church of England before moving to abolish the country's centuries-old blasphemy law. The law, which is based on a series of decisions by 19th-century courts and is designed to protect only the Church of England, is presently viewed as out of place in a country that values free expression, although a conviction under the law occurred as recently as 1979. Calls for Satanic Verses author Salman Rushdie to be prosecuted under the law failed, as the law does not recognize blasphemy against other religions.

5. Chechen President Demands Increase in Islamic Programming
January 10
Chechnya
RIA Novosti reports that Ramzan Kadyrov, the president of Chechnya, has threatened to shut down Chechen television stations which do not devote enough airtime to the explanation of "basic Islamic values" according to the president's website. Those in charge of programming decisions have been instructed to emphasize "spiritual and patriotic programs" and to avoid anything that might draw Chechnya's youth towards Wahabi Islam or other hard-line movements.

6. Turkmenistan: Jehovah's Witness Sentenced for Conscientious Objection
January 10
Ashgabad, Turkmenistan
Forum 18 reports that Turkmenistan has sentenced another Jehovah's Witness, the sixth in recent months, to an 18-month suspended sentence for refusing military service on grounds of religious belief. Ashirgeldy Taganov was sentenced after what witnesses described as a "hasty" and "careless" procedure, in which the defendant was not allowed to fully present his case. Taganov will not be able to leave Ashgabad for the duration of the sentence, and must obey a curfew. Turkmenistan does not currently offer any alternative civilian service for those who object to participating in military service.

7. Afghanistan: Journalism Student Held on Charges of Blasphemy
January 12
Mazar-i-Sharif, Afghanistan
Reuters reports that Sayed Perwiz Kambakhsh, a 23-year-old journalism student, is in his third month of detention on charges of blasphemy for "mocking Islam and the Koran". Kambakhsh, a student at Balkh University and a reporter for the daily Jahan-e Naw, was detained by Afghan security forces after his classmates accused him of making blasphemous comments. It is not known when or if he will be tried, but if convicted of blasphemy, Kambakhsh could face the death penalty.