Egypt: Court Upholds Prison Sentence of Islamic Show Host Islam Al-Beheiry

Source:
All Africa
Date of source:
11 Oct 2015

Court upheld a five-year prison term previously handed down to controversial religious researcher Islam al-Beheiry in absentia for contempt of religion after the Azhar had accused him of broadcasting ideas against "the fundamentals of religion." The Arabic Network for Human Rights Information said in January 2014 that "simply ... anyone could be presented to court" for publishing an article, images or any material on any of the divine religions if the opinion expressed is different from that of the ruling faction.

Cornelis Hulsman: Islam al-Beheiry is a scholar who advocates religious reform and is oposed to conservatism and extremism. He has been accused of using at times offensive and harsh language. The verdict was "in absentia" because al-Beheiry did not attend the court session. In a talkshow he said he legally was not required to go. Some people say that he should apologize to the sheikh al-Azhar for the harsh language he has used after which the Azhar would drop the case against him. I do not know it is true but it is certainly possible since with language that is believed to be offensive one easily touches the honor of leaders of institutions in Egypt. The verdict shows it is difficult for Egyptians to deal with (perceived) harsh language. I would wish Egypt would find other ways for dealing with harsh language instead of a stiff five year sentence in prison.

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