Category: News
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Alex Aan’s trial begins Thursday
Alex Aan‘s trial begins tomorrow, Thursday, with the first prosecution witnesses being called, according to Rafiq Mahmood. Alex is the 30 year old Indonesian civil servant who has been charged with ‘insulting’ Islam in an atheist group in Facebook. Rafiq says: This isn’t just for Alex but for all of us. There have been far…
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25 July 2012: Protest against the Olympics Committee’s failure to implement principles of equality and neutrality
On 25 July 2012 in conjunction with the opening of the London Olympics, ‘London 2012: Justice for Women’ is organising a protest against the Olympics Committee’s failure to implement principles of equality and neutrality. The group’s concerns include the banning of female athletes in contravention of principles of equality by Saudi Arabia and the inclusion…
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Fatwas cannot be questioned
A new law passed unanimously in Kedah, Malaysia says that any fatwa issued by the State Mufti ‘cannot be challenged, appealed, reviewed, denied or questioned’ in any civil or Sharia court. Yeah so what’s new? In all this, some women’s rights groups are spending their energy to say that the Mufti’s statements go against Islam’s…
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We cannot remain silent about Islamist attacks on Tunisia’s universities
The below statement has been initiated by Djemila Benhabib and Caroline Fourest and supported by myself, Mina Ahadi, Boualem Sansal, Taslima Nasreen, Shoukria Haïdar, Elisabeth Badinter, Elisabeth Roudinesco, Nadia Geerts and many others. Please sign on to it in the comments section below and I can forward it to Djemila: The entire Tunisian university community…
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You’d give us leave to self-flagellate
I’m slightly annoyed because my 6 year old’s school has just refused us leave to take him on the Centre for Inquiry’s riverboat cruise that I am speaking on this upcoming week with Richard Dawkins and Ronald A Lindsay. I have explained how I must go to such events for my work (the only way I…
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European version of Al-Qaeda
The far-Right terrorist Anders Behring Breivik who killed 77 people – mainly youth – in a shooting spree and car bombing in Norway said Al Qaeda serves as an inspiration to far-right activists. ‘We want to create a European version of al-Qaeda’ he said. And this goes to the crux of the matter. Whilst the…
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Hoodie and hijab are not the same
A few days ago, Adele Wilde-Blavatsky wrote ‘To Be Anti-Racist Is To Be Feminist: The Hoodie and the Hijab Are Not Equals‘ on The Feminist Wire. In response, 77 feminists wrote an open letter accusing Adele of racism and Islamophobia (surprise, surprise). Both Adele’s original article and the open letter are no longer available on…
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Hejab helps vaccinate the disease that is women
Here’s another must-see sign. It says: ‘The veil is protection’. The word in Persian which I have translated into ‘protection’ and which has been helpfully translated on the sign itself as ‘security’ is actually used to describe immunisations. Basically, we women are diseases that need to be immunised with a nice big black veil that covers…
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Human rights have no place in Islam
Ayatollah Mohammad Taghi Mesbah-Yazdi who is Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s religious advisor (like he needs one) and member of the regime’s Assembly of Experts said in a speech: ‘human rights and the rights of citizenship have no place in Islam.’ He added that there is no room for freedom of speech and thought in Islam; Muslims and…
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Another arse of a cleric and homosexuality
Another arse of a cleric, Ayatollah Abdollah Javadi-Amoli, has said in a speech in Qom, Iran, citing the Koran: Even animals … dogs and pigs don’t engage in this disgusting act [homosexuality] but yet they [western politicians] pass laws in favour of them in their parliaments. He says this in a country where homosexuality is…
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Ahmadinejad, I’m hungry
Here’s heartrenching new video footage of an old man shouting ‘Ahmadinejad, I’m hungry’ even though he is completely ignored. There’s also footage of a woman jumping on Ahmadinejad’s car to give him what’s seems to be a piece of her mind. Watch it to see Ahmadinejad’s utter disdain and disregard and people’s insistent bravery in…
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INDONESIA: An atheist on trial for religious defamation
The Asia Human Rights Commission has issued an appeal on behalf of Alex Aan. Read it here. Their appeal gives a lot of information on the case and also gives a list of places you can send your appeal on behalf of Alex. Remember, it’s serious. He faces up to 6 years in prison for…