'muhammad' Teddy Teacher Arrested

[Ash Wednesday]

And I doubt she would have been arrested if it weren't for the fact that she is a woman, a westerner, and she works for a living.

[Alabaster]

Here's a little follow-up [url="http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,313182,00.html"]article[/url]. The kids weren't even thinking of their prophet Muhammad when they named the bear!

[misereremi]

Prayers for Ms Gibbons to be released asap and any charges dropped, this was such an innocent mistake.

A few weeks ago my daughter did the thing where we take teddy home and keep a diary of his time with us. They had chosen to call teddy 'Stitch'. If the parents had a problem with the name, why couldn't they just resolve it by talking to the teacher- to whom they entrust their children every day? This is madness how such an innocent thing brought a well-meaning teacher behind bars.

[Lounge Daddy]

[quote name='misereremi' post='1426678' date='Nov 29 2007, 05:44 AM']Prayers for Ms Gibbons to be released asap and any charges dropped, this was such an innocent mistake.[/quote]

Indeed. But I hesitate to even call it a "mistake" it's all so outrageously silly, the way reactions to such things are so over the top.

[Lil Red]

just saw on the ABC News video podcast - she was found guilty, will serve 15 days and then be deported.

[cmotherofpirl]

Every time people try to convince the rest of the world muslims are tolerant peace-loving people, stuff like this happens. People just scratch their heads and wonder again, is this another "aberation" or is this the real face of muslim behavior toward us infidels?? Inquiring minds need to know, because on it hangs the fate of the world.

[Myles Domini]

[url="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/worldnews.html?in_article_id=497490&in_page_id=1811&ct=5"]Thousands of Islamic fanatics wielding knives demand jailed teddy bear teacher is executed[/url]
Last updated at 14:25pm on 30th November 2007

Thousands of Islamic fanatics wielding clubs and knives are marching through the streets of Khartoum demanding the execution of teddy bear teacher Gillian Gibbons.




As the mother-of-two started a 15-day prison term, protestors left mosques across the Sudanese capital to denounce the "lenient verdict" and call for the death penalty.




The mob descended on Martyrs Square, which is in front of the presidential palace, many arriving in pick-up trucks with loudspeakers blaring messages condemning Miss Gibbons.

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Armed and angry: Protesters march through Khartoum demanding that Gillian Gibbons is executed

[img]http://img.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2007/11_04/sudanprotesters2G_468x313.jpg[/img]

Thousands of angry protesters have gathered Martyr's Square in the Sudanese capital


Hundreds of riot police had been deployed but they made no attempt to disrupt the rally.

"Shame, shame on the U.K.," protesters chanted," as they called for Gibbons' execution, saying, "No tolerance: Execution," and "Kill her, kill her by firing squad."




• [url="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/specialreport.html?in_article_id=497484&in_page_id=1788"]SIGN OUR ONLINE PETITION TO FREE GILLIAN GIBBONS HERE[/url]


[img]http://img.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2007/11_04/gibbonsDM2711_228x557.jpg[/img]

Death penalty: Fanatics have called for British teacher Gillian Gibbons to be shot


Back in the UK, Miss Gibbon's distraught daughter Jessica had left a simple message on her mother's MySpace web page saying "I love you mum xxxxxx"

She also lists Miss Gibbon's as one of her heroes.




The chaotic scenes in Sudan followed escalating international tensions after a judge jailed Miss Gibbons, who allowed her pupils to call a teddy bear Mohammed, yesterday.


The Archbishop of Canterbury has led mounting criticism of Sudan following her conviction for insulting Islam.



Rowan Williams launched a stinging attack on the decision, branding it "self-destructive absurdity".


He said: "I can't see any justification for this at all. I think this is an absurdly disproportionate response to what is at worst a cultural faux pas.


"I think that it has done the Sudanese government no credit whatever to allow this prosecution to proceed.

"What I see in this situation is a sort of primitivist and crude application of the law in a spirit of real insensitivity and self-destructive absurdity."


Mother-of-two Miss Gibbons, 54, escaped a flogging but must now endure 15 days in a notorious Sudan jail.



She will be incarcerated at the squalid Omdurman women's prison in Khartoum, which is massively overcrowded and infested with mosquitoes.


Read more...

FREE THE TEDDY BEAR TEACHER: Sign our online petition here
Hideously overcrowded: The Sudanese jail where Gillian Gibbons will serve her sentence
Teddy bear teacher: What took the FO so long to defend her?
Foreign Secretary: We are 'extremely disappointed' at teddy teacher conviction

British Muslim leaders have also criticised the jail sentence.



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[img]http://img.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2007/11_04/Gibbonsdaughter_468x351.jpg[/img]

Distraught: Gillian Gibbons' daughter Jessica



Dr Muhammad Abdul Bari, secretary-general of the Muslim Council of Britain branded the court decision a "gross over-reaction from Sudanese authorities".




He said: "This case should have required only simple common sense to resolve. It is unfortunate that the Sudanese authorities were found wanting in this most basic of qualities.

"Gillian should never have been arrested, let alone charged and convicted of committing a crime. We hope that Gillian will be able to return home without much further delay."


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[img]http://img.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2007/11_04/gibbons_468x351.jpg[/img]

On trial: Miss Gibbons in the dock flanked by police officers

[img]http://img.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2007/09_03/RowanWilliams2PA_228x376.jpg[/img]

Anger: Archbishop Rowan Williams


"The sentence is a mockery of justice and we consider Gillian to be a prisoner of conscience," Mike Blakemore, of Amnesty International, added.


Malcolm Moss, a Tory member of the Commons foreign affairs committee, said: "This is disgraceful. She only named a teddy bear and she is serving 15 days in jail.

[img]http://img.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2007/11_04/SudaneseambassadorG_228x397.jpg[/img]

Sudanese ambassador Omer Mohamed Ahmed Siddig leaves the Foreign Office after meeting David Miliband

"It is tokenism by the Sudanese government. If they had really felt she had insulted Islam, they would have sentenced her to much longer. It seems they are scoring points.

"Our government dithered over intervening and this is what happens. We should have been a lot tougher, a lot sooner."




Miss Gibbons, from Liverpool, was said to be "stunned" by the sentence imposed for insulting Islam - after which she will be deported from Sudan.


Last night, her conviction and punishment were furiously condemned and the Foreign Office was criticised for not fighting her case more forcefully.


Foreign Secretary David Miliband called in the Sudanese ambassador for the second time in hours last night to protest over the verdict. He said: "We are extremely disappointed that the charges were not dismissed.


"Our clear view is that this is an innocent misunderstanding by a dedicated teacher. Our priority now is to ensure Mrs Gibbons' welfare and wellbeing."

Mrs Gibbons's MP, Louise Ellman, said: "I do realise that the sentence could have been harder, but 15 days in a jail in Sudan could be very, very harsh.








"I think there's distress and anger and I can't see much positive that has come from this. The sentence could have been harsher, but that's not exactly a positive thing at all."


The Omdurman prison where Mrs Gibbon will be locked up was built for 200, but now houses 1,200 women and 300 children, most of the adults jailed for illegally brewing alcohol.


Last night, her son John said the family are struggling to take in the news of her punishment. "It's really difficult at the moment, my head is everywhere," the 25-year-old marketing consultant added.

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[img]http://img.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2007/11_04/SudaneseG_468x316.jpg[/img]

Storm: Sudan has claimed Gillian Gibbon's decision to let her class call a teddy bear Mohammed is an insult to Islam (file picture)


"I don't want the verdict to lead to any anti feeling towards Muslims. Everyone has been very nice, but one of my fears, and I imagine my mother's also, will be that this results in any sort of resentment towards Muslim people."

He is hoping to visit his mother in jail and urged the Foreign Office to help speed up the visa process.


The Muslim Council of Britain called the sentence completely unjustified.


"I'm utterly disappointed with this decision," said the council's Ibrahim Mogra. "We have been calling on the Sudanese authorities to show leniency, that this was a case of an innocent oversight, a misunderstanding, and there was no need for this to be escalated."

The verdict came at the end of a day of drama and farce in Khartoum that saw British diplomats initially prevented from entering the court.


Defence lawyers said they would appeal. But with the Sudan authorities planning a major security operation today amid expected protests by hardline Islamic leaders urging tougher sentencing, there were fears the tactic could backfire.


British officials said they would be pressing for a reduction in sentence, and the five days Mrs Gibbons has already spent in custody might count against the 15 to be served.


The Sudanese authorities were also said to have started preparing deportation documents for this weekend, leading to speculation she could be freed as early as tomorrow.

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[img]http://img.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2007/11_04/gibbonsAP2911_468x343.jpg[/img]

Kidnap threat: Security was heavy outside the courthouse yesterday for Mrs Gibbons' appearance


Ali Mohammed Ajab, a member of her defence team, described the verdict as "very unfair".


He said: "She apologised to the court - not that she had done something wrong - but said she was simply doing her job and did not mean any harm."

Sudan's top Muslim clerics had pressed their government to ensure the teacher was punished harshly, comparing her action to author Salman Rushdie's "blasphemies" against the Prophet.

Mrs Gibbons, a divorced mother-of-two, was arrested on Sunday and on Wednesday charged with insulting Islam, inciting hatred and showing contempt for religious beliefs.


It came after seven-year-old pupils chose to call a teddy bear Mohammed at the Unity High School in Khartoum, where she had worked since August.


During the court case behind closed doors yesterday it was revealed that the school's office assistant, Sara Khawad, had complained to the education authorities - leading to the teacher's arrest.


In a statement read to court, Mrs Gibbons tearfully stressed she had not meant to cause offence and pointed out that it had been her pupils who had chosen the name.


There were four prosecution witnesses, and several spoke up for the defence.


Isam Abu Hasabu, chairman of Unity High School's parent-teacher association, said: "The whole thing boiled down to a cultural misunderstanding. In our culture, we don't know the bear as a cuddly symbol of mercy."


Other teachers said many parents had written to the school offering support.


The school's Sudanese director, Robert Boulos, described Mrs Gibbons as "a marvellous teacher", adding: "She was even training our other primary teachers and is an asset to the school.'"

[kenrockthefirst]

[url="http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/world/AP-Sudan-British-Teacher.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin"]Calls in Sudan for Execution of Briton[/url]

This part's bad:

[i]''Imprisoning this lady does not satisfy the thirst of Muslims in Sudan. But we welcome imprisonment and expulsion,'' the cleric, Abdul-Jalil Nazeer al-Karouri, a well-known hard-liner, told worshippers.[/i]

This statement begs the question, the thirst for what?

This part's good:

[i]Muhammad Abdul Bari, secretary-general of the Muslim Council of Britain, accused the Sudanese authorities of ''gross overreaction.''

''This case should have required only simple common sense to resolve. It is unfortunate that the Sudanese authorities were found wanting in this most basic of qualities,'' he said.

The Muslim Public Affairs Committee, a political advocacy group, said the prosecution was ''abominable and defies common sense.''[/i]

Here's hoping that we begin to see more of the latter and less of the former.

[Myles Domini]

Squalid, overcrowded and infested with mosquitoes: The jail where teddy bear teacher will serve her sentence
Last updated at 09:24am on 30th November 2007


Conditions in Omdurman women's prison, where Gillian Gibbons will be jailed for 15 days, are appalling by any standards.

Hugely overcrowded, the jail on the outskirts of Khartoum, was originally built to hold 100 women and then expanded to hold 200, but in recent years has housed more than 1,200.

Hundreds of children also throng its corridors, leaving inmates at risk of disease.


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[img]http://img.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2007/11_04/prison_468x317.jpg[/img]

Inmates: Omdurmam prison, where Gillian Gibbons will spend 15 days. Many children are jailed with their mothers
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[img]http://img.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2007/11_04/GibsCamelDM2811_228x484.jpg[/img]

African dream: Mrs Gibbons in the Sudan
Mrs Gibbons may have to share a cell with other inmates. In some cases, 50 can be crowded into a cell designed for ten.

The washing facilities are basic and some toilets are just a hole in the ground.


It is not uncommon in African jails for prisoners to receive just one meal a day.


A report by Human Rights Watch said the conditions were "shocking", pointing to "chronic overcrowding, lack of sanitation, diseases, and death from epidemics among children who lived with their mothers".

Mrs Gibbons is at least likely to have full consular support, which means she will be able to receive supplies of food, bedding and medication from outside the prison.


Prison director Saeed Dhahiya is reported as saying the government pays only for the salaries of the prison staff and the food for the inmates. It does not contribute to any of the other running costs of the prison.


"We make visitors pay an entrance fee and rely on NGOs and charity for the other running costs ... but it is still not enough," he said.


The prison also relies on donations for medicines - and the volunteer doctors who visit four times a week.


The prison became women-only in 1992 when the numbers of displaced women arrested for wine making suddenly surged as many more southerners fled to the capital.


Dhahiya said there had been a workshop where prisoners made crafts and clothes to sell in the market, but last year the roof collapsed and there was no money to repair it.

[cmotherofpirl]

How are we expected to deal with people who brandish knives and want to execute someone over a teddy bear??

[Spamity Calamity]

Islam is a "Religion of Peace"? Hmmmmm

[kenrockthefirst]

[quote name='cmotherofpirl' post='1427301' date='Nov 30 2007, 12:23 PM']How are we expected to deal with people who brandish knives and want to execute someone over a teddy bear??[/quote]
That's a fair question, and the reason I posted the quotes from the Muslim groups in the UK. I'd be interested in seeing Cathoholic Anonymous' response.

[prose]

I am so scared for this woman.

[Mercy me]

[quote name='cmotherofpirl' post='1427301' date='Nov 30 2007, 12:23 PM']How are we expected to deal with people who brandish knives and want to execute someone over a teddy bear??[/quote]

Teddy bears, cartoons...normally I would say lighten up but this is very disturbing. I don't understand either.

[quote name='prose' post='1427313' date='Nov 30 2007, 12:43 PM']I am so scared for this woman.[/quote]
Me too.

[kenrockthefirst]

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