Teddy Bear provokes Crisis

Carrera said:

This story made the front page of the Daily Mirror today and is also on BBC News. Here's the Record's account:

Sudan Teddy Bear Teacher Faces 40 Lashes

Nov 27 2007 By John Fahey

Briton Held In Sudan For Prophet 'Insult'

A BRITISH teacher is facing a public flogging in Sudan for letting her pupils name a teddy bear Mohammed.

Gillian Gibbons, 54, was detained on Sunday on suspicion of insulting Islam's prophet.

The Foreign Office said diplomats had visited her in custody and she was "in good condition".

But under sharia law, she faces a punishment of 40 lashes for blasphemy.

Mrs Gibbons let her class of seven-year-olds at Unity High School in Khartoum choose the name as part of a school project.

A spokesman for the British Embassy in the city said: "The children chose the name because it is very common here. This happened in September and the parents did not have a problem with it."

A source close to the school said another teacher - a member of a prominent conservative family in Khartoum - was behind the complaint.

A news item on the Sudanese Media Centre website - closely associated with the government - reported: "Head of the attorney offices Mutusim Abdallah...said the suspect teacher printed the name of Prophet Mohammed on a doll in a shape of bear.

"Then she wrote letters to student guardians telling them that they should receive a doll on which the name Mohammed is printed.

"However, this event was met with wide condemnation by guardians of the students."

Mrs Gibbons, the mother of two grown-up children, John and Jessica, left her home in Liverpool for Sudan two months ago.

Her former neighbour Peter Sorensen, 64, said: "Gillian was a very nice person and wouldn't harm a fly.

Interesting article Carerra and repugnant as well. But IMHO, don't keep falling into the trap of skimming CNN/BBC human interest articles relative to western culture, that may litter your thinking about the real life in these countries. I know that is somewhat patronizing, as you obviously do other reading/research. But I've noticed that you use alot of weird news stories as evidence to bolster your arguments in other threads.

There are unusual stories in any country that bear little resemblance to the real life situation there. Usually they are ad hoc situations created by the bizarre decisions of a singular bigot/idiot with some authority.

Usually religion is somewhere in the shadow of whatever scandal I reproduce. The question begs to be asked, why do clerics and clergy feel they have to judge others and use intimidation in the process? To my mind, religion ought to be about tolerance and common humanity as opposed to outright cruelty. This is why I tend to pick up on such incidents. This lady wouldn't really have had a clue she might have been causing offence.
Having said that, she'll probably get off without those lashes. I don't think Sudan would risk a political backlash.

Crankyfeet said:

Interesting article Carerra and repugnant as well. But IMHO, don't keep falling into the trap of skimming CNN/BBC human interest articles relative to western culture, that may litter your thinking about the real life in these countries. I know that is somewhat patronizing, as you obviously do other reading/research. But I've noticed that you use alot of weird news stories as evidence to bolster your arguments in other threads.

There are unusual stories in any country that bear little resemblance to the real life situation there. Usually they are ad hoc situations created by the bizarre decisions of a singular bigot/idiot with some authority.

The incident may have been exaggerated in The Mirror. There were some angry mobs but the authorities seem to realise the teacher didn't do anything to deliberately cause offence. Here's the latest:

"A spokesman for the Sudanese embassy in London, Khalid al-Mubarak, told the BBC that it was a "minute" matter.

"What is happening now is standard procedure because one of the parents has complained and the police is bound to investigate just as is the case in any country in which there is rule of law.

"I am pretty certain that this minute incident will be clarified very quickly and that this venerable teacher who has been helping us teach our children will be safe and will be cleared"."

Just a exaggeration, she's JUST getting fifteen days in prison.