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And now I’ll spell out exactly why I think the Collective Response is so wrong and bad. The hijab is a statement of female subordination, and it’s also a statement of loyalty or obedience to a ferociously misogynist and coercive religion. Some people are “offended” to be told that. It doesn’t follow that it’s not true. [...]
Posts Tagged ‘Religious coercion’
The Women’s Ministry should exist to improve the lives of women
February 14th, 2012 
Ophelia Benson Houzan Mahmoud will soon have a statement on Iraq’s Women’s Minister Ibtihal Kasid Alzaidi, who thinks and says that women are not equal to men. Not a good thing for a Women’s Minister to think.
Lawyers for Liberty are pissed
February 13th, 2012 Ophelia Benson At Malaysia’s Home Minister, for one. Lawyers for Liberty is simply astonished and outraged at Home Minister Hishamuddin Hussein and PDRM’s continuing attempt to spin further lies and deceit over the illegal and unconstitutional detention and deportation of Hamza Kashgari by now alleging or insinuating that he is a “criminal” or “terrorist” wanted by his [...]
Posted in Notes and Comment Blog 
Tags: Hamza Kashgari, Religious censorship, Religious coercion 
6 Comments »Interpol as theocracies’ little helper
February 13th, 2012 Ophelia Benson Interpol has said it had nothing to do with the extradition of Hamza Kashgari, but Dennis McShane MP apparently didn’t get the memo – or got the memo and didn’t believe it. The charge of apostasy was maintained, his home was attacked and, again, sensibly enough, Kashgari decided it was time to leave Saudi Arabia. [...]
Known for his reformist views
February 13th, 2012 Ophelia Benson PEN International on Kashgari. PEN demands his immediate and unconditional release, in accordance with Article 19 of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It also calls upon the Saudi authorities to provide him with immediate and effective protection. According to PEN’s information, Kashgari, a 23-year-old writer from Jeddah, tweeted a series of messages [...]
Those who are wanted by their countries of origin
February 13th, 2012 Ophelia Benson Malaysia today is defending its extradition of Hamza Kashgari back to Saudi Arabia where he could easily be executed for saying he has questions about Mohammed. International rights groups have slammed the deportation but Home Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said Malaysia was not a safe haven for fugitives. Jiddah-based newspaper columnist Hamza Kashgari, 23, was detained [...]
Free Hamza Kashgari
February 12th, 2012 Ophelia Benson You know the drill – same old same old. Join this Facebook group. You know the media report it when causes get big support on Facebook, so join. I added a few people, because you can’t just invite any more – but I’m shy about adding because it seems so presumptuous, so if I neglected [...]
Posted in Notes and Comment Blog Tags: Free speech, Malaysia, Religious censorship, Religious coercion, Saudi Arabia 18 Comments »At Maryam’s place
February 12th, 2012 Ophelia Benson Maryam’s post on the Free Expression Rally is up. So is her post on Malaysia’s outrageous deportation of Hamza Kashgari. Malaysia’s home ministry has said that ‘The nature of the charges against the individual in this case are a matter for the Saudi Arabian authorities’. Which basically means that any asylum seeker or refugee must [...]
Posted in Notes and Comment Blog Tags: Free speech, Religious bullying, Religious coercion 1 Comment »Your personal freedom? You must be joking
February 9th, 2012 Ophelia Benson A candidate for Egypt’s presidency by the name of Hazim Abu Ismail, “with affiliations to both the Muslim Brotherhood and the Salafis,” says how things are. Host: You have already begun to try to impose a particular dress code for us. Abu Ismail: I’ve begun to? It’s the Lord of the Worlds [Allah] who said [...]
Behold, theocracy in action
January 17th, 2012 Ophelia Benson Ann Marie Waters on last night at Queen Mary College. This week I was due to give a talk to students at Queen Mary College, London on sharia law and human rights. Rather fittingly – and as if to prove my point – my human rights were quashed by a person demonstrating one of the [...]
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