(EOHR/IFEX) – EOHR is very concerned about the aggressive campaign being waged against Dr. Souad Saleh, a professor of Islamic jurisprudence at the Azhar University, following her publicly stating her opinion on the Niquab (the Islamic full body veil), saying it is not compulsory in Islam. Her statement angered many fundamentalists, some of whom have […]
(EOHR/IFEX) – EOHR is very concerned about the aggressive campaign being waged against Dr. Souad Saleh, a professor of Islamic jurisprudence at the Azhar University, following her publicly stating her opinion on the Niquab (the Islamic full body veil), saying it is not compulsory in Islam. Her statement angered many fundamentalists, some of whom have called for the “shedding of her blood”.
Saleh, a former dean at Azhar University, stated her opinion in late October 2006 on a television programme called “Amma Yatasa’loon” (“What are they asking about?”), aired on the channel Dream TV. Saleh stated that the Niquab is not compulsory for Muslim women, and she supported her point by citing the Prophet and Islamic customs.
EOHR has repeatedly denounced such reactions as violations of freedom of belief, guaranteed in Article 46 of the Egyptian Constitution and Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which has been ratified by Egypt. EOHR strongly condemns any attempts, whether by individuals or institutions, to impose specific ideas upon society. EOHR warns against ideological fanaticism and the increasing labeling of persons as “infidels” for expressing their opinions. These trends may lead to unpleasant consequences, posing a threat to freedom of belief, thought and expression, and may suppress critical thinking and the expression of scientific liberal ideas. This also may open the gates to the use of suppressive methods in resolving conflicts between persons of different opinions, especially between those who are more dogmatic and those who subscribe to Ijtehad, or free religious thinking.
EOHR is deeply worried about the increasing tendency to accuse individuals of being “infidels”, and the accompanying calls to “shed the blood” of such individuals, when they express critical views, whether ideological or political.
Accordingly, EOHR denounces the calls by Member of Parliament Ali Laban for the execution of the prime minister, the endowment minister and the investment minister, on the charges of “attacking Islam openly”, which came as a reaction to their issuing an administrative decision to demolish a mosque and privatize a public company.
Such extremist opinions constitute a kind of death threat to political leaders, reminiscent of the 1990’s when violent acts were committed against politicians, such as the assassination of the chairman of the parliament, Dr. Refaat EL Mahgoob, the attempts on the lives of former prime minister Dr. Atef Sedquee and Safwat Al Sherif, the current chairman of the Shura Council. In that decade, accusations of persons being “infidels” also resulted in the assassination of the writer Dr. Farag Foda and in attempts on the lives of Makram Muhamed Ahmed and Nobel Prize winning author Naguib Mahfouz.
In this context, EOHR calls upon civil society organizations to unite in their efforts to condemn any attempt to impose strict religious discipline on society, to defend everyone’s right to express opinions and ideas freely, and to demand respect for freedom of belief for all citizens.
EOHR also considers calls for the shedding of blood to be the equivalent of death threats, which are criminalized by Egyptian law, and calls upon the General Prosecutor’s Office to take the appropriate measures against those who are committing these crimes.
