SubscribeBrit Faces 40 Lashes For Teddy Bear Name
From those defenders of the faith at Reuters:
British teacher held in Sudan over teddy bear’s name
Mon 26 Nov 2007
By Andrew Heavens
KHARTOUM, Nov 26 (Reuters) - A British primary school teacher has been arrested in Sudan, accused of insulting Islam’s Prophet by letting her class of 7-year-olds name a teddy bear Mohammed, her school said on Monday.
Colleagues of Gillian Gibbons, aged 54 from Liverpool, told Reuters they feared for her safety after receiving reports that young men had already started gathering outside the Khartoum police station where she was being held.
Teachers at Unity High School in central Khartoum said Gibbons made an innocent mistake and simply let her pupils choose their favourite name for the toy as part of a school project.
Police arrested Gibbons on Sunday at her home inside the school premises, said Unity director Robert Boulos, after a number of parents made a complaint to Sudan’s Ministry of Education.
Boulos said she had since been charged with “blasphemy”, an offence he said was punishable with up to three months in prison and a fine.
A spokesman from the British Embassy in Khartoum said it was still unclear whether Gibbons had been formerly charged. “We are following it up with the authorities and trying to meet her in person,” he said.
Boulos said he had decided to close down the school until January for fear of reprisals in Sudan’s predominantly Muslim capital. “This is a very sensitive issue.”
“We are very worried about her safety,” he added. “This was a completely innocent mistake. Miss Gibbons would have never wanted to insult Islam.”
Boulos said Gibbons was following a British National Curriculum course designed to teach young pupils about animals and their habitats. This year’s animal was the bear.
Gibbons, who joined Unity in August, asked a girl to bring in her teddy bear to help the Year 2 class focus, said Boulos.
The teacher then asked the class to name the toy. “They came up with eight names including Abdullah, Hassan and Mohammed. Then she explained what it meant to vote and asked them to choose the name.” Twenty out of the 23 children chose Mohammed.
Each child was allowed to take the bear home at weekends and asked to write a diary about what they did with the toy. Each entry was collected in a book with a picture of the bear on the cover, next to the message “My name is Mohammed,” said Boulos.
The bear itself was not marked or labelled with the name in any way, he added, saying Sudanese police had now seized the book and had asked to interview the 7-year-old girl.
Boulos said the first he knew about the course was last week when he got a phone call from the Ministry of Education, saying a number of Muslim parents had made formal complaints…
The country’s state-controlled Sudanese Media Centre reported late Sunday that Gibbons had been arrested for “insulting the Prophet Mohammad”. It said charges were being prepared “under article 125 of the criminal law” which covers insults against faith and religion…
Unity, an independent school founded in 1902, is governed by a board representing major Christian denominations in Sudan, but teaches both Christians and Muslims aged 4 to 18.
Some more details, from the UK’s Telegraph:
Sudanese police stand guard outside Unity High School in central Khartoum November 26, 2007. British primary school teacher Gillian Gibbons has been arrested in Sudan, accused of insulting Islam’s Prophet by letting her class of 7-year-olds name a teddy bear Mohammed, her school said on Monday.
Briton faces lashes in Sudan over teddy named Mohammed
By Caroline Gammell and Aislinn Simpson
26/11/2007
A British primary school teacher in Sudan is facing 40 lashes and up to six months in prison after allowing her pupils to name a teddy bear after the prophet Mohammed…
If charged and found guilty of blasphemy she faces punishment under Sharia law…
The divorced mother-of-two from Liverpool is being held at a police station in the Sudanese capital city of Khartoum, and there were reports that an angry mob had gathered.
As the Foreign Office tried to resolve the situation, Miss Gibbons was visited by consular staff who described her as well, despite her ordeal.
Miss Gibbons had been working at Unity High School - popular with wealthy Sudanese and expatriates - since August, after leaving her position as deputy head-teacher at Dovecot Primary School in Liverpool this summer.
However, trouble flared after she let her class choose a name for the stuffed bear as part of a school project.
She was teaching her Year 2 class about animals and their habitats as part of the school’s British-style national curriculum.
She asked one of the female pupils to bring in a teddy bear and asked the students to name it. “They came up with eight names including Abdullah, Hassan and Mohammed,” said the school’s director, Robert Boulos
Twenty of the 23 children opted for Mohammed and the toy was taken home by a different pupil each weekend to record a diary of the bear’s “activities”.
Mr Boulos said the diary entries were written in a book which bore a picture of the bear and the words “My Name is Mohammed”.
It is seen as an insult to Islam to attempt to make an image of the Prophet Mohammed, but Mr Boulos said nothing was written on the bear itself.
Several Muslim parents complained to the Ministry of Education and on Sunday, Sudanese police arrested her at her home on the school premises.
Mr Boulos insisted Miss Gibbons had not meant to offend anyone but said the school would remain closed until January for fear of reprisals.
“She has done nothing wrong but now we are very concerned that there’s a risk to the school and the students from the men in the street,” Mr Boulos said.
The police have confiscated the diary and plan to interview the little girl who owned the bear.
A source close to the school said one teacher was angered by the naming of the toy and complained to the headmistress, who is European. “According to what I was told, she belongs to one of the established conservative families in Khartoum.” …
Just when you thought the Religion Of Peace had gone too far, they go a little further.
By the way, what were these kids doing with a teddy bear anyway, or any stuffed animals.
For according to the Islamic scholars any representation of animate beings is haraam if it includes eyes, a nose or a mouth.
From the standing committee on fatwas at Islam Q & A:
Ruling on drawing pictures for children without facial features
Question:
I am a woman who would like to work in the field of children’s stories and children’s magazines. Illustrations for children usually include pictures of animate beings. Is it permissible for me to draw the faces but omit some features so that they will not be imitating the creation of Allaah?
Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) told us that the one who makes images – by drawing or engraving –will be punished on the Day of Resurrection, and these images whose makers are given this warning are images of animate beings, based on what its says in the hadeeth, that Allaah will say: “Give life to that which you have crated.”
It was narrated from ‘Abd-Allaah ibn ‘Umar (may Allaah be pleased with him) that the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Those who make images will be punished on the Day of Resurrection, and it will be said to them: ‘Bring to life that which you have created.’” Narrated by al-Bukhaari (5607) and Muslim (2108).
It seems that images with incomplete features and those which do not have a nose or eyes are not included in the images that are haraam, and their makers are not included in the warning, because they cannot really be called images and these pictures are not competing with the creation of Allaah.
It was narrated that ‘Aa’ishah (may Allaah be pleased with her) said: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Among the people who will be most severely punished on the Day of Resurrection will be those who imitate the creation of Allaah.”
Narrated by al-Bukhaari (5610) and Muslim (2107).
Shaykh Muhammad ibn Saalih al-‘Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:
With regard to stuffed toys in which the image is not clear, even though there are limbs, heads and shoulders, but they have no eyes or noses, there is nothing wrong with them because this is not competing with the creation of Allaah.
Majmoo’ Fataawa al-Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (2/ question no. 330).
The Shaykh also said:
Every one who does something that is competing with the creation of Allaah, is included in the hadeeth which is: The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) cursed the image-makers… and he said: “The people who will be most severely punished on the Day of Resurrection will be the image-makers.” But as I said, if the image is not clear, i.e., it does not have eyes or a nose or a mouth or fingers, then this is not a complete image, and is not competing with the creation of Allaah, may He be glorified and exalted.
Majmoo’ Fataawa al-Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (2/question no. 331).
And Allaah knows best.
Yes, Allaah surely knows best.
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37 Responses to “Brit Faces 40 Lashes For Teddy Bear Name”
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November 26th, 2007 at 1:10 pm
Islam isn’t a religion…it’s a cancer on the body and soul of humanity.
November 26th, 2007 at 1:48 pm
What religion was Teddy Roosevelt?
November 26th, 2007 at 1:53 pm
I just figured out the reason for the animosity toward illegal Hispanics by far right wing radical evangelical Christians: all those men named JESUS!
November 26th, 2007 at 2:40 pm
Let me get this straight…It’s a blaspheme to name a TEDDY BEAR Mohammed, but nobody says a peep when Mohammed ’s namesake flies a building into the trade towers…..
November 26th, 2007 at 2:51 pm
So I guess it behooves me to leave my dog “Mohammed’s Anus” at home if I go visiting there?
November 26th, 2007 at 2:54 pm
40 Lashes? Is that all? She is getting off lucky. Here in the US, CAIR would have pushed authorities to pursue Federal Hate Crime charges against the woman and asked that she be thrown in jail for 25 years.
November 26th, 2007 at 3:07 pm
And just when I thought they couldn’t get any more disturbing…..
November 26th, 2007 at 3:18 pm
When will people realize it is not a religion, but a death cult? Mohammed invaded over sixty nations when alive,
he married and had sex with a eight year old when he was in late forties/early fifties… No wonder that “cult” is so
messed up.
November 26th, 2007 at 4:33 pm
So if forty lashes is the penalty for naming a teddy bear mohammed, what would the penalty be for naming a stuffed pig the same name? Oh, just figured it out, no less than death would be suitable. Seems about right.
November 26th, 2007 at 4:48 pm
Hey, if Britain doesn’t clean up their act, many more than this teacher will face lashings - or worse.
Correct me if I’m wrong, but wasn’t the target of the failed car bomb plot in Britain a nightclub that was hosting a ladies’ night? Because we all know Islam’s stellar record regarding women’s rights.
Liberals have no idea how their beloved “rights” will suffer under the ever-changing, intricate and confusing parameters of shari’a law.
November 26th, 2007 at 5:01 pm
You are exactly right, EQ:
November 26th, 2007 at 6:38 pm
Boy Oh Boy.
When Jesus comes back - it’s gonna be No More Mister Nice Guy for these radical Islamists.
November 26th, 2007 at 6:48 pm
This truly sickens me, that lady went to Sudan to TEACH, they should be kissing her ass. She is a normal lady,
who did not NEED to go to Sudan to teach, she did it out of goodwill. Look at that photo of her in Venice, that
is someone’s mother. My stomach churns with anger.
November 26th, 2007 at 7:09 pm
“Among the people who will be most severely punished on the Day of Resurrection will be those who imitate the creation of Allaah.”
Ever notice how all sinners seem to fall into the category of being most severely punished. Why have the distinction? It make you wonder who it is that will get only slightly punished on the big R day?
November 27th, 2007 at 12:46 am
The islamic kids are the ones who voted on the name for the bear. What punnishment will they get? Will they have to spend some “alone time” with one of their uncles? Oh wait, that is a normal Saturday night over there.
November 27th, 2007 at 12:53 am
Willie: they will get off with a warning and perhaps a Jihad mandate. After all why punish the kids when they can
punish an infidel woman?
November 27th, 2007 at 1:06 am
“..will be punished on the Day of Resurrection”
You’d think that for minor infractions like this the Umma could leave the punishment up to Allah on the Day of Resurrection, after all isn’t he the all powerful and all that.
But i suppose that’s too much to expect for a bunch of savages.
And yes englishqueen01, it was a pub or something that was frequented by women.
November 27th, 2007 at 3:22 am
Am I the only one who sees this as “those who create are blasphemers”?
November 27th, 2007 at 3:38 am
What about all the parents who name their kids MoHAMmud? Where are their forty lashes? Mo seems to be a pretty common name for these folks. Once again, the Religion of Perpetual Atrocities shows why this should not be a war against “terror” as much as a war against a made up religious cult.
November 27th, 2007 at 7:22 am
Uh, oh! The “youths” are rioting in Paris again. Two kids died on a moped. I wonder if…. no way…. Muslims were involved in any way, shape or form. The article does not say! Egads!
November 27th, 2007 at 10:13 am
“Uh, oh! The “youths” are rioting in Paris again. Two kids died on a moped”
rakkasan, the media also forgot to mention that it was a stolen moped. (It’s the reason they didn’t have helmets on.) The rioters are young Muslim men for the most part, unemployed young Muslim men. Kinda gives you an example of what the USA would look like under the type of Government that SHillery and Soros want to give us. (Socialism doesn’t work.)
November 27th, 2007 at 10:29 am
“Among the people who will be most severely punished on the Day of Resurrection will be those who imitate the creation of Allaah.”
I guess that’s why they behave like mindless, reason-less, soulless, idiots. They don’t want to be accused of mocking Allah’s creation.
November 27th, 2007 at 2:37 pm
It’s heartbreaking. What *really* bothers me is that the kids chose the name, not her. She is not at fault. *cries for humanity*
November 28th, 2007 at 5:32 pm
The latest installment on this saga, via Reuters:
“Muslims are forgivers.”
Yes, they are famous for it, aren’t they?
November 28th, 2007 at 5:49 pm
Muslims are forgivers? Boy did somebody forget to pass out that memo.
I say turn her loose or we light up Sudan like the fourth of July, Unfortunately my say wont get it done.
November 28th, 2007 at 5:52 pm
Leaflets were distributed in Khartoum calling for protests after Friday prayers, but many ordinary Sudanese said they were ready to forgive Gibbons if she apologised.
“When we heard we wanted to demonstrate immediately but some said we should wait and see what the concerned authorities find out,” said Abdallah, a science student.
Shopkeeper Sabir Abdel Karim said that if Gibbons had not intended to insult Islam, an apology to Muslims would be enough to end the problem.
“Any one can make a mistake and Muslims are forgivers. She will be forgiven and God will be the judge.” …
In all fairness, these people are trying to be moderate -in a Muslim sort of way.
Not everyone was ready to forgive and forget, however.
“She is a teacher and should be teaching her pupils to be respectful and have morals but instead she is doing the opposite,” said Mohamed Toum, a law student.
On the other hand, whenever some sonofabitch like this uncoils the whip they intend to use on her, it’d sure be sweet to send ye olde Winchester 180 grain power-point to impact just below his sternum.
That’s a pretty moderating influence too.
(use as directed, repeat as required)
November 28th, 2007 at 6:08 pm
“On the other hand, whenever some sonofabitch like this uncoils the whip they intend to use on her, it’d sure be sweet to send ye olde Winchester 180 grain power-point to impact just below his sternum.
That’s a pretty moderating influence too.
(use as directed, repeat as required)”
I prefer just above the sternum, severing the spinal cord so the twit is still conscious but will never be able to move anything below his neck again, ever. If it be the will of allah, of course.
November 28th, 2007 at 9:35 pm
Just an observation, I believe SG had this up on Monday sometime. It showed up on Fox News website today….2 days later. I’m noticing this more and more lately. Reading a newpaper is useless because all the news that’s worth knowing has usually been posted here a day or two before. Well done SG.
As for this story, I agree with DEZ….let her go now or we light them up.
November 28th, 2007 at 9:57 pm
“I’m noticing this more and more lately. Reading a newpaper is useless because all the news that’s worth knowing has usually been posted here a day or two before.”
Thanks. It never ceases to amaze me how old most “news” are.
November 28th, 2007 at 10:43 pm
Oh yes, Every time I pick up my morning paper I shrug, Um I read this is 2 days ago.
Maybe we are getting spoiled, Or maybe the media should try and catch up.
November 28th, 2007 at 11:09 pm
Wasn’t it Laugh-in (for those of you old enough to remember real comedy) where they used to do a segment called “Tomorrow’s News Today”? So I guess now it would have to be “All of Last Weeks News Tomorrow”.
November 28th, 2007 at 11:19 pm
I’ve seen things here that took a month to get to the local paper (usually the outrageous “let’s bash Christians stuff”). But I’ve also seen the odd Canadian thing here, faster than it appears in my local paper.
As WI said, SG - well done.
November 28th, 2007 at 11:22 pm
“But I’ve also seen the odd Canadian thing here….”
All things Canadian are odd………How about a steak and a Bluey DW?
November 28th, 2007 at 11:31 pm
We may be odd, but at least we won the second world war… (admittedly, y’all helped -eventually!!!)
(I’m listening to a CD of WWII music {just finished Spike Jones “Der Fuhrer’s Face”} WI this is going to serve no purpose other than to get me banned from this site…just stop it !)
November 28th, 2007 at 11:34 pm
If DW is odd and WI gets him banned, Would that make things even?
November 28th, 2007 at 11:39 pm
LOL……Only cause I like you guys.
Night all.
November 28th, 2007 at 11:42 pm
Good night my friend.
All in fun.