A renowned Algerian scholar on Islam, Said Djabelkhir, was handed a three-year prison sentence on Thursday for “offending Islam” in three Facebook posts, but pledged to appeal and keep fighting for “freedom” of thought.
Djabelkhir, 53, who has called for “reflection” on Islam’s founding texts, was put on trial after seven lawyers and a fellow academic made complaints against him.
Speaking to the AFP news agency after the verdict, Djabelkhir, who was released on bail, said he was surprised by the severity of the sentence and that he would appeal to the Court of Cassation if necessary.
“We have the misfortune to be doing research in Algeria,” said the academic, a specialist on Sufi Islam.
“[But] the fight for freedom of conscience is non-negotiable. It is a fight which must continue.”
A little earlier, Djabelkhir’s lawyer Moumen Chadi, who also expressed shock about the ruling, said his client had “been sentenced to three years in prison … [for] offending the precepts of Islam”.
“There is no proof,” the lawyer said, describing the case as baseless.
The offence of which he was convicted can be punished by up to five years in prison.
The offence
The scholar, author of two well-known works, was criticised for writing that the sacrifice of sheep predates Islam and for criticising practices including the marriage of pre-pubescent girls in some Muslim societies.
According to the global rights group Amnesty International, in three Facebook posts in January 2020, Said Djabelkheir drew comparisons between Eid al-Adha and the Berber New Year celebrations, referred to some stories in the Quran as “myths”, and said he considered certain hadiths “apocryphal”.
Algerian law stipulates a three-to-five-year prison term and or a fine for “anyone who offends the Prophet or denigrates the dogmatic precepts of Islam, whether it be by writings, drawings, a statement or another means”…..read more
Source: Al Jazeera
