Sharia law for Salah Choudhury?

The American Jewish Committee in a new press release is urging the Bangladesh caretaker government of Fakhruddin Ahmed to take a strong stand for justice and drop the unwarranted charges against Salah Choudhury, publisher and editor of The Weekly Blitz and winner of the Moral Courage Award 2006, whose trial for sedition has resumed on 22nd January.

In these pages I have done a number of urgent appeals to the readership to sign the petition, the last one around 1st January. The number of indignant blogs, comments and posts daily published about the woes of Islam and the injustices of sharia law, plus the calls for universal human rights and freedom of speech and conscience can hardly be counted. It is therefore more than a little sad that the petition for this brave journalist, who is on trial for his life for sedition, viz. for his beliefs in inter-faith dialogue, fails to get more attention.

The current ticker of the petition stands at 3,354, which is better than it was around Christmas, but is still not on such levels that it reasonably can be hoped to assert any sway over the radicals within the judiciary in Bangladesh.

Therefore another appeal TO SIGN THE PETITION FOR THE LIFE OF SALAH CHOUDHURY TODAY - right this minute!
Here is the link to the petition. If you don't get to the right page directly, please copy and paste "Choudhury" into the Google search box and click the first petition listed. If you own a blog or a website, please consider inserting a link of your own to actively support the campaign.

On Pride, Shame and Debauchery in the Emerald City

- Today I received from the American Jewish Committee an update on the Salah Choudhury situation. Apparently the Moral Courage Award has been handed out to Mr Choudhury. What fills me personally with anger is that my government is lavishing vast amounts of taxpayer's money (called development funds) on a country that abuses its citizens, is stifling freedom and tends to follow the ranks of what is now termed a new political system in the Islamic world that will prove to be every bit as bad as its predecessors. Here's the article in yesterday's Daily Star of Lebanon in re of National Islamism (make a mental note; I don't think we've heard the first and the last of this).
It is not too late to sign the petition for the life of Salah Choudhury! The link can be found here on the left hand side column or see the relevant articles.

Here's the story on the Award:

Shoaib Salah Choudhury expressed deep appreciation to AJC for sending its Moral Courage Award to him through the U.S. Embassy in Bangladesh. "When I brought the plaque to my residence, my family was extremely delighted to see it. We have placed the plaque with respect in our living room, where the guests will have the opportunity of seeing it. Each time I see it, it gives me a kind of divine inspiration. And, every time, I remember especially Mr. David Harris and our friend Yehudit Barsky for kindly choosing me as the recipient of the award." AJC had attempted to honor Choudhury at the Centennial Annual Meeting in May 2006, but he was prevented from leaving Bangladesh and is now on trial for sedition because of his efforts to foster dialogue with Jews, to visit Israel and his opposition to radical Islam in Bangladesh. His trial is set to resume on January 22.

- On a similar note how Islamic countries are misusing so-called development funds against their benefactors. Lebanon's Daily Star has a report how Egypt is funding Al Qa'ida's P.R. requirements.

- This post isn't about a so-called "Peace Mum" who is exploiting the death of her son for narrow party political gains in a shameless fashion. Present pastime is proof she's also an activist and is displaying very awkward bereavement reactions.

- Here we have a worthy, except if you happen to be Venezuelan, in which case my commiserations. After Tony Blair's socialism by a third way proved to be unadulterated Tory politics, it seems that Hugo Chavez a.k.a. The Clown of the Caribbean, is now trying to get it done in yet a fourth manner. How many more ways do they need to concede at last that socialism doesn't work?!

- According to the E.U. Observer Spain and Luxemburg are calling for "pride" in the Constitution. They are right: pride is so much more important than acknowledging your religious, historical and cultural roots of two millennia! Pride is P.C., pride is neutral, pride is good (provided it doesn't lead to nationalistic tendencies, in which case we'll break out in a terrible rash: wait till the 21st and you'll see).

- The theme of today's post seems to be shame and pride. Here's one for the shame category: Recently I have been writing how the New Europe, the former East Block, is treated by Old Europe, which is an indecent shame. Al-Guardian provides us today with an excellent example. (What an awful rag is that! And me thinking the New Rotterdam Courant was the pits!)

- Townhall.com's columnist Star Parker is on the case of the defense of Oprah! Good for her! I'm so proud of her!

- Back to shame (and a bit of fun thrown in): journalist Rajiv Chandrasekaran, former Baghdad bureau chief for The Washington Post has published a book. It's all about the debauched life of the Americans in the Green Zone in Baghdad during the first year of the U.S. occupation. It's called Imperial Life in the Emerald City. In a recent interview on CNN he clarified the trouveille as follows: 'emerald' refers to the Green Zone (emeralds are green, you must know) and the Americans were displaying 'imperial' attitudes: they were sitting in Saddam's palaces, eating pork in the middle of an Islamic capital!

Give yourself a merry Christmas and sign the petition for the life of Salah Choudhury today!

Yesterday I received the following from the European Parliament and in all honesty, I'm impressed!

quote

We acknowledge receipt of your message and in response to your inquiry we would like to inform you that the case of Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury, a journalist who advocates dialogue between religions and recognition of Israel, is highlighted. He was arrested in November 2003 and is in danger of being condemned to death for sedition at his trial, which is due to open on November 13th. The European Parliament resolution on Bangladesh calls for a review of his trial and for his acquittal.We would like to invite you to read Eropean Parliament (EP) article from 16th November 2006 on this matter, available on this web page of the EP: For further reading we suggest the European Parliament resolution on Bangladesh. You may also wish to get in touch with your MEP. Contact details can be found on this page. We hope that this information will be of use to you.

unquote

Let's also hope this does Salah Choudhury's trial some good.
The petition can still be signed here. The counter stands on a mere 3330! Come give yourself a merry Christmas and sign the petition today!

Sign the petition for Sallah Choudhury today!

Today I found in my mailbox a newsletter from the American Jewish Committee, relaying an op-ed by it's executive director, David A. Harris in the Special to The Jewish Week Magazine, needing urgent attention. He explains as follows:

"We are taught in the Talmud that "whoever saves a life, it is considered as if he saved an entire world." Today a life is at risk in a Bangladeshi court. The man's name is Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury. He is a journalist and editor of Blitz, an English-language weekly newspaper. He is on trial for sedition, punishable by death in Bangladesh.
His alleged "crime"? In the words of the presiding judge: "By praising the Jews and Christians, by attempting to travel to Israel, and by predicting the so-called
rise of Islamist militancy in the country and expressing such through writings inside the country and abroad, you have tried to damage the image and relations of Bangladesh with the outside world."
In other words, Mr. Choudhury believes in interfaith dialogue and respect, normalized ties between Bangladesh and Israel, and opposition to Islamic radicalism. Those views could cost him his life. His difficulties began in 2003 when he became interested in Israel and initiated correspondence with a Jerusalem Post editor. That led to an article he wrote for the paper advocating the establishment of peaceful relations between his country and Israel. The piece caught the attention of an Israeli scholar, who invited him to give a lecture in Israel at the International Forum for Literature and Culture of Peace. He accepted, but never made it.
As Mr. Choudhury was about to board a plane in Dhaka, Bangladesh's capital, for the long, circuitous journey, he was arrested and his passport was confiscated. He was accused of espionage and charged with sedition. He spent the next 17 months in hellish prison conditions, including torture, denial of medical attention and isolation. He was released in April 2005, largely because of the determined efforts of two individuals—Dr. Richard Benkin, a Jewish community activist from Chicago, and Illinois Congressman Mark Kirk. But that release was followed by more harassment, threats on his life, attacks on his newspaper's offices, and the looming trial. When the American Jewish Committee sought to present Mr. Choudhury with its Moral Courage Award in May 2006, Bangladeshi authorities once again prevented him from leaving the country. Instead, he spoke movingly via video hook-up, while Dr. Benkin came to Washington to accept the AJC tribute on behalf of a man he refers to as his brother.
The trial has now begun. The judge in the case is widely known for his link to Islamic radicals. The chances of Mr. Choudhury receiving a fair hearing are slim. Remarkably, throughout this three-year ordeal, Mr. Choudhury has stood unbowed and unbent. He has faced his accusers with remarkable courage, stoicism and equanimity.
As outside lifelines, Dr. Benkin and Rep. Kirk have remained tenacious, constantly reminding the Bangladeshi government that this case is being monitored carefully and urging others to join with them in defense of Mr. Choudhury.
The State Department, United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, PEN USA, some individual Members of Congress and a few newspapers have spoken out.
Most recently, Rep. Kirk, a Republican, and Rep. Nita Lowey, a New York Democrat, introduced a resolution calling on the Bangladeshi government to drop all pending charges against Mr. Choudhury, return his confiscated possessions, stop "harassment and intimidation," and hold "accountable those responsible for attacks against" him. (To urge Members of Congress to support this initiative, visit AJC.)
In a world where radical Islam is on the march, threatening moderate Muslims and non-Muslims alike, outspoken and fearless individuals like Mr. Choudhury deserve our full support. It is they, after all, who are on the front lines. The goal should be to send an unmistakable signal to the Bangladeshi government, a recipient of U.S. (Ed. and European) aid, that the case is being watched and its outcome could affect bilateral ties. Other countries committed to freedom of speech, human dignity and mutual respect should also be heard from—and their diplomats seen in the Bangladeshi courtroom to demonstrate tangible concern. To date, regrettably, too few have been either heard or seen.
At the risk of stating the obvious, this is by no means an exclusively American or Jewish issue; rather, it is a matter of fundamental human rights. The history of the human rights struggle, whether behind the Iron Curtain or in South Africa during the apartheid era, underscores the need to focus the spotlight on offending nations, depict the plight of individuals, and urge democratic countries to include human rights concerns high on their agenda when dealing with the offending nations. For those concerned about the outcome of the titanic clash in the Muslim world between radicals and moderates, and who wish the latter to know they do not stand alone in their valiant struggle, Mr. Choudhury's case demands our attention—and now."

I think we should take good notice of the above, which has remained largely out of the attention of the news outlets. Don't wait, sign the petition today. I think it is a shame that to date only some 3310 signatures have been submitted, world wide!

Related links:
AJC
Sign the petition today
Daniel Pearl Organization
Middle East Weblog