Nigerian gospel singer, 22, sentenced to death for blasphemy in Sharia court

WHY WE NEED SECULAR PLURALISTIC NON RELIGIOUS CIVIL SOCIETY

KEEP YOUR RELIGION LIKE YOUR SEXUAL RELATIONS; PRIVATE


A Nigerian Sharia court in the state of Kano handed down a death sentence for blasphemy for a young gospel singer who allegedly insulted the Prophet Muhammed in a song. File Photo by Akintunde Akinleye/EPA-EFE

Aug. 10 (UPI) -- A Nigerian Sharia court in Kano sentenced a 22-year-old gospel singer to death by hanging for alleged blasphemy in a song the singer wrote and circulated on WhatsApp.

The Hausawa Filin Hockey upper-Sharia court found Yahaya Sharif-Aminu guilty of blaspheming the Prophet Muhammed by praising a local imam from the Tijaniya Muslim brotherhood in one line of a song circulated by Sharif-Aminu in March.

Sharif-Aminu did not deny the charges.

Sharia Judge Aliyu Muhammad Kani said Sharif-Aminu could appeal the ruling within 90 days.

The prosecutor, Inspector Aminu Yargoje, said the verdict was fair because it would deter future blasphemy in the state.

The Sharia courts are a separate Muslim-only court system used along with civil courts in majority-Muslim areas of Nigeria. Death sentences handed down in Sharia courts have rarely been carried out, with the most recent execution happening in 1999, according to BBC News.

The civil supreme court can overturn a death conviction of the Sharia courts.

Sharif-Aminu went into hiding after his song was released, but angry youth protesters burned down his family's home and demanded action from the Islamic police, called the Hisbah.

"When I heard about the judgment I was so happy because it showed our protest wasn't in vain," the leader of the protesters, Idris Ibrahim, said Monday.

But other young Nigerians were upset by the ruling.

"No one should ever be sentenced to death for blasphemy," youth film director Enioluwa Adeoluwa tweeted. "This is an extreme violation of human rights and the FG must act to stop the sentence from being carried out. It is Sharif-Aminu today it may be you tomorrow."

Sharif-Aminu is not a well-known singer in Nigeria, being one of many gospel musicians within the Tijaniya Muslim brotherhood sect, the BBC reported. He is currently being held in jail.

Another member of the Tijaniya sect was sentenced to death in Sharia courts in 2016 and remains in prison. Abdulazeez Inyass was convicted of blasphemy in Kano after a secret trial for allegedly proclaiming that Tijaniya founder Sheikh Ibrahim Niasse "was bigger than Prophet Muhammad" during a sermon.

Outraged protesters at Inyass's trial set the courthouse on fire, BBC reported.

Report: Humanists and non-religious people face discrimination in 8 countries

President of the Humanist Association in Nigeria Mubarak Bala, who was arrested for blasphemy in April, is among those listed as subject to discrimination in a report published Thursday. File Photo courtesy of Humanists International

June 25 (UPI) -- Humanists and other non-religious people are targets of discrimination and persecution in eight countries, a Humanists International report published Thursday said.

Humanists International is a global non-governmental organization, championing secularism and human dignity. The organization's Humanists at Risk Action Report 2020 published Thursday focused on human rights conditions in Colombia, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines and Sri Lanka.

The report found humanists and other non-religious people were discriminated against in government policies, including blasphemy and apostasy laws and education systems with no secular alternative.

Incidents include two police officers arresting the president of the Humanist Association in Nigeria, Mubarak Bala, for blasphemy in April. Bala was arrested in connection with a Facebook post, where he allegedly insulted the Prophet Muhammad. The police officers took Bala from his home in Kaduna, northern Nigeria, to Nigeria's northern Kano State, where blasphemy is punishable by death.

Since Bala renounced Islam in 2014, he has been subject to death threats and harassment, according to the report.

"To speak out and say you're an atheist or humanist in Nigeria can be dangerous, but Bala is very passionate about creating a space for those who do not subscribe to Islam or religion," said Leo Igwe, a fellow Nigerian humanist and human rights advocate.

In Colombia, Jaime Augusto Sanchez, a professor of religion, was attacked last year because he identified as an atheist and discussed various religious worldviews other than the dominant Roman Catholic one, the report said.


In Malaysia, authorities have repeatedly harassed Eric Paulsen, a non-religious person who has criticized the government and Islamist extremism, according to the report.

The report noted that non-religious minorities in Pakistan, which is approximately 97 percent Muslim, also face condemnation when they speak out.

"The legal environment in Pakistan is notably repressive; it has brutal blasphemy laws, systemic and legislative discrimination and often allows vigilante violence on religious grounds to occur with impunity," the report said.

In India, the report voiced concern about the new Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019, and recommended that the act be amended to include non-religious people, humanists and atheists.

The report recommended across the eight countries that local laws or policies criminalizing blasphemy should be repealed and government schools should provide secular education for all children.

The report funded by the United Kingdom Foreign and Commonwealth Office is based on testimony from 76 survey respondents in the eight countries.
RELATED Survey: Atheists face discrimination, rejection in many areas of life

"This report shines a light on the targeted violence, continued harassment and social discrimination faced by humanists in many countries and opens the door to conversations on how best to protect humanists worldwide," Chief Executive of Humanists International Gary McLelland said. "What is clear is that all laws and policies which criminalize ' blasphemy' should be repealed."

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