Wednesday, November 28, 2007

British Teacher in Sudan Charged & Treated Well

Via NYDailyNews -

A British teacher under arrest in Sudan was formally charged Wednesday with inciting hatred for allowing her 7-year-old students to name a teddy bear Muhammad.

If convicted, Gillian Gibbons, 54, could be sentenced to 40 lashes, a fine or six months behind bars. The case goes to court on Thursday.

State media reported Gibbons, from Liverpool, England, also faced charges of insulting religion and showing contempt of religious beliefs.

"Khartoum north prosecution unit has completed its investigation and has charged the Briton Gillian under Article 125 of the criminal code," the SUNA agency said, quoting a senior Justice Ministry official.

In London, Foreign Secretary David Miliband summoned the Sudanese ambassador to discuss the matter, the British government said.

Gibbons, a teacher at the Unity School in the Sudanese capital Khartoum, was arrested after her class chose potential names for the stuffed toy and voted overwhelmingly to name the teddy Muhammad.

Muhammad is the most popular boy's name in Sudan and in much of the Muslim world, but some consider giving it to an inanimate object to be blasphemous. Some parents complained after their children told them about the teddy bear.

One boy in the class said he had suggested the name.

"The teacher asked me what I wanted to call the teddy. I said Muhammad. I named it after my name," the youngster told the BBC.

His parents told reporters that Gibbons was a "very nice" teacher who never mentioned religion in class.

Robert Boulos, director of the Unity School, has said Gibbons would never intentionally insult Islam and that it was an innocent mistake. He has closed the school until January for fear of reprisals.

Three British Embassy officials and a colleague from the school were allowed to visit Gibbons in jail.

"I can confirm that we have met Ms. Gibbons and she said she is being treated well," said British consul Russell Phillips. "We remain in close contact with the Sudanese authorities on this case."

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