Unity High School (Sudan): Difference between revisions
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* [http://www.unityhighschool.org Unity High School's official web-site] |
* [http://www.unityhighschool.org Unity High School's official web-site] |
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** [http://www.unityhighschool.org/history.htm History and origins] |
** [http://www.unityhighschool.org/history.htm History and origins] |
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*** [http://www.petitiononline.com/gt2007td/petition.html Name A Teddy For Gillian Support Petition] |
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Revision as of 00:39, 1 December 2007
Template:High School Infobox Unity High School, founded in 1902, is an independent school in Khartoum, Sudan, which uses the English language and provides a British-style education to children of various backgrounds. In 2005 it has an enrolment of some 750 students.
Unity High School was originally a girls' school, only becoming co-educational in 1985. Currently its students range from 4 to 18 years of age.
Teddy bear blasphemy case
 | This section documents a current event. Information may change rapidly as the event progresses, and initial news reports may be unreliable. The latest updates to this section may not reflect the most current information. (November 2007) |
On November 25 2007 the school came to public attention when one of its teachers, Gillian Gibbons, was arrested by Sudanese authorities for allegedly insulting Islam by naming a teddy bear "Muhammad".[1][2] Islam traditionally condemns any depictions of Muhammad, who Muslims regard as the last messenger and prophet of God. Initially it was thought that the complaint had originated from a parent of one of the children at the school. However, it was revealed that it was actually an office assistant Sara Khawad who filed the complaint and was the key witness for the prosecution.[3] Many Muslim organisations have publicly condemned the Sudanese over their reactions.[4] The teddy bear was named Muhammad by a vote of the class Gibbons was teaching.[2] The bear was named Muhammad after one of the boys in the class who had that name.[2]
The school is closed until January for the safety of pupils and staff as reprisals are feared.[2][5] On November 28 2007, it was reported that the teacher, Gillian Gibbons, had been formally charged under Section 125 of the Sudanese Criminal Act, for "insulting religion, inciting hatred and showing contempt for religious beliefs".[6][7] This carries a maximum sentence of imprisonment, a fine, or 40 lashes.
On November 29, 2007, Gibbons was found guilty of "insulting religion", one of the three counts against her, and was sentenced to 15 days imprisonment and deportation.[8] The Muslim Council of Britain, an umbrella organization of British Muslim groups, has said the punishment is "completely unjustified"[9] and has said it is "appalled",[10] and called on the Sudanese government to intervene.[11]
On November 30, protesters demanded Gibbon's execution after Imams denounced her during Friday prayers.[12][13] During the march, chants of "Shame, shame on the UK", "No tolerance - execution" and "Kill her, kill her by firing squad" were heard.
A significant protest movement on the web has turned up in response to the controversy with at least one group selling teddy bears to raise awareness.[14]
References
- ^ "'Muhammad' teddy teacher arrested". BBC. 2007-11-26. Retrieved 2007-11-28.
- ^ a b c d Rob Crilly in Khartoum and Lucy Bannerman (2007-11-27). "Sudan police throw teacher in jail for teddy bear named Muhammad". The Times. Retrieved 2007-11-28.
- ^ "Protesters demand execution of 'blasphemy' teacher". 2007-11-30. Retrieved 2007-11-30.
- ^ "Muhammad and the Teddy bear". 2007-11-29. Retrieved 2007-11-29.
- ^ "Teddy bear teacher found guilty". Daily News. 2007-11-29. Retrieved 2007-11-29.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "'Muhammad' Teacher charged over teddy row". BBC. 2007-11-28. Retrieved 2007-11-29.
- ^ "UK teacher goes to court in Sudan". BBC. 2007-11-29. Retrieved 2007-11-29.
- ^ "UK teacher jailed over teddy row". 2007-11-29. Retrieved 2007-11-29.
- ^ "U.K.: Sudan Ambassador Will Relay Concerns Over Teddy Bear Teacher". Associated Press. Fox News. 2007-11-29. Retrieved 2007-11-29.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Addison, Stephen (2007-11-29). "Teddy bear teacher - was she naive?". Reuters. Retrieved 2007-11-29.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ de Montesquiou, Alfred (2007-11-29). "Sudan Charges Teacher for Teddy Bear Name". Guardian Unlimited. Retrieved 2007-11-29.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Mohamed Osman (30 November 2007). "Calls in Sudan for execution of Briton". Associated Press.
- ^ Charles Onians (30 November 2007). "Khartoum demo calls for teacher to be shot". AFP.
- ^ Crump, Andrew (2007-11-30). "Protect the Right to Bear names". Word Press. Retrieved 2007-11-30.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help)
External links
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