User:Dineee90/sandbox
Mohamed Karim Labidi | |
|---|---|
| محمد كريم العبيدي | |
| Born | 4 August 1966 |
| Nationality |  Tunisia Netherlands |
| Occupation(s) | Atheist political activist, blogger |
| Known for | Criticism of Islam |
Mohamed Karim Labidi (Arabic: محمد كريم العبيدي, Tifinagh: ⵎⵃⵎⴷ ⴿⵔⵢⵎ ⴰⵍⵄⴱⵢⴷⵢ, moˈhɑmɛd kɚˈriːm Labidi, IPA , born 04 August 1966; popularly known as Karim Labidi) is a Tunisian-Dutch ex-Muslim and ex-Islamist of Amazigh descent. An atheist political activist and blogger known for his criticism of Islam.
Biography[edit]
Early life[edit]
Karim Labidi was born and raised in Tunisia, then moved to France in 1980 to pursue his studies, then travelled between Iran and Syria for religious instruction. He grew up in a traditional Tunisian family, a family with nine siblings. He is the younger brother of Samira Labidi, the wife of the former leader of the Ennahda Movement "Salah Karker"[clarification needed]; Samira was his closest sister and she was like a mother to him. When Samira enrolled at the university, she completely changed, never stopped chanting with the name of God "Allah" and adopted traditional dress. Karim was influenced by his sister, and shifted his interest to Islamic extremism.[1]
Political Islam[edit]
Labidi is an ex-Shia Imam; he began his studies of Islam in Tehran at the Hawza Al-Qaim seminary in 1983, headed by Mohammad al-Shirazi. He received his Islamic instrucction from senior Shia sheikhs, including Fawzi Muhammad Al Saif, Hassan al-Saffar, Hadi al-Modarresi and Mohammad Taqi al-Modarresi.
He learned jurisprudence, Islamic principles, culture and history; as a result, he found himself involved in the Iranian Shia Islam political network (Labidi had been recruited at the Iranian Cultural Center in Paris). He was responsible for engaging new Islamist elements, and worked as a coordinator with The Ennahda Movement in Tunisia from 1985 until 1987.[1] [2]
Labidi was arrested in Tunisia with a group of Islamist youths in 1987 on several charges, including compromising state security and dealing with foreign parties. After the 1987 Tunisian coup d'état the new president, Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, released Labidi under a general legislative amnesty at the beginning of 1988.[1]
Work[edit]
Upon his abandonment of Iranian Shia Islam, Labidi continued his spiritual journey until he became acquainted with Gnosticism and Sufism, through his visits to various countries in pursuit of knowledge. He settled in Morocco (1992 - 1997) moving between Tangier, Fez, Meknes and finally Agadir and got involved with many Sufi sheikhs, where he was taught the spiritual teachings. Labidi got arrested again in Morocco in 1998, discharged to Mauritania and then to Tunisia.[1] Labidi processed his thoughts and life experience to find his "atheistic faith", which he expresses as "No one is the master of people, each one is the master of himself".
Islam criticism[edit]
Labidi apostatized against Islam in 1998 and declared his atheism. He was invited to several events and political-intellectual conferences around the world. [3] Labidi was the founder of the first Tunisian association for ex-Muslims in 2001.[4].The association and all its activities were banned in 2006; Labidi was placed under unofficial house arrest until 2011, at the time of the Tunisian revolution.
Political events[edit]
Labidi sought political asylum in the Netherlands in 2012 [1] [5] and returned to his political-intellectual activities. He founded the intellectual and cultural movement MCAN (Movement to Change North Africa), [6] in 2015. Its goal is the freedom of the Amazigh people on their land. Labidi applied to form a political party, Tinastparty, in Tunisia in 2018. His application was rejected by Tunisian authorities after multiple attempts. [citation needed]
The first MCAN conference[7] took place in Rotterdam in July of 2017. Labidi, its official spokesperson, gave a political speech about Amazigh culture to spread public awareness of the right of free speech and well-being for each individual. Labidi and MCAN have organized events around such themes as Amizagh rights, Ramadan restrictions and female inheritance rights, in places including Rotterdam, Paris, Tunis and Tétouan, Morocco.[8][9][10].[11]
Activities[edit]
Labidi has been receiving death threats [5] from Islamists since he started again, criticizing Islam through social media and political events. He is very active on social media.
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d e "Ik ga je doodmaken, kreeg ik naar mijn hoofd geslingerd". de Volkskrant. 29–30 Aug 2015.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: date format (link) Cite error: The named reference "de Volkskrant" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page). - ^ Leaving Islam : apostates speak out. Amherst, NY: Prometheus Books. 2003. p. 32. ISBN 9781591020684.
- ^ "Islam contre Islam". atheisme.org.
- ^ Chaarani, Ahmed (2004). La mouvance islamiste au Maroc : du 11 septembre 2001 aux attentats de Casablanca du 16 mai 2003. Paris: Karthala. p. 456. ISBN 9782845865303.
- ^ a b "Ik heb niks meer met islam te maken". Algemeen Dagblad. 19–20 Sep 2015.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: date format (link) Cite error: The named reference "AD1" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page). - ^ Nederland, GraydonGo. "Bedrijfsinformatie van Stichting Movement of Changing North Africa (MCAN)". graydongo.nl.
- ^ "Colloque MCAN 15-07-2017 Crises et perspectives". Portail Islamla (in French).
- ^ "Intervention de Mohamed karim labidi a Rotterdam 2018". Portail Islamla (in French).
- ^ "Mouchbessif Paris". www.facebook.com.
- ^ "La participation de MCAN à la marche "Harir Tunis" 2018". Portail Islamla (in French).
- ^ "La 7ème édition du Festival «Bachikh» 2019". Portail Islamla (in French).
External links[edit]
