Fatwa Journalist Flees Nigeria

Now, Religion in the News: a report and comment on religious trends and events being covered by the media. This week’s item is from BBC News, November 27, 2002, with a headline: Fatwa journalist flees Nigeria. This day’s fashion writer, Isioma Danielle, is reported to have left Nigeria after calls for her to be killed for insulting the prophet Mohammed. The new journalism graduate wrote an article in response to Muslim objections to Nigeria’s hosting of the Miss World Beauty Contest, saying that the prophet Mohammed would not have complained about the pageant and, indeed, may have chosen to marry one of the beauty queens. Authorities in the Northern state of Zimfara issued what they said was a “Fatwa”, urging Muslims to kill her for writing the article which sparked religious riots in the Northern City of Kaduna. A Fatwa is a religious decree which is normally made by an Islamic scholar, but a spokesman for Zimfara state said that any leader could issue one. This infuriated many Muslims who destroyed this day’s Kaduna office and went on to burn down churches and hotels last week. At least 220 people were killed in several days of clashes between the city’s Muslims and Christians. The Federal government has said that it will not allow the death sentence to be carried out but no action is being taken against the Deputy Governor of Zimfara state. Mamuda Aliyu Shinkafi told religious leaders in Zimfara’s state capitol, Gusau: “Like Salman Rushdie, the blood of Isioma Danielle can be shed. It is binding on all Muslims wherever they are to consider the killing of the writer as a religious duty.” The Miss World Contest was moved to London after the riot. A Muslim cleric in the Capitol Abuja, said that Miss Danielle could only escape the death penalty by converting to Islam. Hussein Mohammed told the BBC focus on Africa program that if he saw her he would kill her even if that meant going to prison because Islamic is more important to him than Nigerian law. “I would be willing to kill my parents for Mohammed,” he said. But other Muslim leaders have a different view. ThisDay newspaper has apologized on her (Miss Danielle’s) behalf so the Fatwa has to be withdrawn, Kaduna based Islamic scholar, Ali Alkali told Reuters. Ann Cooper, Executive Director of the New York based committee to protect journalists said, “We are extremely concerned about her safety. In this whole controversy I think something that has been completely lost is the universal right to free expression.”

Tom:

Dave, when I was looking for some subject matter for this segment of the program I looked at this and just looked at the headline and I thought, Well, it’s about Miss World contest, so I was almost going to blow by it. But this is really an important article, all of the things that are said.The first thing that hit me after I realized that there was a lot more here than I’d first thought was, call it irony, call it whatever—when something is said with regard to issues related to Islam, Muslims go berserk. The whole idea that, you know, President Bush has been saying that, and continues to say that it’s a peaceful religion, that Islam means peace the world over and so on. When you say something to the contrary, what happens? Riots take place, people are killed, Fatwas go out to kill. Now, isn’t this, I mean it’s more than irony, it’s just ludicrous.

Dave:

Well, but this is Islam. It has been spread with the sword. Mohammed said that whoever relinquishes his faith, kill him! They killed every Jew in the Arabian Peninsula. About 70,000 Muslims, former Muslims, were killed in the wars of apostasy. They tried to abandon Islam and Abu Bakr Mohammed’s successor and his men killed tens of thousands. What kind of religion a is this? The Bible says that God wants our hearts, Come now let us reason together, the Lord says. You know, you can’t reason with Islam, there’s no reasoning. If we could just get Muslims–and I wish we could have an International debate, Tom, and we’ll go to the Bible and say, Look, here are the reasons why we believe in the Bible. We’ve got prophecies, we’ve got historical evidence, archeological evidence and so forth, internal evidence. I mean, the teachings of the Bible bring love and peace and joy and so forth. Now you go to the Quran, you tell us why you believe in the Quran, why you believe in Mohammed, we’ll tell you why we believe in Jesus Christ. Let’s have a level playing field, let’s discuss this reasonably, let’s weigh the evidence together. But if you have to kill people, if you have to threaten people with death if they abandon their faith, they can’t even examine the evidence. You won’t allow them to do that, you will not even allow anyone even to question the Quran, to question Mohammed. It’s not only here but it’s in Pakistan and other places. In Saudi Arabia you couldn’t dare question Islam, but here you can question. If you don’t think the Bible is true, give us your reasons. Of course, people say horrible things about Jesus Christ and Christians don’t go on a rampage and kill people. Not only were they after this woman but they are out there burning down hotels, killing over 200 people who had nothing to do with this, they didn’t write the article.As you said, they’re going berserk. Now, it reminds me of the scripture where Paul says—he asks for prayer that they would be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men for all men have not faith, he said. If you don’t have faith in Christ you’re unreasonable and it leads to wickedness. And we see it in Islam. Why can’t we have a free discussion, we’re not going to threaten you, don’t you threaten me. If you threaten me with death if I don’t submit to Allah, if I don’t say that Mohammed is the true prophet, that Allah is a true god you’re going to kill me, how can you imagine that I would even believe this? The only reason that I would repeat that formula out of fear, there’s no god but Allah, Mohammed is his prophet, is because you’re going to kill me. But that doesn’t change my heart, they didn’t change—the Taliban didn’t change people’s hearts. As soon as the Taliban is gone, off with the beards, out with the rock music, off with the burqas, and so forth.

Tom:

Well Dave, and we’ve also quoted from the Quran, there is no compulsion in religion and then we’ve quoted verse after verse of what they are to do to the infidel and, or, as you mentioned, to those who are Muslims but come to a realization that it’s not true and reject it, they’re to be killed as well. So, what is this business of no compulsion in religion? Well, we only have about 30 seconds here.

Dave:

Yeah. Because that applies like in the United States now when they do not have the power to compel anyone. But when they have the power, then they use the other verses. That’s Islam!I challenge any Muslim to prove otherwise. Look at the history, look at what they have done, look at your prophet, look at your writings. Why can’t we have an even handed discussion?Let’s be reasonable with one another, okay?