 A Sudanese Islamist leader who once protected Al Qaeda supremo Osama bin Laden was branded an apostate by the countryÂ’s Muslim scholars on Sunday for taking a liberal stand on womenÂ’s rights.
| A "liberal" stand on women's rights in Sudan would be repressive most other places... |
The clerics proposed trying Hassan al-Turabi for apostasy following recent declarations by the Popular Congress Party leader that women were equal to men, had the right to marry a Christian or a Jew and could even lead prayers.
| I find the proposal jaw-dropping, given that Turabi's always been a raving Islamist. He's a member of the Supreme Council of Global Jihad, for instance, still in good standing as far as I know. Women being equal to men does sound un-Islamic, despite the fact or perhaps because of the fact that it makes sense. Marrying a Christian or a Jew would by extension mean they'd be able to leave Islam and join their spouse's religion. Women leading prayers has been the excuse for riots and fatwahs in the recent past. |
“Turabi should declare repentance or face the Sharia Hadd for heresy,” said the statement by the Muslim Scholars Committee, which has the support of the government and controls many of the country’s mosques. Hadd is a word in Islamic law that applies to punishments inflicted for some of the most serious offenses. The traditional punishment for heresy or apostasy in Sharia law is the death penalty.
| Most of the traditional punishments under Shariah law seem to involve death and/or mutilation... |
During a conference in Khartoum earlier this month, Turabi - the country’s most famous Muslim theologian - sparked an intense debate by expressing liberal views on Sudanese society and Islam. The white-turbaned 74-year-old cleric described the Muslim teachings that a Muslim woman should not marry a Christian or a Jew as “backward” and that adherence to such principles was aimed at hampering women’s rights.
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