On today’s Al Masry Al Youm (Arabic), Dr. Ali Jum’a Mufti explains that God has given the freedom to all humans to alter their faith, and should they do that their fate awaits them with God on Judgment Day. Dr. Mufti uses certain verses within the Holy Quran to support this argument, “whoever wants to believe shall believe and whoever wants to disbelieve may do so,” as well as “you have your religion and we have ours,” and finally “there’s no hatred in religion.”

Dr. Mufti adds that if a person merely rejects Islam, there is no punishment against that and it should be left in the hands of God. It may only involve the judicial body should that person be actually harmful, an argument not in favor of Egypt’s ruling against Kareem Amer. What Kareem went through is a personal struggle between Him and God, and he is free to believe and express whatever he wants as long as it doesn’t preach violence, which Kareem is also innocent of.

Why, then, did Kareem get sentenced to three years in prison for “insulting” Islam, if the Koran specifically notes that he is free to do so and only God reserves the right and power to punish such person for sinning? Why does the Egyptian government take upon the role of God in this case, punishing whoever it wishes in the name of Islam? We at the Free Kareem Coalition respectfully demand a valid justification on the basis of Kareem’s sentence. Where in the Quran is this action supported? More importantly, where are the rest of the Muslim voices to condemn this grave misrepresentation and injustice?

We are Muslims. Our faith teaches us to live and let live. We are not afraid of criticism as it is normal nor should we allow our governments to play the role of God and make decisions that they don’t have the right to do. Our opinions are our own and we are free to express them, should they be against Islam then the decision is up to God to do as He wishes. The role of the government is to protect us, not imprison those they ideologically disagree with.

We kindly ask the Egyptian government to respect our individual freedoms, if not in the name of humanity, then at the very least in the name of Islam!

Read the article in Arabic here.

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Dear readers,

In a few months, on the 6th of November, it will be Kareem’s 1 year anniversary in prison. Can you believe it? One entire year in prison so far merely for speaking his mind! Sharing a dreadful place with actual criminals, because he was brave enough to express his opinions…. on a personal blog!

It’s time for the world to move, and it’s time for us to show Egypt that we have NOT forgotten about Kareem. The less action people take, the more likely similar incidents will happen. We have to oppose this and we have to do it together, as strongly as possible. We must unite to support Kareem regardless of our backgrounds, religious differences, nationalities, or whatever else that usually keeps us apart… we must unite for human rights and free speech, regardless of whether or not we personally agreed with Kareem’s political and religious statements.

We have decided to mark Kareem’s one year anniversary with another (and more powerful!) Free Kareem worldwide rally… we are aiming for at least 20 cities, where people will gather in front of their local Egyptian Embassy with signs and statements to free the innocent blogger.

Due to the fact that the 6th of November will be on a Tuesday, where many people might have work or classes, we think it’s best to move the rally date to Friday, the 9th of November.

We are looking for as much help as we can get to make this possible, so please help us by contacting us using the below info (or via our contact form) and let us know if you are willing to organize one. Please consider doing so! All we ask is that you gather with a few people in front of the embassy to make your voices heard, knowing that many people around the world are also dedicating their time towards this noble and vital cause.

Contact info:

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Thank you, we are trying our best to make this as successful and effective as possible, so please contact us now for collaboration, suggestions and ideas! And more importantly…

SPREAD THE WORD!

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Moataz El-Fegiery writes in the Lebanon-based regional Daily Star:

Unwilling to remain on the sidelines in the reform debate in the Middle East for the past two years, Arab governments have asserted themselves against civil society activists and reformists, creating a significant rise in the numbers of Arab prisoners of conscience. The return of security issues to the fore once again in the politics of the region, as well as the softening of calls by the international community for freedom and reform, have encouraged Arab regimes in such actions.

Later in the article, Kareem’s case is mentioned:

Egypt has similarly prosecuted journalist Huweida Taha for “publishing false information violating the reputation of the country,” due to her work on torture, as well as blogger Karim Amer and newspaper editor Ibrahim Issa for “insulting the president.”

Read full article here.

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