Atheist faces jail after Facebook remark
09:41 AEDT Sat Jan 21 2012

An Indonesian civil servant who declared himself an atheist on Facebook was arrested and is now facing jail for blasphemy after being attacked by an angry mob, police said on Friday.

Alexander An, 30, who wrote "God doesn't exist" on his Facebook page, was beaten by a mob of dozens on Wednesday in his hometown in Pulau Punjung, West Sumatra province.

"He is suspected of having blasphemed against Islam," local police chief Chairul Aziz told AFP.

"The man told police investigators that if God really exists and has absolute power, why didn't he prevent bad things from happening in this world."

An said on his Facebook page that he was brought up as a Muslim, like the vast majority in Indonesia, where blasphemy is a punishable crime carrying a maximum five-year prison term.

Dozens of locals stormed into his office after a heated debate with them on Facebook over religion, police said.

An was also an administrator of a Facebook group promoting atheism with 1,243 followers. His postings no longer appeared online following his arrest.

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/world/8406581/atheist-faces-jail-after-facebook-remark

Similar events are happening elsewhere, in fact I received an email through a group which promotes the freedom to be critical of oppressive behaviour, whether it stems from governments or religions, and they are planning a day to promote;
FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION, on February 11th


Quote:

One Law for All is calling for a rally in defence of free expression and the right to criticise religion on 11 February 2012 in central London from 2-4pm. We are also calling for simultaneous events and acts in defence of free expression on 11 February in countries world-wide. The call follows an increased number of attacks on free expression in the UK, including a 17 year old being forced to remove a Jesus and Mo cartoon or face expulsion from his Sixth Form College and demands by the UCL Union that the Atheist society remove a Jesus and Mo cartoon from its Facebook page. It also follows threats of violence, police being called, and the cancellation of a meeting at Queen Mary College where One Law for All spokesperson Anne Marie Waters was to deliver a speech on Sharia. Saying ‘Who gave these kuffar the right to speak?’, an Islamist website called for the disruption of the meeting. Two days later at the same college, though, the Islamic Society held a meeting on traditional Islam with a speaker who has called for the death of apostates, those who mock Islam, and secularist Muslims. Whilst none of this is new, recent events reveal an increased confidence of Islamists to censor free expression publicly, particularly given the support received from universities and other bodies in the name of false tolerance, cultural sensitivity and respect. The right to criticise religion, however, is a fundamental right that is crucial to many, including Muslims. Clearly, the time has come to take a firm and uncompromising stand for free expression and against all forms of threats and censorship. 11 February is our chance to take that stand. You need to be there. Enough is enough. NOTES: Contact us for more information or with details of actions or events being organised outside of London: Maryam Namazie Anne Marie Waters Spokespersons One Law for All BM Box 2387 London WC1N 3XX, UK Tel: +44 (0) 7719166731 onelawforall@gmail.com www.onelawforall.org.uk To help with the costs of the rally and donate to the crucial work of One Law for All, please either send a cheque made payable to One Law for All to BM Box 2387, London WC1N 3XX, UK or pay via Paypal. The One Law for All Campaign was launched on 10 December 2008, International Human Rights Day, to call on the UK Government to recognise that Sharia and religious courts are arbitrary and discriminatory against women and children in particular and that citizenship and human rights are non-negotiable. To join the campaign, sign our petition here.

And we are promoting this alleged religion.


Quote:

Gillard gives $500 MILLION for Muslim schools in Indonesia $500m school deal for Jakarta Tom Allard, Jakarta November 3, 2010 AUSTRALIA will spend $500 million building 2000 schools in Indonesia in an effort to improve the prospects of Indonesia’s youth and moderate the influence of the country’s religious schools. [...] http://www.topix.com/forum/world/australia/TSPBIOVH9NKLE3H1U

Your tax dollars at work. Want to know why your local hospital is run on a tight budget? Wonder no more.

Our brave unemployed have been denied a pay rise because THEIR money is going NORTH.

Australia, you're standing in it.

Quote:

Religion of tolerance.

8-)Don't forget Fundy of Tolerance and Rightard of Tolerance... ;D

salad in wrote on Jan 22^nd, 2012 at 9:07am:

And we are promoting this alleged religion. Quote: Gillard gives $500 MILLION for Muslim schools in Indonesia $500m school deal for Jakarta Tom Allard, Jakarta November 3, 2010 AUSTRALIA will spend $500 million building 2000 schools in Indonesia in an effort to improve the prospects of Indonesia’s youth and moderate the influence of the country’s religious schools. [...] http://www.topix.com/forum/world/australia/TSPBIOVH9NKLE3H1U Your tax dollars at work. Want to know why your local hospital is run on a tight budget? Wonder no more. Our brave unemployed have been denied a pay rise because THEIR money is going NORTH. Australia, you're standing in it.

Did you read that quote?

No need to worry about it only being something that can happen overseas. It will soon be all over for free speech in OZ. In QLD a man has been arrested and jailed for making obscene comments over the death of a teenager on a Facebook page last year.

The fact that the man has been charged and found guilty of making comments in public simply means that what happened in Indonsea can now happen here. If the law is applied equally to all cases upon the principle where this man was tried and found guilty. It would mean also mean that say a person found walking down the street in a form of clothing amongst a community in Sydney where the majority of the community found the behaviour insulting and abhorrent, according to their custom, then a person could be found guilty of say indecent behaviour if they wore a mini-skirt or bare shouldered top in some areas of Sydney............................  Hold onto your hats (or fez) as the case may be ladies and gentaman, and keep your hands and feet inside the carriage as the ride will prolly get very interesting over the next decade or two.....................

freediver wrote on Jan 22^nd, 2012 at 5:49pm:

Did you read that quote?

Which quote?

salad in wrote on Jan 22^nd, 2012 at 8:14pm:

freediver wrote on Jan 22nd, 2012 at 5:49pm: Did you read that quote? Which quote?

The one you posted.


Quote:

AUSTRALIA will spend $500 million building 2000 schools in Indonesia in an effort to improve the prospects of Indonesia’s youth and moderate the influence of the country’s religious schools.