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Kuwait debates death for blasphemers
A Kuwaiti man accused of using Twitter to defame the Muslim Prophet Mohammad has ignited a debate in the tiny but wealthy Gulf country about imposing the death penalty for the crime of blasphemy.Muslim preachers, lawmakers and international human rights groups have all jumped into the debate, which erupted after Hamad Al-Naqi, a member of the countrys Shiite minority, was arrested March 28 on charges of defaming the Prophet in tweets posted on the social-networking website. He has denied making the posts, claiming that somebody hacked into his Twitter account. Under Article 111 of Kuwaits penal code, which prohibits defamation of religion, Naqi faces up to one years imprisonment and a fine. But soon after he was arrested calls emerged for Kuwait to follow its bigger neighbor, Saudi Arabia, and impose the death penalty for such crimes. Within days, Kuwaits parliament responded to the public outcry and gave preliminary backing to a capital punishment amendment last Thursday. Forty six out of 52 deputies voted in favor. But the fight is still on: the amendment must go to a second vote two weeks after the first and then be approved by the government and Kuwait's ruler Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad Al-Sabah. Posted by: tipper 2012-04-21 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=343223 |