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| East/Subsaharan Africa |
| Nigerian gov't opposed to stoning sentence... |
| 2002-08-22 |
| The Nigerian government is "totally opposed" to an Islamic court ruling sentencing a single mother to be stoned to death and will back the woman's appeal, the justice minister said Thursday. Government lawyers will assist Amina Lawal's legal team with the case that will test the authority of Islamic courts to hand down such sentences, Justice Minister Kanu Agabi said. An Islamic court in the northern town of Funtua on Monday rejected Lawal's appeal against the stoning sentence for having sex outside of marriage. Why bother having shariah if you can't kill people in the most painful and degrading manner? The ruling provoked an international outcry. Governments and human rights organizations around the world urged President Olusegun Obasanjo's administration to intercede. "The government of this country is as opposed to this sentence as those nations," said Agabi, who is also attorney general. "We are totally opposed to it." I'm trying hard, but I can't seem to recall any other major religions that insist on their right to kill people... Nigeria is deeply divided about the application of Islamic law, or Shariah, which calls for cutting off a hand to punish theft and death for adultery. Decisions by a dozen states in Nigeria's mainly Muslim north to adopt the strict Islamic code since 1999 sparked clashes with the region's Christian minority that killed hundreds. That's pretty typical where there are people with turbans living next door. Sure is a coincidence... |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |