Posted on 10/18/2010 2:59:59 PM PDT by nickcarraway
A Christian in Ethiopias southern town of Moyale has been languishing in jail for two months after his Muslim business partner accused him of writing Jesus is Lord in a copy of the Quran, local church leaders said.
Tamirat Woldegorgis, a member of the Full Gospel Church in his early 30s, was arrested in early August after the Muslim co-worker in the clothes-making business the two operated out of a rented home discovered Woldegorgis had inscribed Jesus is Lord on some cloth, area Christians said.
Woldegorgis returned from a break one morning to find that the inscribed words had been cut out of the piece of cloth, the sources said. He then had the words set in the machinery of their tailoring business for inscription on clothing material, only to find later that the inscribed plates were removed from the machinery as well, they said.
Angry Sheikhs had Woldegorgis Arrested and Thrown in Jail, No Trial, for Two Months Now
The Muslim associate, whose name has not been established, then went to a nearby mosque with the accusation that Woldegorgis had written Jesus is Lord in the Quran itself, sources said. Angry sheikhs at the mosque subsequently had Woldegorgis arrested for desecrating the book sacred to Islam, they said.
Other sources said, however, that Muslims accused Woldegorgis of writing Jesus is Lord on a piece of wood, on a minibus and then on the wall of a house. As he has not been brought to court, the exact charges against him are not yet known. Woldegorgis denies all accusations, and area Christians insisted he is innocent.
A church leader who requested anonymity told Compass that Christians in Moyale are concerned that Woldegorgis, a married father of two from Hagarmariam village, has not been granted a trial after two months in jail. He said that two days after Woldegorgis was arrested, two friends inquired about him at the Moyale police station; authorities responded by jailing them for two weeks.
The Ethiopian constitution allows for religious tolerance, said the church leader, but to date Woldegorgis has not been taken to court. He is still in a police cell, which is quite unusual for an Ethiopian national, and given constitutional provisions. Jijiga, capital of Ethiopias Somali Region, has the largest court in eastern Ethiopia, and Christians fear that Islamic principles govern it.
In Ethiopias federal state system, each state is autonomous in its administration, and most of those holding government positions in Somali Region Zone Five are Muslims.
Will Woldegorgis Face the Islamic Court in Jijiga
We fear that our brother might be taken to Islamic court in Jijiga for trial, which will further threaten his life, the church leader said. Where is justice for our brother being in prison without been tried? Sources also said that authorities are offering to release Woldegorgis if he will convert to Islam.
Woldegorgis is physically weak but strong in his faith, the church leader said, adding that he needs food and other material assistance, as well as an attorney. Sources said Woldegorgis has been jailed in Zone Five of Ethiopias Somali Region, a predominantly Somali area.
Moyale, located on Ethiopias border with Kenya, is divided between the predominantly Muslim Zone Five and Zone Four, which is populated mainly by ethnic Oromo, with each zone having distinct administrative and judiciary systems. Preaching non-Muslim faiths is not allowed in Zone Five, in spite of provisions for religious freedom in Ethiopias constitution. Hostility toward those spreading faiths different from Islam is a common occurrence in predominantly Muslim areas of Ethiopia and neighboring countries, they said. Christians are often subject to harassment and intimidation.
Ethiopia's Constitution, Laws and Policies Promote Freedom of Religion, but
Ethiopias constitution, laws and policies promote freedom of religion, but occasionally local authorities infringe on this right, according to the U.S. Department of States 2009 International Religious Freedom Report. According to the 2007 census, 44 percent of Ethiopias population affiliate with the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, 19 percent are evangelical and Pentecostal and 34 percent are Sunni Muslim. Source: Compassdirect
How long before this comes to America?
So his business partner who now owns the business celebrated with a trip to Italy for a night of dancing on the main alter of the Duomo.
It is already here, a guy got fired for tearing a Quran.
ugh
Well, it IS softer than the Sears catalog.
So what? It’s just a bunch of paper with some really idiotic words printed in it. Muslims are whining sissies.
I do not believe he has broken any law. I have sent him some of my koranic papier de toilet, very popular now in France.I think he will like it.
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