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Muslim Dissenters Make Public Stand Against Islamism
CNSNEWS.COM ^ | March 01, 2006 | Patrick Goodenough

Posted on 03/01/2006 8:24:49 AM PST by stm

(CNSNews.com) - Islamism is the new totalitarianism, and the recent uproar over the publication of cartoons depicting Mohammed has revealed the necessity of the struggle for freedom, equal opportunity and secular values.

So said British author Salman Rushdie and a group of other writers and intellectuals, including some of the Islamic world's most reviled figures, in a declaration published Wednesday.

"Like all totalitarianisms, Islamism is nurtured by fears and frustrations," the document says, but adds that nothing - not even despair - justifies the choice of hatred.

"Islamism is a reactionary ideology which kills equality, freedom and secularism wherever it is present. Its success can only lead to a world of domination: man's domination of woman, the Islamists' domination of all the others."

The signatories said they refused to back away from criticism for fear of being accused of "Islamophobia," describing the term as "an unfortunate concept which confuses criticism of Islam as a religion with stigmatization of its believers."

The statement was carried in a French weekly, and also appeared in Jyllands Posten, the Danish newspaper which last September published 12 caricatures satirizing Mohammed. Muslim anger over the issue continues to roil the Islamic world, and hundreds of people have been killed during protests and rioting in Nigeria, Pakistan, Afghanistan and elsewhere.

The declaration's best-known signatory, Rushdie - born to an Indian Muslim family - was in 1989 accused by Iran's late Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomenei of apostasy and blasphemy because of his book, The Satanic Verses.

Iran has never abrogated the edict, and the official IRNA news agency declared on the fatwa's 17th anniversary last month that it would remain in force "forever."

The eleven other signatories include the Somali-born Dutch lawmaker and former Muslim Ayaan Hirsi Ali, who has also faced death threats over her criticism of Islam; Canadian-based author and "Muslim refusenik" Irshad Manji; and Ibn Warraq, the pseudonym of a U.S.-based former Muslim and critic of the religion who wrote a book entitled "Why I am not a Muslim."

Under Islamic law, any Muslim who abandons his or her faith is guilty of apostasy, an offense which according to some Islamic scholars and according to the Hadith - sayings attributed to Mohammed - is punishable by death.


TOPICS: News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: islam; jihad; muslim; muslims; rusdie; terrorism; waronterror; wot
Salman Rushdie is laying in on the line here
1 posted on 03/01/2006 8:24:51 AM PST by stm
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To: stm
apostasy, an offense which [...] is punishable by death.

It seems there are a whole lot of offenses which are punishable by death.

2 posted on 03/01/2006 8:34:53 AM PST by Izzy Dunne (Hello, I'm a TAGLINE virus. Please help me spread by copying me into YOUR tag line.)
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To: stm
Under Islamic law, any Muslim who abandons his or her faith is guilty of apostasy, an offense which according to some Islamic scholars and according to the Hadith - sayings attributed to Mohammed - is punishable by death.

Some Islamic scholars think abandoning the faith is punishable by death. The others must be having trouble interpreting the Hadith it is so subtle and confusing to understand what it means.

Maybe you can figure it out.

From the Hadith:
. “Whoever changes his religion, execute him.” Narrated by al-Bukhaari, 6524.

3 posted on 03/01/2006 8:46:52 AM PST by Capt. Tom (Don't confuse the Bushies with the dumb Republicans - Capt. Tom)
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To: Capt. Tom

From The Article: "The others must be having trouble interpreting the Hadith it is so subtle and confusing to understand what it means."

- Isn't it amazing the extent to which these people will go to portray Islam as being hijacked by extremists instead of Islam itself being the root cause and inspiration for nasty fruit it bears?


4 posted on 03/01/2006 9:00:11 AM PST by Frenetic
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To: stm

Moving, breathing, sleeping, and eating are also punishable by death


5 posted on 03/01/2006 10:02:18 AM PST by russesjunjee (Islam and the mainstream media worship the same master...)
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To: Frenetic
Isn't it amazing the extent to which these people will go to portray Islam as being hijacked by extremists instead of Islam itself being the root cause and inspiration for nasty fruit it bears?

What is more amazing is even though the Muslims can use Taqiyya to deceive us, many Muslims don't bother to deceive, and give the game plan away in an in your face confrontation, by words and bloody actions.

It is not like you can just sense there is a problem: you can see it in action allover the world , and hear the threats directly from them. Yet many Infidels just don't understand the very real danger of Islam. - Tom

6 posted on 03/01/2006 10:44:46 AM PST by Capt. Tom (Don't confuse the Bushies with the dumb Republicans - Capt. Tom)
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