The persecution of British schoolteacher Gillian Gibbons by the Sudanese government should certainly make any Westerner considering working in a Muslim nation think twice.
A British teacher jailed for insulting Islam after allowing her students to name a teddy bear Muhammad flew home Monday following a pardon by the president of Sudan, a British Embassy spokesman said. ...Gibbons' conviction under Sudan's Islamic Sharia law shocked Britons and many Muslims worldwide. It also inflamed passions among many Sudanese, some of whom called for her execution.
She escaped harsh0er punishment that could have included up to 40 lashes, six months in prison and a fine.
In a written statement given to President Omar al-Bashir and read by a British mediator, Gibbons said she did not intend to offend anyone and had great respect for Islam.
Gibbons, 54, was sentenced Thursday to 15 days in prison and deportation for insulting Islam because she allowed her students to name a class teddy bear Muhammad, seen as a reference to Islam's Prophet Muhammad. Her time in jail since her arrest Nov. 25 counted toward the sentence.
This case isn't as bad as that of the Saudi Arabian gang-rape victim sentenced to 200 lashes (effectively a death sentence), but it further highlights the gaping chasm between the West and Islam. I haven't heard any prominent Muslims -- such as world leaders -- denouncing either of these incidents.
