Islam critic who burned a Qur'an in the United Kingdom threatened with death
The activist was tried for blasphemy and now has to take security measures. He is announcing a tour of events critical of Islam.
Mr Coskun
Press Association
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Hamit Coskun is an asylum seeker who fled Turkey because of Islamist pressure. A self-proclaimed atheist and critic of Islam, he says that Their safety and freedom of expression were seriously threatened in their country of origin..
Coskun burned a copy of the Qur'an on 13 February in a protest outside the Turkish consulate in London. During the act, He shouted slogans such as “Islam is a religion of terrorism.”. The scene went viral and has provoked a strong media and political reaction.
Convicted of veiled blasphemy
After the protest in London, Coskun was tried and convicted of a public order offence aggravated on religious grounds.. Although the United Kingdom abolished blasphemy laws in 2008, many consider its condemnation to be a covert form of it.
At first, lThe prosecution wanted to bring harassment charges against a religious institution that could have sent him to prison.. Defenders of secularism and human rights interpreted it as the reintroduction of the crime of blasphemy. Faced with pressure, he was «only» fined £240 for public order offences. According to the prosecution, he was not convicted of burning the book, but to do so in public with insults and provocative language. The judge rejected the defence's argument that it was a legitimate criticism of a religion.
Police protection and life in hiding
Now, as the explanation goes Daily Mail, Mr Coskun is under death threat in the United Kingdom by radical Islamists.. The police have informed him that there is an imminent plot to assassinate him, following his actions and public statements against Islam. He lives under police protection and in an undisclosed location. The police confirmed that an investigation is under way, but no arrests have yet been made.
Meanwhile, Coskun denounces that he receives constant threats via social media and telephone. Messages such as “We will sacrifice you for the Qur'an.”or“It will kill a brave man”They are common, according to him.
Announces a tour to continue the protest
Far from backing down, Coskun has announced a tour of the United Kingdom where he intends to repeat his protest acts.Stops are planned in Birmingham, Liverpool and Glasgow., although it is not clear whether they will be held before the possible appeal.
“I am willing to pay the price. I am not afraid.”This religion does not respect difference or freedom,“ he has stated. Coskun is clear about the problem:
“If I had burnt a Bible outside Westminster Abbey, would someone have reported me? I doubt it.”
Authorities accused of singling out Coskun
Several voices have accused the Prosecutor's Office and the Metropolitan Police. to contribute to turning Hamit Coskun into a target. The controversy erupted when the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) justified its charge by stating that Coskun had offended “the religious institution of Islam.”. This expression, Common in countries with blasphemy laws, caused outrage among free speech advocates in the United Kingdom.
The Free Speech Union has openly denounced that The very authorities who should be protecting Coskun have worsened his situation.. Lord Young, in a letter addressed to the head of the Metropolitan Police, wrote: “The risk to Coskun's life has been exacerbated by your agents' public statements. They have sent the message that blaspheming against Islam is unacceptable and therefore punishable.”.
These criticisms point to a deeper problem: the institutional fear of being labelled Islamophobes It is curtailing freedom of expression and equal treatment before the law. As long as this continues, its defenders warn, people like Coskun will continue to be singled out, condemned and, perhaps, silenced.
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