The Teddy Bear teacher has been released! "Sudan President Pardons British Teacher"

:thumbsup:

Sudan President Pardons British Teacher

Sudanese President Omar el-Bashir talks during a press conference in Khartou...
By ALFRED de MONTESQUIOU, AP
20 minutes ago

KHARTOUM, Sudan —

A British teacher jailed for letting her students name a teddy bear Muhammad as part of writing project headed home Monday after being pardoned _ ending a case that set off an international outcry and angered many moderate Muslims.

The incident was the latest in a tense relationship between the West and Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, an Islamic hard-liner who has been accused by the United Nations of dragging his feet on the deployment of peacekeepers to the country's war-torn Darfur region.

Gillian Gibbons, jailed for more than a week, was freed after two Muslim members of Britain's House of Lords met with al-Bashir and the teacher sent the president a statement saying she didn't mean to offend anyone with her class project.

"I have a great respect for the Islamic religion and would not knowingly offend anyone," Gibbons said in the statement, which was released by al-Bashir's office and read to journalists by British Baroness Sayeeda Warsi.

"I am looking forward to seeing my family and friends, but I am very sorry that I will be unable to return to Sudan," Gibbons wrote.<snip>

http://www6.comcast.net/news/articles/general/2007/12/03/Sudan.British.Teacher/?cvqh=itn_teddy

A bit of good news is always welcome.

whew!

:(

.... It has brought the world nothing but centuries of war, murder, mayhem and misery.

and said the Muslims protest for "something to do"...like we would go to a mall or to a movie, they riot and protest for an evening's entertainment. I don't know if what the guy's neighbor says is true, but I had never heard that before.

ALL religious fundamentalism is dangerous.

Religion is fine. Religious fundamentalism and theocracy are the source of much evil.

I'm glad she's been released anyway!

Humans set on imposition past the reasonable protections of innate rights can cause uncalcuable damage no matter what they do it in the name of..

Religion
Money
Ideology
National Identity
...
...

I think there is very likely one cleric there who is trying to make a big name for himself over this ridiculous case. I think he and his congregation were the "Death to the teddy bear teacher" crowd over the weekend. The only reason she got a 2 week sentence in the first place was to shut him the fuck up. When he didn't shut up, she got pardoned and let go.

Now let's see if this asshole cleric says anything about the little kids who wanted to name a beloved toy after the Prophet. Lashes for 7 year olds?

And they want her shot?

It's all so insane!

And the fundies blew it up beyond all recognition.

This, folks, is what could happen if we let the fundies take over our country.