Jail and Deportation for Gillian Gibbons
Britain humiliated yet again! Humiliating subjects of the Queen must surely STOP! Isn’t it time to bring back ‘gunboat diplomacy’?

Photo of Gillian Gibbons courtesy of the BBC
BBC: A British teacher has been found guilty in Sudan of insulting religion after she allowed her primary school class to name a teddy bear Muhammad.

Gillian Gibbons, 54, from Liverpool, has been sentenced to 15 days in prison and will then be deported.

She had been accused on three counts of insulting religion, inciting hatred and showing contempt for religious beliefs.

The Foreign Office said it was extremely disappointed by the verdict after a day-long hearing in Khartoum.

The Sudanese ambassador is being called back to the Foreign Office to explain the decision. Officials there say the mood has changed as a result of the verdict.

Staff complaint

Earlier, Foreign Secretary David Miliband had met the Sudanese ambassador to discuss the case, stressing it was an "innocent misunderstanding".

In September, Mrs Gibbons allowed her class of primary school pupils to name the teddy bear Muhammad.
The court heard that she was arrested on Sunday after another member of staff at Unity High School complained.

Sudan's top clerics had called for the full measure of the law to be used against Mrs Gibbons and labelled her actions part of a Western plot against Islam. UK teacher jailed over teddy row >>>

Mark Alexander

Speak for Yourself, Mr Miliband!
…Britain has a “real respect” for Sudan’s Islamic religion - David Miliband, Foreign Secretary
How can we have “real respect” for a religion whose adherents behave as Muslims do? And how can we have respect for Shari'ah law, with its barbaric practices?

Teddy row teacher 'made innocent mistake' By Aislinn Simpson and Blake Evans-Pritchard

Mark Alexander

Kidnap Fears for Teddy Bear Teacher as Islamic Fanatics Demand Execution
DAILY MAIL: A major security operation was under way today as a British teacher charged with inciting hatred and insulting religion was brought before a court in Sudan.

Trucks protected by armed police transported Gillian Gibbons from her cell at the CID headquarters in Khartoum where she had been kept in custody following her arrest on Sunday for allowing pupils to name a school teddy bear Mohammed.

Security was also tight at the city's court building as fears that extremists might stage a kidnap attempt ran high.

Mrs Gibbons, looking tired and distressed and wearing a dark blue jacket and blue dress, was not handcuffed.

Before the hearing began the public and press were cleared from the court room but only moments later the case was adjourned for two hours.

The prosecutor-general said Mrs Gibbons, whose case has drawn international condemnation, can expect a swift and fair trial under Sudanese law.

Mrs Gibbons faces 40 lashes and a year in jail after after being charged with insulting Islam.

She was charged after behind-the-scenes political moves to avoid a court case collapsed amid growing Islamic anger in the east African country.

A Sudanese official said it was "unlikely" that Mrs Gibbons would be convicted.

A powerful Sudanese newspaper urged authorities to call a hardline Islamist leader linked to Osama bin Laden to give evidence at her trial, to stress how offensive the case was to Muslims.

Extreme Islamic groups said Mrs Gibbons "must die" and urged Muslims to hold street protests after prayers tomorrow. >>> By Olinka Koster, Liz Hull and Rob Grilly

Mark Alexander

No Mr Johnson, We Are Not Wrong, the Real Problem Is Islam Itself!
The was a time when the British government - the prime minister, his cabinet ministers, and the MP’s - had balls. Alas, those days are long gone! - ©Mark

THE TELEGRAPH: Oh come off it, I thought yesterday afternoon, when I heard that the Sudanese authorities had actually gone ahead and charged her. Surely they are out of their minds.

When the news broke yesterday teatime that poor Gillian Gibbons was facing prosecution in Khartoum for inciting hatred and showing contempt for religious beliefs, I am afraid my normal good humour momentarily deserted me.

How dare they! I spluttered, and for a brief undignified moment, I had fantasies of a return to the age of Palmerston.

Here is an innocent British citizen, a good and patently well-meaning 54-year-old British teacher. She has decided to make a new life for herself by giving instruction to children in one of the poorest countries on Earth. She has got herself into a muddle over the name of a teddy bear - and now she is facing 40 lashes or six months in jail.

There was a time when Britain would have sent a gunboat to rescue her. There was a time when MPs would have been holding furious debates on the matter, and bandying phrases such as "civis Britannicus sum".

In the old days there would have been démarche from Britain to Sudan, warning that His Majesty's government would not suffer a hair on her head to be disturbed. British Muslims should protest teddy lunacy >>> By Boris Johnson

MY COMMENT TO BORIS JOHNSON:

Boris, you obviously live in cloud cuckoo land! Islam is the problem, and it always will be, for it is a politico-religious system (90% politics, 10% spirituality) based on barbarity and Arab hegemony. Get with the story!

If they harm that poor teacher, then we should have a national 'name your dog Muhammad week' in retaliation. Better still, call for an 'international name your dog Muhammad week'!

I am sick of reading stories from the politically correct, stating that Islam is really a noble, loving and peaceful religion. Don't you naïve people realize that the Jihad is being waged against the West?

Wake up BEFORE it is too late! - ©Mark

Mark Alexander

If Britain Will Stand for This Nonsense, Then It Deserves All It Gets! Countries Used to Go to War for Less Than This! A Country Must Protect Its Citizens!
THE TELEGRAPH: The British schoolteacher who allowed her pupils to name a teddy bear Mohammed has been charged in Sudan with insulting religion and inciting hatred.

Gillian Gibbons, 54, was also charged with showing contempt for religious beliefs.

"Khartoum north prosecution unit has completed its investigation and has charged the Briton Gillian (Gibbons) under Article 125 of the criminal code," the Sudanese news agency SUNA said, quoting a senior justice ministry official. 



The Foreign Office confirmed the charges in the case which is now set to go before the court on Thursday. Teddy bear row teacher charged in Sudan >>> By Katie Franklin, Caroline Gammell and Blake Evans-Pritchard

YAHOO NEWS (UK & IRELAND):
Teddy Row Teacher Charged in Sudan

WATCH BBC VIDEO:
Teddy Row Teacher Charged

Mark Alexander

British Teacher Awaits Judge's Ruling on 'Blasphemous' Teddy Bear
If these people are upset about children naming teddy bears 'Muhammad', I wonder how they would feel if people started naming their dogs 'Muhammad'? What if the West decided to have an international ‘Name Your Your Dog Muhammad Week’? Then they they really would have something to bitch and moan and whine about!

TIMESONLINE: A British teacher facing 40 lashes in Sudan over a school teddy bear named Muhammad will discover today whether she will be charged with blasphemy.

Gillian Gibbons, 54, is being questioned for a second day by police in Khartoum on suspicion of insulting Islam's prophet for allowing her seven-year-old pupils to give the toy the name of the prophet. >>

Mark Alexander

Briton Faces Lashes in Sudan Over Teddy Named Mohammed
THE TELEGRAPH: A British primary school teacher in Sudan is facing 40 lashes and up to six months in prison after allowing her pupils to name a teddy bear after the prophet Mohammed.

Colleagues of Gillian Gibbons, 54, claim she made an "innocent mistake" by allowing the class of seven year-olds to choose the name. But she has been accused of insulting Islam’s holiest prophet, arrested and imprisoned.

If charged and found guilty of blasphemy she faces punishment under Sharia law.

Her actions have sparked protests in Sudan and have forced the school to close until January for fear of reprisals.

The divorced mother-of-two from Liverpool is being held at a police station in the Sudanese capital city of Khartoum, and there were reports that an angry mob had gathered.

As the Foreign Office tried to resolve the situation, Miss Gibbons was visited by consular staff who described her as well, despite her ordeal. >> By Caroline Gammell and Aislinn Simpson

Mark Alexander

'Muhammad' Teddy Teacher Arrested
BBC: A British school teacher has been arrested in Sudan accused of insulting Islam's Prophet, after she allowed her pupils to name a teddy bear Muhammad.

Colleagues of Gillian Gibbons, 54, from Liverpool, said she made an "innocent mistake" by letting the six and seven-year-olds choose the name.

Ms Gibbons was arrested after several parents made complaints.

A spokesman from the British Embassy in Sudan's capital, Khartoum, said it was unclear whether she had been charged.
Embassy officials are expected to visit Mrs Gibbons in custody on Monday.

The BBC's correspondent Amber Henshaw said Ms Gibbons' punishment could be up to six months in jail, 40 lashes or a fine.

The school has been closed until January for fear of reprisals. >>

THE GUARDIAN:
Teacher charged with blasphemy for calling bear Muhammad By James Sturcke and agencies

Mark Alexander