Christian gets 3-year jail sentence for insulting Islam on Facebook
A Christian convert has been sentenced three years in prison for allegedly insulting Islam on social media. Slimane Bouhafs' sentence was lowered by Algeria's appeals court from the original five-year sentence given by a lower court last August.
Last May, the electronic crimes brigade at the rural police force headquarters in Algiers launched an investigation after seeing Bouhafs' Facebook page. Bouhafs allegedly posted "four distorted Koranic verses and photos offensive to the Prophet, as well as articles denigrating the Islamic religion," Human Rights Watch (HRW) reported.
On July 31, Bouhafs reportedly received a phone call and was instructed to report to the headquarters in Bouslam where he was arrested. His lawyer, Salah Debbouz, said Bouhafs was tried in a late-night court session wherein he was immediately sentenced with five years of imprisonment.
The written judgment stated that Bouhafs waived his right to a lawyer and the right to postpone the trial. Bouhafs however, told his lawyer on Aug. 8 that he did not give any waiver and added that he was not informed of the said rights.
Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East and North Africa director of HRW, urged the Algerian government to reconsider its laws regarding freedom of expression.
"Algerian courts have no business judging people's religious beliefs and opinions," she said. "Algeria should urgently revise its penal code to stop criminalizing peaceful free expression, including views that may insult Islam and the prophet," she continued.
Following the reduced sentence, the Algerian League for Human Rights (LADDH) has declared that it will now take Bouhafs' case to the Supreme Court.
"Although the sentence has been reduced, LADDH considers imprisonment for this accusation a serious precedent and this is inconsistent with the Constitution and the universal declaration of human rights," wrote Saïd Salhi, vice president of LADDH.
Salhi stated that LADDH will keep on working to free Bouhafs because his health may be at risk while he remains in prison.
