Post by AuntieSocial on Nov 21, 2003 18:17:56 GMT -5
Australian Embassy Deals With Concerns About Religious Vilification Case
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By Patrick Goodenough Pacific Rim Bureau Chief
Published: October 29, 2003
Publishing Site: CNSNews.com
Pacific Rim Bureau (CNSNews.com) - The Australian Embassy in Washington has been flooded with messages from Americans concerned to learn that two Christian pastors in Australia are facing accusations, brought under new hate laws, of vilifying Islam.
A significant number of e-mails and phone calls have been received about the case, embassy spokesman Matt Francis said Wednesday.
Danny Nalliah and Daniel Scot are appearing before a tribunal in the state of Victoria, facing complaints of inciting hatred against Muslims during a seminar organized last year by Nalliah's evangelical organization, Catch the Fire Ministries.
Scot, a Pakistan-born Christian scholar of Islam, was the speaker, and he addressed the predominantly Christian audience on various aspects of Islam.
Speaking from Washington, Francis said many of those contacting the embassy were worried that the Christians could face a jail sentence, while some felt the case should not be being heard at all.
The embassy was clarifying that the case was a civil one, being heard in a state tribunal rather than a court, and that the respondents do not face the possibility of a prison term.
In Melbourne, the judge hearing the complaint in the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT), Michael Higgins, made the same point during Wednesday's sitting, saying he had received a call from the Department of Foreign Affairs over the concerns.
The case is the first to be heard under Victoria's Racial and Religious Tolerance Act, a law brought in by the state's Labor government - not the federal government - despite strong misgivings from some religious groups and other critics.
The confusion evidently arose because the Racial and Religious Tolerance Act provides for two types of offense: "religious vilification" and "serious religious vilification."
If a complaint of "religious vilification" is proved, the judge may order that the respondent apologize, pay compensation or take other steps. This is the complaint being faced by Catch the Fire.
The other offense, "serious religious vilification," would require the incitement of hatred to have been intentional and to have included threats of physical harm. The law provides for fines and up to six months' imprisonment in such cases.
Three Muslims who attended last year's seminar took offense and complained to the Islamic Council of Victoria, which took the case to a state "equal opportunities" commission.
Catch the Fire then denied the vilification claims, saying the seminar had merely informed Christians about Islam and its teachings as set out in the Quran and other religious texts.
Attempts to resolve the dispute through conciliation failed, and it was then referred to the VCAT, where the two sides and their legal representatives have been making their cases in recent days.
Francis said the embassy was making it clear Australia is a country that cherishes and upholds freedom of speech and religion.
"We have criminal law and civil law. This is being treated as a civil case," Francis said. "This relates to a tribunal that holds conciliation and mediation on areas of civil law.
"People are expressing their concerns, but perhaps not with a full understanding of how this tribunal works, the relevant legislation and the processes that apply," Francis added.
Some Christian human rights groups have been urging Christians to pray for Nalliah and Scot, and some messages being circulated say they could go to jail.
On its Internet website, Catch the Fire has posted an item clarifying the penalties provided for under the Racial and Religious Tolerance Act.
Higgins, the presiding judge, said Wednesday that while the law does provide for up to six months' imprisonment, that did not apply in this case.
In its written rebuttal to the Muslims' complaints, Catch the Fire has denied that the information provided during the seminar incited hatred.
"It cannot be regarded as controversial that there are passages in the Quran...[and other key religious texts] which could and do incite believers in Islam to violence and hatred of non-Muslims. These passages are well known and widely cited by terrorist groups," it said.
"Exposing the roots of this problem within Islam is not the same thing as inciting hatred. Since Christians are one of the named targets of jihad fighting in the Quran, they have a right and a duty to be well informed about this aspect of Islam."
Higgins on Wednesday told the hearing that when he first read the transcript of the seminar, he thought parts of it might have violated the Racial and Religious Vilification Act. But as he read on and viewed the seminar in its totality, that view began to wane, he said.
Scot, the seminar speaker, fled Pakistan with his wife in 1987 after facing accusations under Pakistan's controversial blasphemy laws.
Nalliah, a Sri Lankan-born Australian national, worked with the underground Christian church in Saudi Arabia in 1995-97.
In an earlier interview, Nalliah said he later held meetings with members of the U.S. Congress during the process leading up to passage of the 1998 International Religious Freedom Act.
The case is due to continue on Friday.
Maverick: Added to the news page. Message icon updated.
Click here to read article on the original site
By Patrick Goodenough Pacific Rim Bureau Chief
Published: October 29, 2003
Publishing Site: CNSNews.com
Pacific Rim Bureau (CNSNews.com) - The Australian Embassy in Washington has been flooded with messages from Americans concerned to learn that two Christian pastors in Australia are facing accusations, brought under new hate laws, of vilifying Islam.
A significant number of e-mails and phone calls have been received about the case, embassy spokesman Matt Francis said Wednesday.
Danny Nalliah and Daniel Scot are appearing before a tribunal in the state of Victoria, facing complaints of inciting hatred against Muslims during a seminar organized last year by Nalliah's evangelical organization, Catch the Fire Ministries.
Scot, a Pakistan-born Christian scholar of Islam, was the speaker, and he addressed the predominantly Christian audience on various aspects of Islam.
Speaking from Washington, Francis said many of those contacting the embassy were worried that the Christians could face a jail sentence, while some felt the case should not be being heard at all.
The embassy was clarifying that the case was a civil one, being heard in a state tribunal rather than a court, and that the respondents do not face the possibility of a prison term.
In Melbourne, the judge hearing the complaint in the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT), Michael Higgins, made the same point during Wednesday's sitting, saying he had received a call from the Department of Foreign Affairs over the concerns.
The case is the first to be heard under Victoria's Racial and Religious Tolerance Act, a law brought in by the state's Labor government - not the federal government - despite strong misgivings from some religious groups and other critics.
The confusion evidently arose because the Racial and Religious Tolerance Act provides for two types of offense: "religious vilification" and "serious religious vilification."
If a complaint of "religious vilification" is proved, the judge may order that the respondent apologize, pay compensation or take other steps. This is the complaint being faced by Catch the Fire.
The other offense, "serious religious vilification," would require the incitement of hatred to have been intentional and to have included threats of physical harm. The law provides for fines and up to six months' imprisonment in such cases.
Three Muslims who attended last year's seminar took offense and complained to the Islamic Council of Victoria, which took the case to a state "equal opportunities" commission.
Catch the Fire then denied the vilification claims, saying the seminar had merely informed Christians about Islam and its teachings as set out in the Quran and other religious texts.
Attempts to resolve the dispute through conciliation failed, and it was then referred to the VCAT, where the two sides and their legal representatives have been making their cases in recent days.
Francis said the embassy was making it clear Australia is a country that cherishes and upholds freedom of speech and religion.
"We have criminal law and civil law. This is being treated as a civil case," Francis said. "This relates to a tribunal that holds conciliation and mediation on areas of civil law.
"People are expressing their concerns, but perhaps not with a full understanding of how this tribunal works, the relevant legislation and the processes that apply," Francis added.
Some Christian human rights groups have been urging Christians to pray for Nalliah and Scot, and some messages being circulated say they could go to jail.
On its Internet website, Catch the Fire has posted an item clarifying the penalties provided for under the Racial and Religious Tolerance Act.
Higgins, the presiding judge, said Wednesday that while the law does provide for up to six months' imprisonment, that did not apply in this case.
In its written rebuttal to the Muslims' complaints, Catch the Fire has denied that the information provided during the seminar incited hatred.
"It cannot be regarded as controversial that there are passages in the Quran...[and other key religious texts] which could and do incite believers in Islam to violence and hatred of non-Muslims. These passages are well known and widely cited by terrorist groups," it said.
"Exposing the roots of this problem within Islam is not the same thing as inciting hatred. Since Christians are one of the named targets of jihad fighting in the Quran, they have a right and a duty to be well informed about this aspect of Islam."
Higgins on Wednesday told the hearing that when he first read the transcript of the seminar, he thought parts of it might have violated the Racial and Religious Vilification Act. But as he read on and viewed the seminar in its totality, that view began to wane, he said.
Scot, the seminar speaker, fled Pakistan with his wife in 1987 after facing accusations under Pakistan's controversial blasphemy laws.
Nalliah, a Sri Lankan-born Australian national, worked with the underground Christian church in Saudi Arabia in 1995-97.
In an earlier interview, Nalliah said he later held meetings with members of the U.S. Congress during the process leading up to passage of the 1998 International Religious Freedom Act.
The case is due to continue on Friday.
Maverick: Added to the news page. Message icon updated.
