The British teacher at the centre of the teddy bear naming row in Sudan is now safely back in England. After successful negotiations carried out with the Sudanese government on her behalf by Lord Ahmed and Lady Warsi, Muslim members of the British House of Lords, Gillian Gibbons was pardoned by President Omar al-Bashir. She promptly flew back home, accompanied by the two peers.
Upon her return, Gibbons, 54, said, "I'm just an ordinary middle-aged teacher in search of adventure and I got a bit more of an adventure than I bargained for." She also encouraged someone to take up her position at the Unity Primary School in Khartoum, while she herself plans to start looking for a new job soon.
Muhammad Abdul Bari, the head of the Muslim Council of Britain, said that the 15-day sentence received by Gibbons had been "a gross overreaction".
Meanwhile, Khalid al-Mubarak, a spokesman for the Sudanese Embassy in London, "It is an unusual case, which came about as a misunderstanding which was not managed well in the early stages" (Los Angeles Times).
Thank God common sense has prevailed. My congratulations to Mrs Gibbons, her family, and the two peers.
Showing posts with label Sudan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sudan. Show all posts
05 December 2007
26 July 2007
US court orders Sudan to pay Cole victim families
A US federal court in Virginia has found Sudan guilty of involvement with the bombing of USS Cole by al-Qaeda in 2000, and has ordered the Sudanese government to pay US $8 million (Canadian $8.4 million) in compensation to the families of 17 US Marines who died in the attack.
According to Judge Robert Doumar, who presided over the trial, "It is depressing to realise that a country organised on a religious basis with religious rule of law could and would execute its power for purposes which most countries would find intolerable and loathsome."
The ruling was based on the Death on the High Seas Act. The families can collect the sum from Sudanese assets frozen in the US.
Sudan denies any ties with al-Qaeda, and the US government seems to agree (BBC).
I wonder if Doumar took the US government's position into account in making his judgement.
According to Judge Robert Doumar, who presided over the trial, "It is depressing to realise that a country organised on a religious basis with religious rule of law could and would execute its power for purposes which most countries would find intolerable and loathsome."
The ruling was based on the Death on the High Seas Act. The families can collect the sum from Sudanese assets frozen in the US.
Sudan denies any ties with al-Qaeda, and the US government seems to agree (BBC).
I wonder if Doumar took the US government's position into account in making his judgement.
09 April 2007
Pope addresses global conflicts
Pope Benedict XVI has used his Easter address at Vatican City's St Peter's Square to discuss and condemn conflicts in Iraq and elsewhere in the world. The Pope said that "Nothing positive comes from Iraq, torn by continual slaughter as the population flees."
He praised the leaderships of Israel and the Palestinians for continuing talks aimed at reaching a peace agreement.
He also discussed the crises in Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Zimbabwe (BBC).
I'm glad the Pope isn't silent about the various troubled regions of the globe, but I wish the Catholic Church did more to mediate peace and to "speak truth to power".
He praised the leaderships of Israel and the Palestinians for continuing talks aimed at reaching a peace agreement.
He also discussed the crises in Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Zimbabwe (BBC).
I'm glad the Pope isn't silent about the various troubled regions of the globe, but I wish the Catholic Church did more to mediate peace and to "speak truth to power".
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