PAULA KIRBY - former Christian

Paula Kirby, a resident of Scotland, is a former Christian, a writer, consultant, and project manager, specializing in freethinking and secular organizations. Her columns appear in the Washington Post. They are well-written and thought provoking.

Click on this link for her archived articles: Paula Kirby Archive

MUSLIMS BEHAVING BADLY #1 - Stoning a 13-year-old

In my attempt to show that being religious
is not a guarantee of moral behavior,
this post is part of a series of reports featuring
the bad behavior of religious people, past or present....

Look for other posts showing the bad behavior
perpetrated by members of other religious groups.

According to Amnesty International, 13-year-old Aisha Ibrahim Duhulow was stoned to death by 50 men in front of 1000 spectators 10/27/09. She was accused of committing adultery when she attempted to report that she had been raped by three men.

The men were not arrested.

David Coperman of Amnesty International said: “This was not justice, nor was it an execution. This child suffered a horrendous death at the behest of the armed opposition groups who currently control Kismayo... This killing is yet another human rights abuse committed by the combatants to the conflict in Somalia, and again demonstrates the importance of international action to investigate and document such abuses, through an International Commission of Inquiry.”

According to In the News (UK), women are more likely to be stoned to death because of their unequal treatment before the law and courts. A woman's testimony is worth half that of a man and the age of criminal responsibility is lower, making Iranian women especially vulnerable to conviction.

"Stoning people to death is an inhumane punishment, specifically designed to increase the suffering of the victim," Amnesty International UK's director Kate Allen said.