Alexander Aan

Alexander Aan (also Alexander An ; born 1981 ) is an Indonesian atheist and former Muslim . In 2012 he was sentenced to prison for allegedly disseminating "information designed to incite religious hatred or hostility" on Facebook . The verdict sparked a national debate and resulted in Amnesty International declaring him a political prisoner .

Arrest and trial

Before his arrest, Alexander Aan worked as a civil servant in Western Sumatra . He was brought up as a Muslim, but at the age of 11 he doubted the existence of God. Since 2008 he has not participated in religious rituals.

In January 2012, Alexander Aan joined an atheist Facebook group and wrote there that God does not exist. He said: “If God exists, why do bad things happen? ... If God is gracious, only good should happen. ”He referred to heaven , hell , angels and devils as“ myths ”. He also posted a link describing Mohammed as "being drawn to his daughter-in-law". These posts were reported to the police as blasphemy by the highest Islamic authority in Indonesia. On January 18, he was attacked by an angry mob in the street and was taken into protective custody by the police .

Two days later he was charged with "disseminating information designed to create religious hatred or hostility," "religious blasphemy," and "inciting others to convert to atheism." The district police chief said that when applying for the civil service, Alexander Aan deliberately misrepresented himself by claiming to be a Muslim. On June 14th, he was found guilty of "disseminating information used to create religious hatred or hostility" by the competent district court and sentenced to two and a half years in prison and a fine of one hundred million rupees (approx. 8,400 euros) sentenced. The charges of "religious blasphemy" and "inciting others to convert to atheism" were dropped. During the pronouncement of the verdict, the presiding judge said that Alexander Aan's actions "sparked fear in the community and harmed Islam". Aan was released from prison on January 31, 2014.

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1. ↑ ^{a b c d e f g} Indonesia: Atheist imprisonment a setback for freedom of expression . Amnesty International. June 14, 2012. Archived from the original on June 20, 2012. Retrieved June 25, 2012.
2. ↑ ^{a b c} Kate Hodal: Indonesia's atheists face battle for religious freedom . In: The Guardian . May 3, 2012. Retrieved June 25, 2012.
3. ↑ ^{a b} Syofiardi Bachyul Jb: 'Minang atheist' sentenced to 2.5 years in prison . In: The Jakarta Post . June 14, 2012. Archived from the original on June 16, 2012. Retrieved June 25, 2012.
4. ^ William Pesek: From Lady Gaga to Atheist Alexander to DBS, Indonesia Is Sending Investors Bad Signals . In: Jakarta Globe . June 20, 2012. Archived from the original on June 22, 2012. Retrieved June 25, 2012.
5. ^ Amnesty Calls for Release of Jailed Indonesian Atheist . In: Jakarta Globe . June 14, 2012. Archived from the original on June 16, 2012. Retrieved June 25, 2012.
6. ↑ ^{a b} Sara Malm: Indonesian man jailed for two-and-a-half years for writing 'God doesn't exist' on his Facebook page . In: Daily Mail . June 14, 2012. Retrieved June 25, 2012.
7. ^ ^{A b} Ian McKinnon: Atheist Indonesian in protective custody after being beaten by mob . In: The Telegraph . January 20, 2012. Retrieved June 25, 2012.
8. ↑ Row over Indonesia atheist Facebook post . BBC News. January 20, 2012. Retrieved June 25, 2012.
9. ^ Indonesian charged with blasphemy for atheist post . In: The Houston Chronicle , January 21, 2012. Retrieved June 25, 2012.  ( Page no longer available , search web archives ) 
10. ^ Indonesian jailed for Prophet Mohammed cartoons . In: The Straits Times , June 14, 2012. Archived from the original on June 17, 2012. Retrieved June 25, 2012. 
11. ^ Atheist Alexander Aan gets of prison . thejakartapost. January 31, 2014. Accessed January 31, 2014.