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In Egypt, even the rumor of conversion to Christianity, a love affair between a Muslim
and a Christian or the construction of a church can start a riot. On February 28th, violence
erupted in the Upper Egyptian city of Kom Ombo when young men stormed a Christian church
to rescue a Muslim woman they believed was kidnapped and converted to Christianity.
Although Worldwide Religious News reports that the woman had been found, her disappearance
was apparently for "family and social reasons." The violence that accompanied the search resulted
in the injury of 11 policemen and 12 Christians
The case of Salaka Djicke, whipped for conducting a relationship with a married man, illustrates
the extreme measures militant Islamic "Defenders of the Faith" will take to subdue the women
of Mali. Salaka Djicke began a fairy tale romance with an older man who dialed her phone
by mistake. The man gave her gifts and expressed his love for her. The relationship attracted
two different groups of militant Islamists who use violence to force women to obey Shariah
law and cover themselves completely.
One group captured Djicke when she was with her lover and delivered her to the Islamic
police. She was convicted of being caught with a man who was not her husband and sentenced
to 95 lashes. Djicke's punishment took place in public, in the market square. Salaka Djicke
refuses to reveal her lover's name; he contacted her immediately after her flogging and then
disappeared.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has filed a complaint in the US District Court
for the District of Puerto Rico on behalf of a 14 year veteran of the Puerto Rican police
force. The complaint centers around actions taken against Atheist police officer Alvin
Mendez after he refused to participate in an officially mandated Christian prayer.
According to the complaint, Officer Mendez had been summoned along with over 40 other
officers to a mandatory meeting to discuss an intervention plan. Afterwards, while the
men were still in formation, commanding officer Guillermo Rodriguez asked for a volunteer
to close the session with a prayer.
Officer Mendez spoke up and stated to commander Rodriguez that he objected to an official
prayer. The complaint alleges that the openly atheist officer stated to officer Rodriguez
that he was "very uncomfortable" with the prayer and that "he did not want to participate".
Mendez also pointed out that prayer violates Department regulations for a "strict separation
of church and state".
The complaint states that Rodriguez then "became upset" and separated Mendez from the group.
As Mendez was walking away, court documents indicate that Rodriguez shouted for Mendez
to stop. While separated from the group, the commanding officer shouted to the formation
that Mendez was standing apart from the group because "he doesn't believe in what we believe".
The atheist policeman felt humiliated and turned his back on the formation until the
explicitly Christian prayer had ended. Soon after the incident, Mendez was reassigned
to work at the airport under his immediate supervisor Ricardo Domingez. On the way to
his newly assigned duty, Mendez told Dominguez that he was outraged over the incident and
that he was going to file and administrative complaint. Upon arrival at the airport, the
supervisor requested that Mendez hand over his service weapon because he was allegedly
in an "emotional state".
On March 12th, Mendez filed a complaint with the Administrative Investigation Division
at Police headquarters in San Juan alleging that his constitutional right of freedom of
religion had been violated. For unknown reasons, the complaint was forwarded to the Police
Department's Domestic Violence Division and no proper investigation has been carried out.
Two days later, Officer Mendez met with Chief of the Airport Precinct Mario Rivera. The
Airport chief offered Mendez two options: either report to the Command Office for clerical
tasks or remain at the airport and work in vehicle maintenance.
The complaint points to the current situation. "Now, instead of carrying out the law enforcement
duties for which he is trained, the sole employment duties assigned to (...) Mr. Mendez, (...) have
been those of a car-washer and messenger.
The complaint also contends that the atheist officer was ordered to report to work over
the night shift when the garage was closed leaving him with nothing to do. At other times,
he has been ordered to wash patrol cars "under the harsh blazing sun of the early afternoon".
The complaint charges officials with breaching the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment
to the U.S. Constitution among other violations.
Officer Mendez is requesting that the court declare the actions of police officials to
have violated the first and fourteenth amendments of the U.S. Constitution. He is also asking
the court for compensation over the mental and emotional stress and to recover his court
costs and legal expenses.