Tunisian smoker jailed for not fasting during Ramadan

[muriel_volestrangler]

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A leading rights group has condemned the imprisonment of a man in Tunisia for smoking a cigarette in public during the dawn-to-dusk Muslim fast.

A court in north-western Bizerte town sentenced the man to one month in jail for "public indecency".

The ruling was an "absurd violation" of personal freedoms, Amnesty International said.

Dozens protested on Sunday in the capital, Tunis, for the right to eat and drink in public during Ramadan.
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-40273859

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In the latest incident, a man was sentenced to one month in jail for “public indecency” in the town of Bizerte, northwest of Tunis, for smoking outside a courthouse on 12 June. A day earlier, dozens of protesters took to the streets in Tunis to demand their right not to fast during Ramadan. He is the fifth man to be sentenced by the same court to a jail term for breaking his fast during Ramadan this month. Four other men were sentenced to one month in prison after eating in public on 1 June.

“Imprisoning someone for smoking a cigarette or eating in public is an absurd violation of an individual’s personal freedoms. Failing to conform to religious and social customs is not a criminal offence,” said Heba Morayef, North Africa Research Director at Amnesty International.

“The Tunisian authorities should not allow vaguely worded charges to be used to impose harsh sentences on spurious grounds. Everyone should have the right to follow their own beliefs in matters of religion and morality.”

There are no laws in Tunisia requiring individuals to fast or preventing them from eating publicly during Ramadan. The insistence of the court to use penal code articles that come under the “offence against morality” section to restrict individual freedoms is inconsistent with Tunisia’s progress in terms of the respect of human rights.
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https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2017/06/tunisia-fifth-man-facing-jail-term-for-breaking-fast-during-ramadan/

Tunisia's moderation seems to be slipping.

[trotsky]

1. I'm sure there were other reasons for his arrest.

They wanted his land, or something.

[Lordquinton]

2. If we're going to talk about what's in the holy books as standards

The Koran does state it's ok to not fast, in fact it says not to if it could cause you harm. You just have to do pennance of some sort.