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Prosecuting a person for burning the Qur’an is “tantamount to reintroducing a blasphemy law” in Great Britain, a tribulation has heard.
Hamit Coskun, 50, shouted “fuck Islam”, “Islam is religion of terrorism” and “Qur’an is burning” as he held aloft the burning Islamic textual content outdoor the Turkish consulate in Rutland Gardens, Knightsbridge, London, on 13 February, Westminster magistrates court docket heard.
Coskun denies a religiously irritated public order offence of the usage of disorderly behaviour “within the hearing or sight of a person likely to be caused harassment, alarm or distress”, motivated by way of “hostility towards members of a religious group, namely followers of Islam”, opposite to the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 and the Public Order Act 1986.
He additionally pleaded no longer accountable to another price of the usage of disorderly behaviour “within the hearing or sight of a person likely to be caused harassment, alarm or distress”, opposite to phase 5 of the Public Order Act 1986.
At his trial on Wednesday, Katy Thorne KC, protecting, stated: “The prosecution, in bringing this prosecution at all, is seeking to introduce a law unknown to this land, namely blasphemy in relation to Islam.”
Blasphemy regulations had been abolished in England and Wales in 2008 and in Scotland in 2021.
In Northern Ireland, blasphemy regulations date again to the early 19th century and, whilst hardly used, blasphemy and blasphemous libel stay offences.
Coskun, giving proof by the use of a Turkish interpreter, instructed the court docket that he has the “right” to criticise Islam however stated that he does no longer like the usage of swear phrases.
Thorne stated that burning the Qur’an “cannot be a criminal offence” and accused the Crown Prosecution Service of an abuse of procedure in its determination to carry the case in opposition to Coskun.
She stated in her written argument: “To render such an act a criminal offence is tantamount to reintroducing a blasphemy law in relation to Islam, rendering the Qur’an a specially protected object in the UK, where a flag or another book would not be, and rendering trenchant or offensive criticism of Islam a criminal offence, is also akin to reinstating an offence of blasphemy.
“People must be free to exercise their religious or non-religious beliefs and to manifest those beliefs in whatever non-violent way they choose, and any curtailing by the state of that freedom must be absolutely necessary in a democratic society.”
Thorne stated that Coskun “did not exhort hate” however voiced his dislike and frustration with a faith.
She added: “He expressed nothing to suggest that he was hostile to those who followed Islam.
“He did so outside the Turkish Consulate, a political institution, which provides further evidence he was not seeking to persuade others to dislike Islam, but express his personal criticism of Turkey and its stance on Islam.
“His protest was specifically political and thus, it is submitted, requires the highest protection of freedom of speech.”
Prosecutor Philip McGhee stated that Coskun was once no longer being prosecuted merely for the burning of the Qur’an, however for “disorderly conduct”.
McGhee stated of Thorne’s argument: “There is simply no misconduct in this case.”
District Judge John McGarva dominated that there was once no abuse of procedure and pushed aside the appliance.
McGhee added that the verdict to prosecute does no longer have an effect on the facility of others to criticise faith. The prosecutor had previous stated that Coskun had intentionally selected the time and placement of his demonstration.
He went on: “His actions gave rise to a very clear threat to public order and went beyond a legitimate expression of protest, crossing the line to pose a threat to public order.”
Turkey-born Coskun, who’s half-Kurdish and half-Armenian, travelled from his house within the Midlands on 13 February and set hearth to the Qur’an at about 2pm, the court docket heard.
Coskun had posted on social media that he was once protesting in opposition to the “Islamist government” of Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who the defendant allegedly stated “has made Turkey a base for radical Islamists and is trying to establish a sharia regime”, prosecutors stated.
Coskun, who’s an atheist, believes that he protested peacefully and burning the Qur’an amounted to freedom of expression, the court docket heard.
Ahead of his trial, in a quote launched during the Free Speech Union, he stated: “Encountering such treatment in a country like England, which I truly believed to be a place where freedom prevailed, was a real shock to me.”
His felony charges are being paid for by way of the Free Speech Union and the National Secular Society.
The Free Speech Union stated it’s protecting him “not because we’re anti-Islam, but because we believe no one should be compelled to observe the blasphemy codes of any religion, whether Christian or Muslim”.
The prosecution and defence have completed their instances, however an extra listening to will happen on Thursday afternoon, with a verdict prone to come on a later date, the court docket heard.
