Nigeria acquits adultery defendant A court in Nigeria has upheld the appeal of a Muslim woman who had been convicted of adultery under Islamic law and sentenced to death by stoning. Others have committed worse crimes, but because they are men, and because they have influence in high places, they are not punished Safiya Husaini won her case after the court in the northern town of Sokoto said the original ruling was unsound. In the courtroom, Safiya, smiling broadly, was surrounded by the world's media holding her one-year-old daughter in her arms. It was the conception of this child out of wedlock that had been proof enough at the first trial of her adultery. But in Monday's ruling, the judge said that, because the alleged act had taken place before adultery became a criminal offence under Islamic law, the case should be dismissed. The BBC Lagos correspondent Dan Isaacs says the ruling will be welcomed by human rights groups around the world. Anti-adultery laws, however, remain on the statute books in Nigeria's northern states. Under Islamic law as practised in Nigeria, pregnancy outside marriage - even for a divorcee - is sufficient evidence to convict a woman. In the court case, the man accused of fathering the child was found not guilty. President Olusegun Obasanjo, who is himself a devout Christian, had called for Safiya's acquittal. With the very best of good wishes, Musa Amadu Pembo Glasgow, Scotland UK. [log in to unmask] Da’wah is to convey the message with wisdom and with good words. We should give the noble and positive message of Islam. We should try to emphasize more commonalities and explain the difference without getting into theological arguments and without claiming the superiority of one position over the other. There is a great interest among the people to know about Islam and we should do our best to give the right message. May Allah,Subhana Wa Ta'Ala,guide us all to His Sirat Al-Mustaqim (Righteous Path).May He protect us from the evils of this life and the hereafter.May Allah,Subhana Wa Ta'Ala,grant us entrance to paradise . We ask Allaah the Most High, the All-Powerful, to teach us that which will benefit us, and to benefit us by that which we learn. May Allaah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala grant blessings and peace to our Prophet Muhammad and his family and companions..Amen. _________________________________________________________________ Join the world’s largest e-mail service with MSN Hotmail. http://www.hotmail.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html To contact the List Management, please send an e-mail to: [log in to unmask] ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~