Atheist arrested in Indonesia for writing "God does not exist" on Facebook

From People of Shambala:

Atheist arrested in Indonesia for writing "God does not exist" on Facebook Posted: 20 Jan 2012 10:58 AM PST An Indonesian civil servant is facing five years in jail for writing “God does not exist” on a Facebook page, “Ateis Minang” (“Minang Atheists”), that he moderated. The 31 year-old man, who is known as Alexander, was reported to the police by the Indonesia Council of Ulema, which is not a state organization. Police have confirmed that they have charged a man with blasphemy in connection to the case. Dharmasraya Police Chief Sr. Comr. Chairul Aziz told the Jakarta Globe "that the district branch of the council, known as MUI, and other Islamic organizations believed Alexander, 31, had defiled Islam by using passages from the Koran to denounce the existence of God." Chairul says that because Alexander cited the Koran in defense of his atheism, "it meets the criteria of tainting religion, in this case Islam.” Ifdhal Kasim, chairman of the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) told the Jakarta Globe that the police "should protect freedom of expression, instead of listening too much to the majority. Police should remain neutral instead of upholding the law subjectively.” The Jakarta Globe also quotes a member of a 600-strong Atheist organization, as saying, "If MUI thinks that there’s an imaginary friend up there, it doesn’t mean people should believe it. Why is it that we cannot criticize religion? This is against freedom of expression and human rights." According to the Indonesian newspaper, "Blasphemy, which carries a five-year sentence, is defined under the Criminal Code as publicly expressing feelings or doing something that spreads hatred, abuse or taints certain religions in Indonesia in a way that could cause someone to disbelieve religion."