Mohamed Cheikh Ould Mkhaitir (
Arabic
Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...
: محمد الشيخ ولد امخيطير ) is a Mauritanian blogger who was a
political prisoner
A political prisoner is someone imprisoned for their political activity. The political offense is not always the official reason for the prisoner's detention.
There is no internationally recognized legal definition of the concept, although n ...
from 2014 to 2019. He was sentenced to death after he wrote an article critical of Islam and the
caste system in
Mauritania, after which he became a designated
prisoner of conscience by
Amnesty International. He now lives in exile in
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
due to concerns for his safety.
Mkhaitir was born into the Moulamines
caste, commonly referred to as the blacksmith caste, which holds the second lowest social status in
Mauritania. Before he was arrested on charges of apostasy he worked for SAMMA, a company partially owned by
Kinross
Kinross (, gd, Ceann Rois) is a burgh in Perth and Kinross, Scotland, around south of Perth and around northwest of Edinburgh. It is the traditional county town of the historic county of Kinross-shire.
History
Kinross's origins are conn ...
.
Arrest and death sentence
Mkhaitir was arrested in his home in the city of Nouadhibou on 2 January 2014, two days after publishing an article titled “Religion, Religiosity and Craftsmen” on the website ''Aqlame''. The article was critical of incidents from the
prophet Muhammad's life being used to justify slavery of people descended from craftsmen by the upperclass of Mauritania (relating to the caste system in Mauritania).
Clerics issued a
fatwa against him and demanded he be executed,
and a businessman offered reward of 10,000
ouguiya
The ouguiya ( ar, rtl=yes, 1=أوقية موريتانية, links=, lit=, translit= (); sign: UM; code: MRU), at one time spelled "ougiya", is the currency of Mauritania. Each ouguiya constitutes five khoums (meaning "one fifth"). As such it is ...
for his death. He was charged with
apostasy
Apostasy (; grc-gre, ἀποστασία , 'a defection or revolt') is the formal disaffiliation from, abandonment of, or renunciation of a religion by a person. It can also be defined within the broader context of embracing an opinion that ...
under Article 306 of the Mauritanian criminal code, and subsequently sentenced to death by firing squad. If the sentence had been carried out Mkhaitir would have been the first person executed in Mauritania since 1987.
Despite repenting and saying
shahada
The ''Shahada'' ( Arabic: ٱلشَّهَادَةُ , "the testimony"), also transliterated as ''Shahadah'', is an Islamic oath and creed, and one of the Five Pillars of Islam and part of the Adhan. It reads: "I bear witness that there i ...
, the supreme court upheld his death sentence.
On 1 April 2016 the case was heard by the court of appeals. The verdict was upheld, but the case was sent to Mauritania's Supreme Court. In December 2016, Mkhaitir's parents fled the country and appealed for asylum in France, unable to bear constant death threats any longer.
On 31 January 2017, the Supreme Court heard the case and returned it to the Court of Appeals. When the appeal was taken to the Supreme Court, protesters, some of them armed, gathered in
Nouakchott
, image_skyline = Nouakchott.jpg
, image_caption = City view of Nouakchott
, pushpin_map = Mauritania#Arab world#Africa
, pushpin_relief = 1
, mapsize =
, map_caption ...
demanding his execution.
Addressing the
United Nations Human Rights Council
The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), CDH is a United Nations body whose mission is to promote and protect human rights around the world. The Council has 47 members elected for staggered three-year terms on a regional group basis. ...
as a representative of the
International Humanist and Ethical Union
Humanists International (known as the International Humanist and Ethical Union, or IHEU, from 1952–2019) is an international non-governmental organisation championing secularism and human rights, motivated by secular humanist values. Foun ...
,
Kacem El Ghazzali
Kacem El Ghazzali (, ; born 24 June 1990), is a Moroccan-Swiss secularist essayist and activist and is one of the few publicly atheist Moroccans. Kacem speaks English, as well as German, French, Arabic and Berber. Mostly known for his publicly voi ...
highlighted the case of Mkhaitir, to which the Mauritanian ambassador to the
UNHRC
The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), CDH is a United Nations body whose mission is to promote and protect human rights around the world. The Council has 47 members elected for staggered three-year terms on a regional group basis. ...
claimed Mkhaitir was arrested for his own safety. The diplomat also reportedly insisted "there is no need to talk about the death penalty".
On 3 November 2017, police in the capital Nouakchott dispersed a demonstration and arrested four people for inciting to kill Mkhaitir.
A week later, the Court of Appeals in
Nouadhibou
Nouadhibou (; ar, نواذيبو, Nwādībū, Berber: Nwadibu, formerly in French: ) is the second largest city in Mauritania and serves as a major commercial centre. The city itself has about 118,000 inhabitants expanding to over 140,000 in the l ...
reduced his death sentence to a two-year jail term. He was supposed be released immediately as he had already been in jail for more than two years, reported the BBC. However, by May 2018 he still had not been released according to human rights groups. In late April 2018, the Mauritanian government even adopted a new, more stringent blasphemy law that could have alleged 'blasphemers' such as Mkhaitir subjected to the death penalty. Twenty-one national and international organisations vehemently opposed the new law, including
Center for Inquiry President
Robyn Blumner at the
United Nations Human Rights Council
The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), CDH is a United Nations body whose mission is to promote and protect human rights around the world. The Council has 47 members elected for staggered three-year terms on a regional group basis. ...
.
On 30 July 2019, Mkhaitir's lawyer Fatimata Mbaye and the campaign group Reporters Without Borders reported that Mkhaitir had been released from prison and no longer in Nouakchott, though Mbaye said he 'is not completely free in his movements'. Mkhaitir thanked all the organisations who had been campaigning on his behalf ever since his arrest in January 2014.
In October 2019,
AFP reported that he had started a new life in
Bordeaux
Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefect ...
,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
where he continued his activism, having learned French during his time in prison.
See also
*
Raif Badawi
Raif bin Muhammad Badawi ( ar, رائف بن محمد بدوي, also transcribed Raef bin Mohammed Badawi; born 13 January 1984) is a Saudi writer, dissident and activist, as well as the creator of the website ''Free Saudi Liberals''.
Badawi wa ...
A liberal Muslim blogger sentenced to 1,000 lashes for "insulting Islam" in Saudi Arabia
*
Ashraf Fayadh
Ashraf Fayadh ( ar, أشرف فياض, born 1980 in Saudi Arabia) is an artist and poet of Palestinian origin. He is the son of refugees from Khan Yunis in the Gaza Strip and lives in Saudi Arabia. He was active in the British-Arabian arts organiza ...
Also sentenced to death for apostasy
External links
“Religion, Religiosity and Craftsmen” (In Arabic)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mkhaitir, Mohamed Cheikh Ould
1985 births
Living people
Amnesty International prisoners of conscience held by Mauritania
People from Dakhlet Nouadhibou Region
Prisoners sentenced to death by Mauritania