Prosecuting man who burned Koran is attempt to revive blasphemy laws, court hears

Yahoo

6 days ago

The prosecution of a man who burned a copy of the Koran outside the Turkish Consulate is an attempt to revive blasphemy laws, a court has heard.
Hamit Coskun is accused of posing a threat to public order after setting fire to the holy book in London on Feb 13 in what he saw as a peaceful protest.
At the start of his trial at Westminster magistrates' court, the 50-year-old's lawyers argued that prosecutors were 'seeking to introduce a law unknown to this land, namely blasphemy in relation to Islam'.
Mr Coskun is accused of carrying out disorderly behaviour 'within the hearing or sight of a person likely to have caused harassment, alarm or distress' by burning a copy of the Koran.
It is further alleged he held it aloft while shouting 'f--- Islam' and 'Islam is religion of terrorism', and was motivated by hostility towards members of a religious group, namely followers of Islam.
Mr Coskun, who is of Armenian-Kurdish descent, denies the offences and argues he was entitled to burn the Koran and make critical comments about Islam under Article 10 of the Convention of Human Rights.
Katy Thorne KC, for Mr Coskun, argued that the prosecution was an abuse of process and should be stayed, adding: 'We submit that this is an attempt by the prosecution, to reintroduce and develop an offence of blasphemy.'
Ms Thorne argued that the prosecution criminalised any public burning of a religious book and 'undermined the criminal justice system'.
'It is effectively chilling the right of citizens to criticise religion,' she said.
Blasphemy laws were abolished in England and Wales in 2008 and in Scotland in 2021.
Ms Thorne said 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 Koran 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.'
Lawyers for the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) insisted that Mr Coskun was not being prosecuted for setting fire to the Koran.
Philip McGhee, for the CPS, said: 'He is being prosecuted for his disorderly behaviour in public.'
He said there was 'simply no misconduct in this case', adding: 'Nothing about the prosecution of this defendant for his words and actions has any impact on the ability of anyone to make any trenchant criticism of a religion.'
John McGarva, deputy district judge, refused Ms Thorne's application and said that 'this case was not an abuse of process'.
'This is not an attempt to bring back old blasphemy laws or a wider blasphemy law related to Islam,' he said.
Mr Coskun, wearing a white striped shirt and a grey jumper, sat outside the dock in courtroom nine, following proceedings intently via a Turkish translator.
The public gallery was packed with supporters. The Free Speech Union has taken up Mr Coskun's case and has paid for a security team, as well as half of his legal fees. The National Secular Society is paying for the other half.
The court heard Mr Coskun's action was a protest against Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the president of Turkey, who the former believes has made the country a 'base for radical Islamists and is trying to establish a sharia regime'.
Prosecutors said Mr Coskun, who is an atheist, travelled to the Turkish Consulate in Knightsbridge in February from his home in the Midlands with a lighter and copy of the Koran.
Once at the embassy, he set fire to the holy book, and, while holding it aloft, began shouting that 'Islam is a religion of terrorism'.
As he did so, a man from a neighbouring building came out to ask him why he was doing it. 'Terrorist,' replied Mr Coskun.
The man responded: 'You're a f---ing idiot,' adding: 'I'm going to f---ing kill you now.'
He then disappeared back inside, came out and began attacking Mr Coskun, who was punched and pushed to the ground and then kicked.
The man then spat on Mr Coskun before picking up the smouldering copy of the Koran and shouting at him 'Burning the Koran? It's my religion. You don't burn the Koran.'
A man filming the incident interjected: 'He just has.'
His attacker has subsequently pleaded guilty to assault.
Police were called to the scene and, via a telephone interpreter, Mr Coskun told them: 'I have been exercising my democratic right to protest by setting fire to the Koran.'
As officers spoke to him, Mr Coskun repeatedly said 'f--- Islam', the court heard.
Mr Coskun suffered an injury to his hand in the attack and was taken to hospital before being arrested later that day.
When interviewed under caution, he again said he had been exercising his right to protest as he believed the Koran was 'inciting people' to commit terrorism.
The trial, expected to last one day, continues.
Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.