Man found guilty after burning a Quran outside the Turkish consulate in London
A man has been found guilty of a religiously aggravated public offence, after burning a Quran outside the Turkish consulate in London.
Hamit Coskun, 50, shouted 'f*** Islam', 'Islam is religion of terrorism' and 'Quran is burning' as he held the flaming Islamic text aloft in Rutland Gardens, Knightsbridge, on February 13, Westminster Magistrates' Court heard last week.
District Judge John McGarva delivered his verdict at the same court on Monday.
Coskun was found guilty of a religiously aggravated public order offence of using disorderly behaviour 'within the hearing or sight of a person likely to be caused harassment, alarm or distress', motivated by 'hostility towards members of a religious group, namely followers of Islam', contrary to the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 and section 5 of the Public Order Act 1986.
Giving his verdict, District Judge McGarva said: 'Your actions in burning the Quran where you did were highly provocative, and your actions were accompanied by bad language in some cases directed toward the religion and were motivated at least in part by hatred of followers of the religion.'
Coskun was fined £240, with a statutory surcharge of £96.
Turkey-born Coskun, who is half Kurdish and half Armenian, travelled from his home in the Midlands and set fire to the Quran at around 2pm, the court heard.
In footage captured on a mobile phone by a passerby that was shown to the court, a man approached and asked Coskun why he was burning a copy of the Quran.
Coskun can be heard making a reference to 'terrorist' and the man called the defendant 'a f****** idiot'.
The man approached him allegedly holding a knife or bladed article and appeared to slash out at him, the court heard. The footage appeared to show Coskun back away and use the burning Quran to deflect the attacker, who is alleged to have slashed out at him again.
The man chased Coskun, and the defendant stumbled forward and fell to the ground, dropping the Quran, the footage showed. Coskun was spat at and kicked by the man, the court heard.
The man said: 'Burning the Quran? It's my religion, you don't burn the Quran.'
Coskun had posted on social media that he was protesting against the 'Islamist government' of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan who the defendant allegedly said 'has made Turkey a base for radical Islamists and is trying to establish a Sharia regime', prosecutors said.
The defendant, who is an atheist, believes that he protested peacefully and burning the Quran amounted to freedom of expression, the court heard.
His legal fees are being paid for by the Free Speech Union and the National Secular Society.
The National Secular Society (NSS), which alongside the Free Speech Union paid for Hamit Coskun's legal fees, said the verdict 'jeopardises' free expression.
NSS chief executive Stephen Evans said: 'The outcome of this case is a significant blow to freedom of expression and signals a concerning capitulation to Islamic blasphemy codes.
'The court's acceptance of the prosecution's assertion that Mr Coskun's actions stemmed from hostility towards Muslims raises serious concerns. It is essential to differentiate between prejudice or hatred aimed at individuals and hostility towards the ideologies of Islam or Islamism.
'The conviction of Mr Coskun on the grounds that his actions were 'likely' to cause harassment, alarm, or distress suggests a troubling repurposing of public order laws as a proxy for blasphemy laws. This jeopardises freedom of expression by establishing a 'heckler's veto' that incentivises violent responses to suppress views deemed offensive.
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