The Supreme Court of Nigeria has upheld death sentences for six Muslims who slaughtered Abdullahi Umaru for allegedly insulting Mohammed.  The execution-style murder took place in 1999 in Kebbi, one of twelve Muslim-majority states in northern Nigeria that have implemented sharia law.

The case has prompted renewed calls by the twelve states to incorporate a national law against blasphemy in constitutional revisions now under discussion.

With sharia (Islamic law) in force in Kebbi and 11 other states in northern Nigeria – though supposed to be applied only to Muslims – the high court judgment has further prompted Muslim calls for legislation against “blasphemy.” The National Assembly has begun amending the 1999 constitution.

Muslim leaders in northern Nigeria’s Kano state have called for a national law on “blasphemy,” leaving Christian leaders with the fear that Islamic law could be used to arbitrarily put Christians to death. The secular court convictions for the murder of Umaru are in part behind the agitation for “blasphemy” legislation, they say.

Bauchi state Gov. Mallam Isa Yuguda has called for sharia to be enshrined in the Nigerian constitution. Besides Bauchi and Kano, other northern states enforcing sharia are Gombe, Niger, Yobe, Borno, Kaduna, Katsina, Jigawa, Kebbi, Sokoto, and Zamfara.

Christian leaders oppose an anti-blasphemy law, fearing that it would be used to legitimate unjust attacks on Christians.  Anyway, says Samuel Salifu of the Christian Association of Nigeria, Islam needs to clean up its own act.

“Why should Muslims complain about blasphemy when their holy book, the Quran, blasphemes Jesus Christ?” he said. “The Quran says Jesus is not the son of God, and is this not blasphemy? Muslims must learn to be tolerant and allow peace to reign in this country.”

Also, Christians are not prone to butchering Muslims for blasphemy.

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