Afghan Convert to Christianity Finds Asylum in Italy
by Jody Brown and Allie Martin
March 29, 2006
(AgapePress) - - Intense international pressure and attention -- not to mention the prayers of his fellow Christians worldwide -- played a role in Abdul Rahman's release from an Afghan prison earlier this week. Now the Afghani who left the Muslim faith for a relationship with Jesus Christ has found safe haven in Italy.According to news reports, 41-year-old Abdul Rahman is now safely in Italy, which granted asylum to the Christian convert who held fast to his faith when faced with the prospect of a death sentence for leaving the Muslim faith. Rahman, who went into hiding after he was released from prison Monday evening when all charges were dropped, had sought asylum in another country for fear of death threats made by top Muslim clerics in Afghanistan.
Associated Press reports that, according to Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi, Rahman may have arrived in Italy overnight and is now in the care of the country's Interior Ministry. Berlusconi says his country is glad to welcome someone he says is "courageous." Italy granted Rahman asylum after his imprisonment and trial inspired an appeal from Pope Benedict to Afghanistan's president, and efforts by the United Nations to find a country to take him.
Meanwhile, Muslim clerics in Afghanistan are outraged at Rahman's release, says AP. That country's new parliament had demanded that the convert be barred from leaving the country, but no formal vote was taken on the issue. A top cleric in southern Afghanistan called Rahman's release a "betrayal of Islam," and some 500 Afghans rallied on Wednesday at a mosque, demanding that Rahman be either forced to return to Islam or be killed. The cleric has threatened to incite violent protests.
'Religious Freedom' in Afghanistan
A spokesman for The Voice of the Martyrs says Abdul Rahman's trial in Afghanistan has put a much-needed spotlight on the true nature of Islam. An official with VOM is hopeful that attention generated by the case will spark worldwide prayer -- and a revival in the Muslim nation.
Todd Nettleton is a spokesman for VOM, a worldwide ministry that serves those who are persecuted for their Christian faith. He says under the new constitution of Afghanistan -- which some interpret to require the death penalty for a Muslim who rejects that faith -- Islam controls all aspects of life.
"In the United States we talk about the separation of church and state," notes Nettleton, "but in an Islamic country, there is no separation. Islam controls not just religion but also politics, legal issues, and all of life. And Islamic law simply does not allow a person to leave Islam and follow another faith."
And despite a new constitution for the supposedly developing democracy, persecution of Christians is still common in Afghanistan, he says.
"The Afghan government has recognized that Afghans can be Hindus and can be Sikhs, but they do not recognize Afghan Christians," the VOM spokesman explains. "Our brothers and sisters there have no legal standing, and that's got to change."
Nettleton makes reference to those who are currently in the predominantly Muslim nation, trying to secure freedom for all of its citizens. "American soldiers didn't go to Afghanistan and lay down their lives so that Christians could be persecuted," he states. "They fought and died so that Afghans could truly have freedom, including freedom of religion."
Rahman converted to Christianity 16 years ago while working with a Christian aid group in Pakistan. His wife divorced him, his parents gained custody of his two daughters, and he lived in Germany before being deported to Afghanistan after several years of seeking asylum in European countries.
Associated Press contributed to this story.
