TIGZIRT, Algeria — An Algerian judge under pressure from Islamists to uphold a Christian’s conviction for alleged proselytizing rescinded his one-year prison term but doubled his fine, an attorney said.
Mohamed Ibaouene was convicted in absentia July 4, 2012, by a court in Tigzirt, sentenced to one year in prison and fined $635 on a charge of pressuring a Muslim to convert.
Ibaouene was convicted of “inciting a Muslim with pressure to change his religion” under Algeria’s controversial Law 06/03, which places restrictions on the religious practice of non-Muslims. The decision on the appeal of his sentence was to be announced Feb. 6, but the judge delayed the verdict until Feb. 13 without explanation.
Ibaouene denied the charge and said Abdelkrim M., a machine operator at the company where he worked as a manager, was the one pressuring him to change his religion. The 27-year-old machine operator, known to be an Islamic extremist, leveled the accusation only after Ibaouene, a convert from Islam, refused to renounce Christ, Ibaouene said.
Ibaouene’s attorney said the case provided a long-sought sentencing of a Christian under Law 06/03, with the case resolved quickly compared with delays in other such cases.
The judge’s verdict was brief: Ibaouene was sentenced to pay the $635 fine thereby revoking the one-year prison sentence.
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