Set El Faisal free,Mombasa muslim preachers tell Kenyan gvt

SHEIKH FAISAL

JANUARY 11, 2010

BY EUGENE OMILO

Muslim preachers in Mombasa have appealed to the government to set free troubled Jamaican cleric Sheikh Abdala El Faisal who was returned into the country on Sunday.

Council of Imams and Preachers of Kenya (CIPK) has said the cleric should be released from custody and left to go back to Jamaica on his own.

CIPK’s organizing secretary Sheikh Mohammed Khalifa said Sheikh El Faisal’s continued detention amounts to violating his rights adding that he cannot be detained without being charged in a court of law.

Sheikh Khalifa accused the government of acting in a barbaric manner after authorities at the Industrial area prison barred Muslim leaders from speaking to the preacher.

“We are being taken back to the dark colonial period where Africans were treated like trash by the British. Even if El Faisal is a criminal, let him be tried by a court of law,” said Sheikh Khalifa.

He said the Muslim community feels betrayed by ODM leaders in government as they have turned their back to them.

“We stood by them when they were campaigning but they do not want to listen to us. They are still disrespecting our faith,” said Sheikh Khalifa during a press conference in Mombasa yesterday.

“We are not looking for a favour in this matter, what we want is El Faisal’s rights to be respected,” he added.

Sheikh Khalifa said though the CIPK had not invited the Jamaican preacher into the country, it will stand by him to ensure his rights are not violated.

CIPK’s Treasurer Sheikh Hassan Omar said Muslims like other religions have a right to worship and wondered why the government is not keen on following up questionable preachers from other religions.

The Sheikh was arrested a week ago in Mombasa but efforts to deport him back to Jamaica have proved difficult as local airlines have refused to take him on board.

ENDS.