Egyptian blogger expelled from Al Azhar University for his progressive views

Abdel Karim Nabil Suliman, an Egyptian Muslim student, was expelled from Al Azhar University in Egypt for expressing his progressive views

By: Free Copts

Abdel Karim Nabil Suliman [AKA: Kareem Amer] is a 22 year-old Egyptian student of law at the Azhar University in Egypt (Largest Islamic University in Egypt and the Islamic world), Damanhour Campus, and a women-rights activist
He also maintains his own blog where he posts articles expressing his views on the need for political reform as well as reforming Islam
On Wednesday October 25, 2005 , Egyptian State Security forces took Abdel Karim from his home, and confiscated hard copies of his writings, this came right after Karim published an article titled: “The Naked Truth Of Islam As I have Seen In Alexandria” where he condemned the actions of the Muslim mob that surrounded the Coptic church in Muharam Bek, Alexandria and attempted to destroy it 2 years after a stage play in the church alleged to be offensive to Muslims.

On Tuesday, March 14th, 2006 Karim was called in for investigations by a "Disciplinary council" set up by Al Azhar University to question Karim over his articles and views

On Wednesday March 15th, 2006 Karim wrote on his blog under the "Events of Al Azhar Inquisition" saying:

"Yesterday, I went to my college in Damanhour to attend the disciplinary council I was referred to because of my views and articles that I post online, the accusations ranged from defaming Islam to atheism to libel against the grand Imam of Al Azhar and some of the university scholars
Karim adds: (They simply turned criticism into libel and defamation, they considered the criticism of terrorist teachings as a derogatory act against religion), Karim went on to say "

" I did not try to deny the writing of these articles that they took as an incriminating evidence, but rather I insisted that they are my personal product despite their warnings that by admitting so, I might face many consequences"

On March 17th, 2006 the semi- official Algomhuria Egyptian newspaper published the following:

"Professor Hamdi Shalany, PHD., Dean of the School of Islamic Sharia and Law in Damanhour decided to expel the student Abdel Karim Nabil Suliman for perpetrating acts and writings that defames religion in addition to defamation and libel against the grand Imam of Al Azhar
The disciplinary council has submitted a copy of the investigation documents for public prosecution".

Upon receiving the university's decision letter, Karim wrote the following:

"I am not sad! Would one be depressed and sad when he recuperates his freedom? As I was being investigated, I discovered- for the first time- that being a student at El Azhar University means I was a slave owned by it.

Would I be sad because I recuperated my freedom? Would the slave be depressed when he manages to forcibly extract his freedom from the grasp of that who considered himself a master? Would he who wins over injustice, slavery, and intellectual restriction cry? I extracted it from them as they were bargaining with me over it.

They were expecting me to deny or evade responsibility of my free and courageous opinions - they were awaiting for me to give birth to a second personality during the investigations - but how preposterous!

The University of El Azhar is a racist university, with all that the word "Racism" entails. Its Imams and scholars always decry countries of the West, which reached a high caliber in terms of human rights, for having been racist countries at one point of their history.

Would those turbans void of brains remove the speck from their eyes first before blaming others for actions carried out centuries ago? It is a racist university for; in spite of the fact that it is a public university financed by all Egyptian taxpayers - Muslims and Christians alike - it only accepts Muslim students! Isn't that racism?

It is a racist university because it separates male and female students and places them in separate campuses. It even goes as far as banning its female students from studying certain specialties. Isn't that racism? If there is one thing for which I would like to thank that university of El Azhar, it is for having showed me its unveiled face that I would not have been able to witness had I not been one of its students.

I thank it for having opened its doors to me so I could see the laboratories of brain-washing and two-legged bombs, where an innocent kid becomes a rotten swamp after a couple of years, from whom emanates the odors of hatred, violence, and rejection of the other! "