Muslim Radio Station Fined for Advocating 'Torture' of Homosexuals in UK
A Muslim radio station in Leeds, England has been fined thousands of pounds after the show's female host suggested homosexuals be "tortured" according to Islamic teaching.
The host's controversial comments have since been widely rebuked by several critics, including Great Britain's Office of Communications (OfCom), which serves as a government-approved watchdog of radio and television content.
"If there are two such persons among you, that do this evil, the shameful act, what do you have to do? Torture them; punish them; beat them and give them mental torture," the show's host, Rubina Nasir, also known as "Sister Ruby," said in an Aug. 17, 2011 broadcast on the Muslim radio station Asian Fever 107.3.
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"Allah states, 'If they do such a deed [i.e. homosexuality], punish them, both physically and mentally,'" Nasir added.
The comments were initially made by Nasir as part of her "Sister Ruby Ramadan Special 2011", which aired last year on Great Britain's Asian Fever Radio 107.3, a station catering to South Asian communities in Leeds.
Ofcom issued a statement in Nov. 2012 issuing the radio station a fine of £4,000, saying that Nasir's comments were "likely to encourage or incite the commission of crime against homosexuals."
Additionally, Ofcom's statement said that the radio comments were "likely to encourage others to copy unacceptable behaviour towards homosexuals."
As Digital Spy reports, the Radio Asian Fever Community Interest Company now owes a fine of £4,000 to the HM Paymaster General.
The practice of homosexuality is illegal in some South Asian countries, including the Muslim-majority countries of Malaysia and Singapore, where only homosexual acts between men are illegal.
According to Jim Daly, evangelical leader and president of the nonprofit Christian organization Focus on the Family, it is best to practice humility, offering God's love and grace to members of the gay community so they may see Christ's message.
"[Christians] need to anchor down, not with hostility but with humility, […] and continue to talk to people about the message of Christ, what the Gospel means. And if that resonates and if people connect, I think the other issues will come in line," Daly said in a recent interview with National Public Radio.
