Adel Iman

[MaidenScotland]

Egypt's leading comic actor Adel Imam has received a three-month jail sentence for insulting Islam in films and plays, court documents have shown.

He was accused of frequently mocking authorities and politicians in his films, and of offending Islam and its symbols, including beards.

The case against him was brought by Asran Mansour, who is a lawyer with ties to Islamist groups.

Imam, who is 72 years old, has one month to appeal the decision.

He will remain out of jail until the appeal process has been completed, but has also been fined 1,000 Egyptian pounds (£105).

According to reports, Mr Mansour was offended by Imam's film Morgan Ahmed Morgan, which sees a rich businessman stand for parliament, and the play Al-Zaeem (The Leader).

His case had languished in court for months, judicial sources told the Reuters news agency.

Nabil Abdel Fattah, an analyst at the al-Ahram Centre for Political and Strategic Studies in Cairo, said the sentence was likely to have been handed down because Imam had failed to appear in court.

He added that it would probably be overturned on appeal.

Imam's movies regularly top the Egyptian box office and the types of roles he plays have varied enormously across his career.

Some of his movies have dealt with the rise of Islamic militancy and incompetent government officials.

The actor was awarded a lifetime achievement prize at the 2010 Doha film festival.

[SHendra]

Gosh this guy is a success for a reason in Egypt.. cause he is liked. I always liked watching this guy even though I don't understand arabic. I can't see anything offending about him. To me in the darks days of Egypt he one of those that offer a bit of light and laughter for all.

These so called Islamist groups would serve better feeding the kids on the streets in the name of religion much more so than to go around picking on a man in his later years!

Just another one of those not much more can surprise us moments isn't it? Such a shame.

[aykalam]

He is a very good actor, even better in drama than in comedy. But apparently he was always a Mubarak yes-man, and now the talking beards are making him pay for it.

http://www.asharq-e.com/news.asp?section=7&id=24207

[Qsw]

I remember one scene, I think the movie was "safara fil 3imara", "The embassy is in the building", where he is kidnapped by Islamic extremists (all bearded, I believe) who want him to go on a "mission" (you know the kind). It was a really funny scene, I'm not sure what he did in other movies to offend Islamists.

Reading about his ties to Mubarak, I can't say I'm surprised, he was/is(?) so popular I'm sure Mubarak tried to make sure he was on his side. He probably thought it was a good way to give the public a vent, supporting an actor he knows won't go too far. Not that I'm defending him, I don't really know anything about him apart from his movies.

Attacking artists is always a bad sign, this could mean the beginning of a new wave of attacks on the lighter side of Egyptian culture. Hopefully this is just a test to see how far they can go with asserting their beliefs, but I don't think so. They may have already scared enough artists away from those subjects with this action. Really sad...

[CatMandoo]

Originally Posted by Qsw

I remember one scene, I think the movie was "safara fil 3imara", "The embassy is in the building", where he is kidnapped by Islamic extremists (all bearded, I believe) who want him to go on a "mission" (you know the kind). It was a really funny scene, I'm not sure what he did in other movies to offend Islamists.

.

My step son did the filming of some of the scenes in that movie at his studio in Dubai

[hhaddad]

One of the Arab world's best-known comedians has been sentenced to three months in jail for offending Islam, an Egyptian judge said Thursday. His and other cases have spurred concerns about the future of freedom of expression in the country.
The judge confirmed that Adel Imam, a veteran Egyptian actor who first starred in a play in 1964, was convicted in absentia of insulting the religion. He said Imam has the right to appeal, speaking on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief reporters.
Imam, a UN goodwill ambassador who has been described as the Arab world's Charlie Chaplin, vowed to appeal the ruling.
"Some people seeking fame filed a suit against me over works I have done which they consider insulting to Islam, and this is of course not true," the 71-year-old actor told the Associated Press.
The state-run Ahram Online English website reported Thursday that Imam was found guilty of "defaming Islam" in a 2007 movie in which he plays a corrupt businessman who tries to buy a university diploma. The film "Morgan Ahmed Morgan" included a scene in which the character scorned bearded Muslim men wearing traditional Islamic robes. Other reports said the court objected to his use of Islamic symbols in the film and others he has appeared in.
Last month, Egyptian telecommunications and construction tycoon Naguib Sawiris, a founder of the liberal Free Egyptians political party, faced similar charges of defaming Islam after he posted pictures of Mickey and Minnie Mouse wearing Islamic clothing on Twitter.
The cases have added to concerns that Islamists who dominate the new Egyptian parliament might use their powers to try to stifle freedom of expression. Imam has acted in dozens of films and 10 plays in his career of nearly 50 years. It is not clear if other films of his were also named in the case.
In one of his most popular roles, Imam played an Arab dictator in the 1998 satirical play called el-Zaeem (The Leader), which aired on satellite television stations across the Arab world, bypassing censorship and gaining popularity for its comedic take on a tyrannical figure. In the 1980's, Imam was also sentenced to three months in jail for defaming lawyers in a film, though that ruling was later overturned.
"All the works in which I have starred went through the censors. Had they been found to be defamatory, the censors would have banned them," Imam told AP.
Long a beloved figured in Egypt, Imam lost popularity among Egyptian protesters for vocalizing support for Hosni Mubarak during last year's 18-day revolt, which resulted in the toppling of the longtime ruler.

[MaidenScotland]

A vision of the future.


The MB are running the country

[expatagogo]

Is this the same group that's suing Obama, the CIA, SCAF, and a spattering of other individuals over the events in Port Said?

Isn't there a logical statute of limitations that should come into play here? Really, the film at issue was made in 2007. Will all of Egypt have to fret because of something they said, did, or thought 5, 10, or 15 years ago?

Where on earth is the "boggled mind" emoticon when one really needs it?

[MaidenScotland]

Originally Posted by expatagogo

Is this the same group that's suing Obama, the CIA, SCAF, and a spattering of other individuals over the events in Port Said?

Isn't there a logical statute of limitations that should come into play here? Really, the film at issue was made in 2007. Will all of Egypt have to fret because of something they said, did, or thought 5, 10, or 15 years ago?

Where on earth is the "boggled mind" emoticon when one really needs it?

Yes... the sins of the fathers will be heaped upon us,

[hhaddad]

It seems that everybody has to be careful what they say again especially concerning Islam and things connected to it. We are being watched by a number of guests who knows who they are!