A Nigerian man has been incarcerated in a mental health institution by his family after saying he had lost his belief in God. Mubarak Bala, 29, is said to have been forcibly medicated for insanity for nearly two weeks, despite a doctors opinion that he has no psychological problems. Campaigners are calling for his release and say the case highlights the fact that atheists are a persecuted minority in many African countries. Balas Twitter account uses the handle ExMuslim, and his profile says: Chemical Process Engineer. I stand for Truth&Justice. Religion insults human conscience &reason, duped me that I hav another lifetime. AgnosticAtheist. He lives in Kano in Nigerias predominantly Muslim north. The state adopted sharia law in 2000 and has a strict Islamic police force called the Hisbah. When Bala told his family that he had renounced Islam, they took him to a doctor and asked if he was mentally ill, according to the International Humanist and Ethical Union, which has taken up the case. The doctor gave him a clean bill of health, but the family turned to a second doctor, who said his atheism was a side-effect of a personality change. The family allegedly told the doctor that he had also made delusional claims that he was a governor and other trivial lies. Bala was subsequently admitted to the Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital on 13 June and has since been held there against his will.
Posted on: Sun, 29 Jun 2014 00:15:23 +0000
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