Judge orders retrial in Bakr sedition case

Muslimeen leader Yasin Abu Bakr leaves court surrounding by his security personnel (Guardian photo)

Justice Mark Mohammed on Thursday ordered a retrial in the sedition case against Jamaat-al-Muslimeen leader, Yasin Abu Bakr after the jury reported that it was unable to reach a verdict in the matter.

The jury deliberated for several hours on the four charges against Bakr before reporting to the judge that members were unable to reach a decision.

Bakr, 70, was on trial for allegedly making seditious statements in an Eid sermon delivered at the Jamaat’s Mucurapo Road, St James mosque on November 4, 2005. Its focus was on the Islamic principle of zakaat, which requires Muslims to donate two-and-a-half per cent of their income to charity. 

Mohammed told the jury that they were to arrive at their verdict based on the evidence presented in the case and must not consider any other facts about the accused.

He stated that the prosecution based its case on the view that Bakr suggested to his followers that they should forcibly collect zakaat. The judge added that the defence claimed Bakr’s message was aimed at alleviating poverty in the local Muslim community by introducing an organised system for collecting and distributing zakaat.