On March 3, 2007, SPME launched a petition to the government of Bangladesh to free and drop all charges against Muslim journalist Salah Choudhury who is being charged with sedition and is on trial for his life. Nearly 1000 persons of good will have signed the petition at http://www.spme.net/cgi-bin/display_petitions.cgi?ID=6 already and it is hoped you will sign and circulate this important petition right now, if you haven't already.

Dr. Richard Benkin, c0-author of the petition with www.interfaithstrength.com writes: " If Salah Uddin Shoaib Choudhury was in Europe duing the Shoah, he would have refused to drive the trains. This is the lease I can do for him."

Rayhan Rashid, University of Oxford calls for an "...independent inquiry to find out the names of people responsible for this [persecution].

Jiten Roy, Chief Medical Physicist, comments, " The present Government should uphold freedom of speech to prove that Bangladesh is a civilized country."

Rena Rashid of Houston, TX, calls Choudhury"...a hero..."

Prof. Barbara Burstin of University of Pittburgh/Carnegie Mellon, expressed the outrage of many faculty by saying, "His treatment by the government is an outrageous violation of human rights."

Prof. Paul G. Shane of Rutgers University writes, " As a person who strongly supported the struggle for independence for Bangladesh, I am very saddened by the persecution of moderate Muslims in the country. I remember the slogan Jai Bangla. The persecution of Salah Choudhury isn't the jai Bangla that your supporters envisioned...Friendship between those of different religious persuasions isn't anti-Muslim."

Nigel Paneth of Michigan State University points out, "Bangladesh has long been know as a tolerant and understanding country. It is not consistent with Bangladeshi priniciples to treat Mr. Choudhury in this unfair manner."

Joel S. Pachter of the University of Connecticut asks, "...where do Ramsey Clark, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International stand on this issue? " John Feredy of the University of Toronto concurs, with, "If ever there was a genuine human rights issue, this is it."

Shauna Singh Baldwin, a writer from Canada commented, "By every principle of ijtihad, it is un-Islamic to silence a thinker."