Elisabeth Sabaditsch-Wolff is an Austrian woman who has taught about Islam and the cultural challenges it poses for the West. In particular, her course noted that the prophet Muhammed consummated his marriage to Aisha when the girl was nine years old -- a fact that Muslims not only do not dispute, but that allows them even now to marry girls of the same age. In the West, such sexual unions constitute paedophilia, and yet Mrs. S-W has been charged with defaming a religion for noting particular facts about this religion.
The Prosecutor, held that it had no relevance that the statement in question was made during educational seminars. Further, the Prosecutor disagreed with the advertising of the seminars as being "historical science", and asserted instead that the intention of seminars was to defame Islam under a mantle of being "scientific".
Likewise, despite Islamic scripture and scholars being in agreement on the fact that Mohammad systematically had a sexual relationship with a minor (Aisha, aged 9), that is insufficient to deduce that Mohammad was a paedophile. Thus, stating so is unscientific and constitutes an impermissible excess of opinion.
Her case now moves to a higher court, which is the European Court of Human Rights. Her tenacity is admirable, and yet we must recognise what hangs in the balance. One religion stands to deflect all criticism of its tenets--which include marriage of minors, marriage without consent, no-fault divorce, encouragement of female genital mutilation, and the inequality of women before the law. If these cannot be challenged, then the rights of women will be diminished even in the EU, where local laws stand in stark contrast to the beliefs of Muslims.
Furthermore, it cannot be ignored that some religions are "more equal" than others, because the tenets of Christianity--which include the sanctity of life of all persons and the definition of marriage as being solely between a man and a woman--are undermined regularly. Not only are rights of Christians to follow their conscience not respected, but they are often charged with crimes for believing such things!