A Christian pastor was arrested after he made comments about Islam and the binary nature of sex while street preaching outside Bristol University.
In response to a question from a Muslim member of the public, Dia Moodley said he believed there were differences between the moral standards of the God of Islam and the Christian God.
During his preaching he also expressed the belief that God made humans male and female and that this truth should not be denied.
The Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF UK), which is supporting Moodley, said he was arrested and detained for 13 hours by Avon and Somerset Police in March.
The organization said that Moodley was pushed off his short stepladder and had a sign snatched from his hands before being arrested by attending officers.
Four of his signs were handed to staff at Bristol University, who disposed of them under the instruction of the officers.
Reacting to the incident, Moodley said, “Two-tier policing is sadly not a fiction or some conspiracy theory, it’s a reality that Christians in the U.K. have been experiencing for years.
“It shouldn’t be for the state to decide which religions and ideologies must not be discussed or critiqued in the public street. The result is the normalization of a two-tier society where some beliefs and ideologies are valued and protected, while others are undermined and outlawed.
“The world is looking at the dismal state of free speech in the U.K. with shock. What happened to me reflects a wider trend of increasing state censorship in the U.K. and across the West.”
ADF UK is supporting Moodley in pursuing a complaint against Avon and Somerset Police. He has already received an apology for the disposal of his signs.
An officer wrote in an email to Moodley: “I’m sorry to advise that the signs were handed to … the UoB [University of Bristol] for them to dispose of. I cannot comment as to why this decision was made (as I was not present at the time), however I would like to apologiae on behalf of my colleagues. … Again, I am sincerely sorry that this action [sic].”
