Today we had our first encounter with the Atlantic fog. It was a little eerie to look outside and see only a grey mist – almost iceberg hunting weather.

Other than keeping an eye out for mid summer icebergs, Zumba and choir practice was done, as was trivia and a free rum tasting session.

Highlight of the day was listening to the ex-Special Protection speak about his time protecting Salman Rushdie during the early years he was living under the Iranian issued fatwa. As a member of Salman's protection team and Lady Thatcher’s, the lecturer would split his time between the two. Given the nature of protecting Salman and the harm it could cause the protection team, more of the lecturers time was spent with Lady Thatcher, while being rotated in and out of the Salman’s team.

A little history thanks to Wikipedia. The publication of The Satanic Verses in September 1988 caused immediate controversy in the Islamic world because of what was seen by some to be an irreverent depiction of the prophet Muhammad. The title refers to a disputed Muslim tradition that is related in the book. According to this tradition, Muhammad (Mahound in the book) added verses to the Qur'an accepting three goddesses who used to be worshipped in Mecca as divine beings. According to the legend, Muhammad later revoked the verses, saying the devil tempted him to utter these lines to appease the Meccans (hence the "Satanic" verses). However, the narrator reveals to the reader that these disputed verses were actually from the mouth of the Archangel Gibreel. The book was banned in many countries with large Muslim communities. (12 total: India, Bangladesh, Sudan, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Kenya, Thailand, Tanzania, Indonesia, Singapore, Venezuela, and Pakistan.)

On 14 February 1989, a fatwā requiring Rushdie's execution was proclaimed on Radio Tehran by Ayatollah Khomeini, the spiritual leader of Iran at the time, calling the book "blasphemous against Islam" (chapter IV of the book depicts the character of an Imam in exile who returns to incite revolt from the people of his country with no regard for their safety). A bounty was offered for Rushdie's death, and he was thus forced to live under police protection for several years. On 7 March 1989, the United Kingdom and Iran broke diplomatic relations over the Rushdie controversy.

The fatwa meant that Mr Rushdie needed to have protection 24/7. His protection team went where he went and lived in the same house. As the years when on, the protection team were able to refine the procedures and give Salman a little more freedom. The lecturer told an interesting story about when they went up to the Isle of Sky for a short break. On the weekend they were there, the local newspaper decided to publish a cartoon featuring Rushdie riding Sheba on one of the beaches. The point of the cartoon was that it depicted just how remote the area was. After several discrete enquiries, it was established that no-one at the newspaper knew Rushdie was there and that it was a disconcerting coincidence that the cartoon was published that particular weekend.

The fatwa against Rushdie is still in place and will continue to hang over his head for the rest of his life. There are only two ways for the fatwa to be removed, for the person who put it in place to revoke it (unlikely as the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini he has been dead since 1989) or on Salman’s death (natural or otherwise).

One of the final things the lecturer mentioned was that on February 14 every year, Rushdie receives a card reminding him that the fatwa is still in place.

Fun fact:
Originally baked beans came in treacle syrup and not the tomato sauce we associated with them today.