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'Teddy' row teacher heading to China: friend
2008-02-16
A teacher who was jailed in Sudan for calling a teddy bear Mohammed is to take up an 18-month post teaching English in China, a friend said Saturday. Gillian Gibbons, 54, was arrested November 25 and sentenced to 15 days in prison for insulting religion by allowing children at an English school in Khartoum to call the stuffed animal after the Muslim prophet. The imprisonment of Gibbons, a mother of two, led to a diplomatic stand-off between Britain and Sudan until two British Muslim lawmakers travelled to Africa to negotiate her early release after eight days and a presidential pardon. Friend Gill Langworthy said Saturday Gibbons had secured a position at a school near the Chinese capital, Beijing, and is due to fly out in two weeks' time. "Hopefully this time she won't end up in prison," she joked. "Gillian is really excited, she's a bit nervous, but excited. She has not let things put her off."
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