COMMENT | By any standard, the 10-year jail sentence meted out to 22-year-old Sarawakian Alister Cogia is excessive.

He was charged for insulting the prophet of Islam. News reports do not give a full account of the man, the context of his crime and other relevant details.

The fact is all religions insult, offend and undermine one another.

The moment anyone upholds his or her religion's cardinal teachings, it will inevitably offend some other religion because all religions oppose one another, while sharing some common teachings.

For instance, Muslims claim there is no God but Allah and Muhammed is their prophet.

Will a Buddhist who does not subscribe to the idea of a Creator God, who says “there is no God” in direct contradiction, be guilty of opposition to Islam and be accused of insulting Islam?...