The case of a Sudanese woman awaiting the death penalty for turning her back on her faith is not only shocking but also raises ethical questions.
Can we today claim to be civilised? Are we capable of looking beyond our fears?
It is a sad day for Sudan, Africa and the world when citizens are not afforded an opportunity to decide their lives. That sharia law is being followed does not give a state the right to interfere once an individual has decided about the life he or she wants to lead.
It is even more troubling that Meriam Yahia Ibrahim Ishag is now married and recently gave birth. We are told she was convicted of adultery after her marriage to a Christian man from South Sudan.
Ishag now faces the gallows.
South Africa has a duty to raise its voice and condemn the decision by Sudan.
We cannot allow a country, no matter how strong its religion, to violate basic human rights. The right to choose is a fundamental right.
Now that the case has received world attention it is upon us to demand Ishag's immediate freedom.
The danger we face today as citizens of the world is that we are powerless in the face of pervasive extremism.
In Nigeria, innocent schoolgirls are being used as pawns by Boko Haram to free its jailed comrades and promote an extreme form of Islam. It's an indictment on the Nigerian military and the world that they have dragged their feet in finding and freeing the girls.
Today, we are told a pregnant woman died in Pakistan after she was brutally stoned to death outside a court for getting married against her family's wishes.
Gruesomely, her family honoured its faith above her right to life.
These incidents point to a troubled world that cannot protect individual rights. Although religion is important, it should not be used to take a life. Let our voices be a tool to fight injustice and oppression in all their forms.
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