Pakistan will not repeal blasphemy law: minister

[ajtr]

Blasphemy law: An apparatus to sustain tyranny​

In Pakistan, if you have a land dispute, political rivalry, or just personal or professional jealousy or economic rivalry with someone and you are bent on settling your score, then teaching them a lesson is easier than you think.

You can make your enemies regret every day they have ever lived, especially if they are non-Muslims, Ahmadis, Zionists or “Hindu Zionists”. Although in Pakistan it may seem convenient to hire an assassin or kill them yourself – but why do things ‘illegally’ when you can destroy their lives ‘legally’ with popular support?

All it takes is a false accusation of blasphemy and propagandist newspapers like Ummat and Nawai Waqt will rally behind you, people on the street will burn and destroy public property in your support, the influential Islamic political parties of Pakistan will back you up.

Examples of false accusations which have been used are accusing someone of burning Quran, using pages from the Quran to clean toilets, vilifying Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), and defending someone who has purportedly committed blasphemy. All of these involve direct desecration but accusations can be subtle. Even people challenging an interpretation of an Islamic text can be subject to the same treatment, all thanks to the so called ‘blasphemy law’ of Pakistan. This savage and oppressive blasphemy law is part of the Criminal Code of Pakistan; it has two sections namely Section 295 and Section 298. By law, only one witness is required to give testimony for these ‘crimes.’

A history of abuse

Thanks to this law, many people have been subject to severe treatment. According to a researcher, Mansoor Raza, between 1988 and 2005, Pakistani authorities charged 647 people, of which 50 per cent were non-Muslim, with offences under the blasphemy laws. In the past decade, perhaps 2,000 Ahmadis have been charged under the blasphemy law, according to the Ahmadi community. The issue is so sensitive that some people choose to stay in jail fearing public backlash which can also take the form of lynching. Zaibun Nisa, charged with desecrating the Quran, was arrested in 1996 without a trial. Soon after she was declared mentally ill but was not released until recently.

Government authorities make arrests to defuse tensions and prefer to keep the ‘blasphemer’ in jail. In some cases landlords have accused or threatened to accuse Christians to exploit debt/labour bondage arrangements. Ayub Massih, a Christian convicted of blasphemy, used to work as a farmer for a local landlord in exchange for a place to live. When he applied for government allotted housing which would have freed him of his obligation, the landlord filed charges against him for blasphemy. A human rights activist and Roman Catholic Bishop, John Joseph tried to find a lawyer willing to represent him but ended up taking his own life in the end when he realised he couldn’t help Ayub Massih anymore.

Another more dangerous form of retaliation is by militant Islamic organisations. Sipah-e-Sahaba has been involved in violence against Christians, which has also involved torching Christian homes. Even in the secured confines of a prison the ‘blasphemers’ are not entirely safe. Samuel Masih was arrested for spitting on a wall of a mosque. Later, a police constable used a hammer to kill Masih claiming that it was his divine duty to do so.

The defendants of blasphemers are also subject to the same ire whether it be lawyers, activists, or even judges. Judge Arif Iqbal Hussain Bhatti was assassinated in 1997 after he acquitted two people accused of blasphemy.

Renewed attention

Currently, the case of Aasia Bibi, falsely accused of blasphemy, has garnered international attention. Major domestic and international organisations have called for repealing this barbaric law which is being routinely used to persecute minorities and settle personal grudges. Will Aasia Bibi receive a pardon? Will Pakistan repeal the blasphemy law?

Even if she does get a presidential pardon, Aasia Bibi will surely be targeted by the zealot mob and will probably have to move to another country. But the blasphemy law is unlikely to be repealed anytime soon.

This is because influential Islamists and landowners exploit this law to their own advantage and the Pakistani army (establishment) need this law to advance their foreign policy objectives.

Blasphemy law: A gift from the army

This blasphemy law is a gift to the Pakistani people from its army when it ceded to the demands of Saudi Arabia in return for financial and political support during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. In return for Saudi money, Saudi cooperation in the development of Madrassas and spread of Ahle Hadith ideology, all required to build motivation to fight the Soviets, Pakistan imported the Hudood Ordinance and the current blasphemy law.

Apart from appeasing Saudi Arabia, these laws are also mainly to please Islamic militant allies such as Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed who have been important foreign policy tools against India. The introduction of these laws ensures that the mullahs will stay on board on foreign as well as domestic security issues.

Revoking the blasphemy law will undermine Pakistan’s policy of disruption of peace in Afghanistan and its militant support against archrival India. It is obvious that in order for the blasphemy law to be revoked a change in foreign policy is required. Once the foreign policy has changed, the Pakistani army can face the opposition from mullahs and militants since it will no longer need them to attain its goals.

Therefore, the debate against the ruthless blasphemy laws must take into account this crucial aspect of foreign policy that helps to sustain the national security state of Pakistan.

 

[ajtr]

Stand up against the blasphemy laws​

The sentencing to death of a Christian woman on charges of blasphemy by a sessions court in Nankana Sahib has created an uproar in Pakistan. The Aasia Bibi case has touched a raw nerve among thousands of people for more than one reason. The trigger for her ordeal to become a test case for our independent judiciary to do justice without prejudice is obvious. The woman is clearly a victim rather than a blasphemer. She has suffered incarceration for a year over just the kind of charges the blasphemy laws have been used in Pakistan for: to settle personal scores, build pressure for property disputes or simply browbeat minority communities into emigration or life as third class citizens.
But public anger about the case is not just about the mala fide intent of her accusers. It is about the majority of Pakistanis losing memory of what constitutes citizenship and its attendant Constitutional protections. At the heart of this darkness lies our public guilt by complicity. This guilt is about allowing what statutory safeguards we have to be degraded into paper guarantees that only protect the privileged and rarely the vulnerable. It is about standing by, wringing our hands at worst; at best speaking out, writing articles, leading rallies and overturning harsh verdicts. It is about the failure of the silent majority to mobilise resources and marshal support to overturn the laws that allow for such grave injustices to be done in the name of the Holy Prophet (pbuh) who staked his life to protect the weak, especially the minorities, against the bloodlust of zealots.
It is the responsibility of the courts how they interpret the blasphemy laws. And it is the responsibility of the government, as well as parliament, to take notice of laws that allow impunity for such murderous bigotry and initiate a process that dismantles the architecture of these man-made laws. But it is also the responsibility of citizens, especially those who profit the most from Pakistan, to stand up again such attacks on its existential premise. In any civilised country, where the identity of the state was so contested that no one could face the wrath of the self-appointed gatekeepers of Islam, the educated elite would be forced to make common cause with the activist left to put its weight behind reform of laws they all condemn as unjust behind closed doors.
We no longer live in a country where it is ok to retreat behind our affluent enclaves, like the rich do everywhere. Pakistan is burning with extremist fires. It is not enough to mobilise for flood relief or charity where state capacities fail. It is imperative to recognise that democracy in endangered societies is about standing up for the rights of the vulnerable as well as our own. It is about becoming stakeholders in reform, not just marching when one’s own parks and schools are threatened.
Our society is intolerant enough without legal sanction for witch-hunts. This is the time to push for repeal of the blasphemy law in the legislature. If that does not work, just like the Hudood repeal bills did not when we moved them, we need to build positions and craft laws that amend these laws so they become toothless, much like we campaigned to get the Women’s Bill passed in parliament. A PPP government is our best chance of getting some traction on such change. As activists, we should attempt to build mainstream consensus against these laws and create new ones that penalise those that incite violence with malicious intent.
As empowered citizens, it is our responsibility to fight for the promise our founding father made on August 11 of 1947, when he addressed the first Constituent Assembly of Pakistan. Everyone who is reading this should know what he said on that historic day. It is time to make good on that promise.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 24th, 2010.

 

[Abu Zolfiqar]

this is sad, and unacceptable.......
a capitulation to the sectarian-minded and other bigot/hate groups


what a pathetic response......what a pathetic law to begin with





FAIL

 

[Abu Zolfiqar]

the law should not be removed but. one should make sure before decision that allegations are true....if true than no kindness if it proves to be a conspiracy than conspirator should be executed....

NO!


People should just be secure and confident in themselves and their faith. Not be so insecure and internally unstable that any rumour (whether true or not) causes them to wish death upon another human being


I have no details of the case, or whether she really did indeed say what she is accused of having said........but it is absurd to have a blasphemy law Pakistan.


whats even more absurd is that a ''secular'' PPP government can't even take a courageous stand and ban this law; simply because they are ''scared'' to do so

they don't mind that Pakistan's image is being damaged by their callousness....and in fact, they are complicit if this execution is carried out


seems nobody wants to remember any of the good lessons and practices of an Nabay SWS who Himself extended olive branch and compassion even to his opponents and critics

 

[Tayyab1796]

For heaven sake we are talking about a CONVICTED woman here not an accused ... she needs to be treated like any other criminal who breaks the law and gets punishment as per the law of the land , My sympathies are only as long as no one is convicted but she is a convict now . Free speech is a BS ,its just an excuse to critise others , can the champions of human rights write against holocaust in modern west... ? BS

 

[Mogombo]

trajic no other country has such laws like this its really awful a real shame.

 

[Mogombo]

For heaven sake we are talking about a CONVICTED woman here not an accused ... she needs to be treated like any other criminal who breaks the law and gets punishment as per the law of the land , My sympathies are only as long as no one is convicted but she is a convict now . Free speech is a BS ,its just an excuse to critise others , can the champions of human rights write against holocaust in modern west... ? BS

Umm yeah you can write about what u want its called free speech in my class even when we were studying ww2 we had some students disputing the numbers killed in the holocast but everyone is entitled to one's opinion u wont face death penatly for this in the west

 

[mjnaushad]

trajic no other country has such laws like this its really awful a real shame.

Whats the name of that artist living in exile.....???

 

[Indiarox]

Whats the name of that artist living in exile.....???

M.F Hussain.....
a certain Author who wrote the "satanic verses" is also out the country spare him some you sympathy too.....

 

[mjnaushad]

For heaven sake we are talking about a CONVICTED woman here not an accused ... she needs to be treated like any other criminal who breaks the law and gets punishment as per the law of the land , My sympathies are only as long as no one is convicted but she is a convict now . Free speech is a BS ,its just an excuse to critise others , can the champions of human rights write against holocaust in modern west... ? BS

But on what basis... I have no objection on law. Not only Prophet Muhammad but all other prophets should and must be respected. I have problem with the procedure and punishment. who is the Witness, someone who is old rival and fought on water before . What BS man. Inquiry done by SP level officer another BS. you can launch FIR on anyones statement another big BS.

And killing someone is prohibited by Qur'an except 2 circumstances.

1. The person killed some other person
2. He did fasaad on earth (or in modern term terrorism)

Death sentence is really BS.

 

[Mogombo]

Whats the name of that artist living in exile.....???

u mean M. F. Husain ? but India does not have state law saying what u can paint or not paint but blasphemy law is a Pakistani government law this is the diffrence. This hussain person should have more sense than painting nude images of hindu deites and that being a muslim! imagine if a hindu had drawn pictures of your mohamed in this way would u accept it? no you would give fatwa's same like some hardcore hindutva people will try to kill him if he ever comes to India so it is better if he stays in Dubai.

what happened with the danish cartoons? we all know how that turned out so there is such people in all religions but blasphamy law is not something Jinnah wanted it was made by Zia and was later added onto Pakistani law.

 

[Awesome]

The minister should be reminded that he defies Jinnah when he supports Blasphemy law. Change is unacceptable it has to be repealed.

 

[H2O3C4Nitrogen]

That'll be the first step. The second being removing the "Islamic" from "Islamic Republic" once and for all.

why don't we just all become atheists and free thinkers and fight all the the religions of the world

 

[Ahmad]

why don't we just all become atheists and free thinkers and fight all the the religions of the world

dont fight the world over religion. and also dont become athiest if you dont want. keep the business of state separate from religion, anybody who discuse religion at work must be given warning and eventually sacked if he/she doesnt stop, after all we are paid to work at workplace not to discuse religion(i think in case of this woman, asia bibi that the other women had religious discusion with her). if there is no dscusions, there is a minium of chances of insult from one to another. keep religion personal and to our mosques and churches. that will solve alot of problems if not all.

 

[JonAsad]

That'll be the first step. The second being removing the "Islamic" from "Islamic Republic" once and for all.

Third step would be changing the name Pakistan itself, US of Secularistan would be better, isn't it?