Index on Censorship » blasphemy law

Pakistani girl accused of blasphemy is released on bail

Daisy Williams — Mon, 10 Sep 2012 15:59:57 +0000

A Pakistani Christian girl accused of desecrating a copy of the Qur’an was freed from a jail in Rawalpindi on Saturday. Rimisha Masih, who is 14 years old and has Down’s syndrome, was released after her village’s Muslim cleric was arrested, suspected of tampering with evidence in order to encourage anti-Christian sentiment. Hafiz Mohammed Khalid Chishti appeared in court on Sunday, accused of adding pages torn from the Qur’an to a bag of rubbish and charred sacred texts that Rimsha had been seen carrying on 16 August. Rimisha’s lawyers say they will now push to have the case against her thrown out entirely.

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Pakistan: Father and son sentenced for life for blasphemy

Index on Censorship — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 14:22:28 +0000

A court in Punjab has sentenced a father and his son to lifetime imprisonment for allegedly tearing down a poster in a gathering to mark the birthday of Prophet Mohammad. Mohammad Shafi, the 45-year-old father is himself a mosque prayer leader. This is the first blasphemy conviction since the assassination of Punjab governor Salman Taseer by his bodyguard due to his support for the reform of the blasphemy law.

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Pakistan: Blasphemy death sentence woman may get pardon

Emily Butselaar — Tue, 23 Nov 2010 18:11:31 +0000

Hopes have been raised that Asia Bibi, the Pakistani Christain sentenced to death in Punjab for blasphemy, may soon be pardoned. The minorities minister said he was optimistic about her release and the local governor said he put forth a petition to President Zardari. Yet, even if Bibi receives a pardon after 18 months in prison, the blasphemy law will likely be retained. Critics claim the law is used to terrorise Pakistan’s minorities. In this case, Muslim women refused to drink water brought by an “unclean” Christian before an altercation took place

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