WUNRN
BLASPHEMY - LAWS THAT PENALIZE -
WOMEN, GIRLS, & RIGHTS
Blasphemy is the act of insulting or
showing contempt or lack of reverence for a religious deity or the
irreverence towards religious or holy persons or things. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blasphemy
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Via AHRC - Asian Human Rights
Commission
Pakistan
- Update - Pending Aasia Bibi Blasphemy Case
Aasia Bibi handing over appeal
papers against her death sentence to Salmaan Taseer.
By Waqar
Gillani - January 5, 2014
Four and a
half years after she was first charged with blasphemy, what exactly is
happening with Aasia
Bibi and her casePeople seem to have forgotten Aasia Bibi while
she languishes in one jail or the other for the last four and a half years. Her
appeal for review of her death conviction remains pending before the Lahore
High Court. In June 2009, Aasia Bibi was asked by her co-workers to fetch water
while working on a farm in Lahore's outskirts. Some of the Muslim women are
said to have refused to drink it because they considered the utensil
"unclean" after being touched by a Christian woman. An argument
ensued where Bibi allegedly uttered derogatory remarks about Prophet Muhammad
(pbuh). A few days later Bibi was charged of blasphemy and arrested from
arrested in Ittanwalai village.
Bibi, a
blasphemy accused under Section 295-C of Pakistan Penal Code, was sentenced to
death by a local court in December 2009.
Under the
blasphemy laws, a high court must confirm a death sentence from a lower court.
Due to this legal procedure, many of those who are convicted remain on death
row for years.
Talking on
telephone with TNS, from an undisclosed location, Aasia's husband
Ashiq Masih said, "She is scared. There is no hope for her release".
He recalled
how a mob dragged his wife to a local police station, where she was jailed and
charged with blasphemy. "She has not done anything," he maintained.
Bibi's
husband and five children are living in hiding. Fearing violence from
extremists, they prefer to hide their identity and often relocate their home.
Last June, when they went to see her in jail in Sheikhupura, they were told
that Bibi had been shifted to the Central Jail in Multan. This came as a
surprise both for the victim's counsel and the family.
The case of
Aasia Bibi gained prominence when Salmaan Taseer, then the Punjab governor,
went to jail to meet her and to assure her of all possible legal help. Taseer
had maintained that the case against Bibi was fabricated and based on wrong
grounds. He had moved a request to the former president of Pakistan to pardon
Bibi's sentence.
Taseer's
open support for Aasia Bibi cost him his life. His police guard, Mumtaz Qadri,
who thought Taseer was a supporter of a blasphemer, killed him on Jan 4, 2011
in Islamabad.
An
Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) awarded Qadri a death penalty in October 2011, nine
months after he had committed the murder. His appeal against the conviction is
also pending before the court.
About two
months after the assassination of Taseer, the then federal minister for
minorities Shahbaz Bhatti was also killed in the country's capital for talking
about the need to revise the controversial blasphemy laws.
Aasia Bibi's
case had prompted widespread international attention. Pope Benedict XVI had
also issued a condemnation statement.
"Taseer
was the last hope for Aasia Bibi," says Nadeem Anthony, council-member of
Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP). "The complainant of the case,
a cleric of the local mosque in Bibi's village, is not a witness in the case.
He believed what the local women told him. She was sent to jail and the case
was lodged a few days after the alleged incident occurred."
The HRCP has
documented scores of cases in which the blasphemy laws have been misused - to
settle personal scores or to victimise the marginalised sections of society and
religious minorities. The mere fact of being a Christian or an Ahmadi in
Pakistan makes an individual vulnerable to the misuse of blasphemy laws.
"There
are enough legal grounds which can help Bibi's release conditionally, if the
appellate court hears her case at the earliest on humanitarian grounds. We have
moved an application for this purpose," said S.K. Chaudhry, victim's
counsel.
The hearing
is expected in the coming weeks and Chaudhry hopes to get justice.
"In my
view, Bibi is in jail quite unnecessarily," said Hina Jilani, a human rights
activist, asking: "But even if her appeal is heard and she is set free by
the court, who is going to protect her in the society?"
These past
couple of years, Taseer's death anniversary has been marked by thin candle
light vigils in his memory, as opposed to thousands of religious extremists
congregating across Pakistan in support of his murderer Qadri, upholding him as
a hero.
Jilani thinks it is quite unfortunate - "Our politicians are not taking such issues seriously. First, many people, if their sentence is overturned, remain on the mercy of the society where they are unsafe and continued to be victimised by extremist elements. There are serious concerns about the safety of such people."
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Pew Research Center: The Pew Forum
on Religion & Public Life
Several recent incidents have drawn international attention to laws and
policies prohibiting blasphemy – remarks or actions considered to be
contemptuous of God or the divine. In a highly publicized case last summer, for
example, a 14-year-old Christian girl in
As an extension of
its continuing research on restrictions on religion around the world, the Pew
Forum counted and categorized (“coded”) reports of the presence of these laws
in 2011.5 The coding relied on 19 widely cited, publicly available sources from
groups such as the U.S. State Department, the United Nations, Human Rights
Watch, Amnesty International and the International Crisis Group.6 Although it is possible that more laws penalizing blasphemy, apostasy
or defamation of religion exist than are reported by the 19 primary sources, taken
together the sources are sufficiently comprehensive to provide a good estimate
of the presence of these laws in almost all countries.7
This is the second time the Pew Forum has analyzed laws against
blasphemy, apostasy and defamation of religion as part of its ongoing study of
global restrictions on religion.8 However, the original study, which covered the period from mid-2006 to
mid-2009, looked only at the number of countries that had laws against
blasphemy, apostasy or defamation; it did not look at each type of law
separately. In addition, the first study did not include hate speech laws. By
contrast, this analysis uses a broader definition of defamation that includes
laws against hate speech aimed at religious groups. Laws against the defamation
of religion and religious hate speech overlap to some extent, but, in general,
defamation refers to the disparagement or criticism of a religion while
hate speech refers to words or actions that vilify, disparage or intimidate a
person or group based on religion.
The previous study found that countries that have laws against blasphemy, apostasy or
defamation also are more likely to have high government restrictions on
religion or high social hostilities involving religion than countries that do
not have such laws. This does not mean that laws against blasphemy, apostasy
and defamation of religion necessarily cause higher restrictions on religion.
But they do suggest that the two phenomena often go hand-in-hand: countries
with laws against blasphemy, apostasy or defamation of religion also tend to
have higher government restrictions on religion and higher social hostilities
involving religion.
Regional
Patterns
In calendar year 2011, a total of 32 countries (16%) had laws penalizing
blasphemy (remarks or actions considered to be contemptuous of God).
Anti-blasphemy laws are particularly common in the Middle East and
In 2011, a total of 20 countries across the globe prohibited apostasy
(abandoning one’s faith, including by converting to another religion). Such
measures were in effect in more than half the countries in the Middle
East-North Africa region (11 of 20, or 55%) as well as in five of the 50
countries in the Asia-Pacific region (10%) and four of the 48 countries in
sub-Saharan Africa (8%). Laws against apostasy were not present in any country
in Europe or the
Laws against
defamation of religion were far more common worldwide than laws against
blasphemy and apostasy. As of 2011, 87 countries (44%) had a law, rule or
policy at some level of government forbidding defamation of religion or hate
speech against members of religious groups.
Laws against the
defamation of religion were most common in
In the three other
major geographic regions covered in this analysis, a third or fewer countries
had laws against the defamation of religion, including religious hate speech.
Such laws were found in 17 of the 50 countries in the Asia-Pacific region
(34%), 13 of the 48 countries in sub-Saharan Africa (27%) and six of the 35
countries in the
This
analysis was written by Brian J. Grim, Senior Researcher and Director of
Cross-National Data, Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life. Research
assistance was provided by Angelina Theodorou, Research Assistant, Pew Forum on
Religion & Public Life.
Footnotes:
1 The girl was released after an imam at a local mosque was accused of
planting evidence against her. See “Bail Allowed for Christian Girl Accused of
Blasphemy in
2 See “Christ Statue in Mumbai Prompts Blasphemy Spat,” The Wall Street
Journal, May 15, 2012, http://blogs.wsj.com/indiarealtime/2012/05/15/religion-journal-christ-statue-in-mumbai-prompts-blasphemy-spat/. (return to text)
3 See Friendly Atheist, http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2012/06/19/an-update-on-sanal-edamaruku/; New Humanist Blog, http://blog.newhumanist.org.uk/2012/11/sanal-edamaruku-event-in-london-21_12.html; Free Thought Blogs, http://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/2012/11/19/where-is-sanal-edamaruku-now/comment-page-1/. (return to text)
4 See “Blasphemy in Democracy’s Birthplace? Greece Arrests Facebook
User,” The Christian Science Monitor, Oct. 2, 2012, http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Europe/2012/1002/Blasphemy-in-democracy-s-birthplace-Greece-arrests-Facebook-user. (return to text)
5 The Pew Forum’s latest findings on global restrictions on religion can
be found in its September 2012 report “Rising Tide of Restrictions on Religion,”
http://www.pewforum.org/Government/Rising-Tide-of-Restrictions-on-Religion.aspx. (return to text)
6 For a full list of sources, see Appendix 1: Methodology of “Rising
Tide of Restrictions on Religion,” http://www.pewforum.org/Government/Rising-Tide-of-Restrictions-on-Religion-methodology.aspx#info. (return to text)
7 Although the sources used for this study did not indicate that the
8 See the Laws Against Blasphemy, Apostasy and Defamation section of the
Pew Forum’s 2011 report “Rising Restrictions on Religion,” http://www.pewforum.org/Government/Rising-Restrictions-on-Religion(6).aspx. (return to text)
Photo Credit: © NADEEM KHAWER/epa/Corbis
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Human Rights
Without Frontiers
Christian fined
beyond ability to pay; civil trial looms
Morning Star News (11.06.2013) - A judge
in Upper Egypt found a Christian teacher guilty of defaming Islam today and
levied a massive fine against her after prohibiting her lawyers from presenting
a single witness during the trial.
Dimyana Obeid Abd Al-Nour escaped jail
time, but she was fined 100,000 Egyptian pounds (US$14,270), far beyond her
ability to pay.
She is on the verge of a nervous
breakdown, her father, Ebed Abd Al-Nour, told Morning Star News. He said his
daughter did nothing wrong.
"I am very upset right now by the
sentence," he said. "My daughter is innocent and should not have been
given such a sentence."
He then became overcome with emotion and
declined to comment further.
Al-Nour a 24-year-old, first-year teacher
in Egypt, made less than US$300 a month before she lost her position in the
wake of the accusations against her. Her family is poor, and she could be sent
to jail for failure to pay a court-ordered fine if unable to find the money.
Muslims created a clamor in the courtroom
that put intense pressure on the judge, said a human rights advocate who was
surprised that the guilty verdict did not send her to prison.
"I personally was expecting a prison
sentence, but thank God she was only given a fine," said Mohammed Noubi, a
human rights advocate with the Luxor office of the Egyptian Initiative for
Personal Rights (EIPR). "There was a lot of pressure and uproar inside the
courtroom."
On April 10, three elementary
schoolchildren at Sheikh Sultan Primary School in the village of Al-Edisat,
Luxor Province, along with their parents and some teachers, complained to the
school administration that Al-Nour had made blasphemous comments while
teaching. Two days earlier, while teaching a class about history and religion,
she discussed pharaoh Amenhotep IV, later known as Akhenaten, who did away with
all other Egyptian gods in favor of sun worship in ancient Egypt (see Morning
Star News, May 15).
Al-Nour also reportedly expressed her
admiration for the former head of the Coptic Orthodox Church, the late Pope
Shenouda III, in class. In some versions of the alleged incident, she also made
comparisons between Shenouda and Muhammad, the prophet of Islam. Three students
said she made a gesture expressing disgust with Muhammad.
When the complaint was made, a group of
head teachers and parents, known as the School Council, conducted an
investigation into the allegations. They found there wasn't any reliable
evidence that Al-Nour had committed any offense, according to EIPR sources.
When the students were questioned, three
of them said she had said or done something wrong. But the three students'
versions of what gesture Al-Nour allegedly made and what she allegedly said did
not match up, according to EIPR. Also, the rest of the students in the class,
10 in all, said Al-Nour was blameless and never even mentioned the late pope or
Muhammad.
A survey of the staff at the school
revealed that she was widely respected by her colleagues, according to EIPR.
The School Council's report was turned
into the provincial governor's office and to the legal department of the local
office of the national Ministry of Education, which then conducted its own
investigation; like the School Council, it found no crime had been committed.
By chance, a school inspector happened to be monitoring the class Al-Nour was
teaching but found nothing wrong with her instruction.
The case likely would have been dropped,
but two attorneys representing the parents of one student went directly to the
prosecutor's office, obligating officials to conduct their own investigation.
In what are known as "hisba cases," Egyptian law allows citizens to
file lawsuits against anyone who has transgressed the "exalted right of
God." Many blasphemy cases are filed in such a manner.
In court, Al-Nour's lawyers were prepared
to bring three crucial witnesses, including Mustafa Mikki, principal of the
school. In an interview with the Coptic weekly Al-Watani, Mikki, a Muslim, said
that those who brought the charges against Al-Nour were "fanatics."
He also confirmed that none of the stories
of the three children who accused Al-Nour matched. But the judge in Al-Nour's
case, Muhammad Al-Tamawy, would not let Mikki or anyone else testify on her
behalf.
Noubi, who has helped Al-Nour's legal team
for EIPR, said that in addition to the fine, Al-Nour has now been referred to a
civil court, as one of the complaining parents has filed a lawsuit against her.
In order for damages to be awarded in the civil case, Al-Nour first must have
been convicted of a crime. It is unknown how much money is sought in the civil
case.
Al-Nour, who has attended only one of her
hearings, remains in hiding. According to EIPR, the courtroom and surrounding
area was swarming with conservative Muslims protesting against her during the
hearing she attended.
Since then, she has been too sick to
attend any of the hearings, according to human rights activists and her family.
Al-Nour was arrested and held for two days, until her family was able to post
bail with the help from the church.
Noubi said her lawyers plan to appeal.
The accusations against Al-Nour reflect a
growing trend in Egypt of disproportionate use of the nation's blasphemy
statutes against members of Egypt's Christian minority since the Muslim
Brotherhood's Mohamed Morsi came into power in June 2012, according to human
rights advocates.
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Asian
Human Rights Commission - AHRC
PAKISTAN - MENTALLY RETARDED CHRISTIAN GIRL IS
ARRESTED ON CHARGES OF BLASPHEMY - MOTHER & SISTER MISSING AFTER ARREST
Urgent Appeal Case: AHRC-UAC-146-2012 - 19
August 2012
The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)
has received information that a minor Christian girl, Miss Ramsha, 11, was
arrested on the charges of blasphemy when she burned some copies of newspapers
which were collected from the garbage. The Muslim population of the slum area
attacked her house and beat her mother and sister and also burned some houses
of Christians. The police arrested the mother and her two daughters and
immediately sent Ramsha to Adiala prison illegally as according to law minors
below the age of 15 years cannot be sent to prison or detained in police
lockup. After her arrest police took the custody of her mother and sister and
their whereabouts are unknown. Police say that both mother and daughter are in
the protective custody because of the apprehension of their killing by the
Muslim activists. However, the Christian community suspect that they were
handed over the Muslim activists and that their lives may be in serious danger.
The Christian population has already
vacated the area. The Christians living in other slums area are also scared and
demanded from the authorities for their protection but no action has been taken
about their protection.
CASE NARRATIVE:
Miss Ramsha, 11, mentally retarded,
daughter of Misraf Masih, was residing at Hameera abadi, sector G-8, Islamabad
with a sizeable number of Christians, and was collecting used papers from the
garbage for night cooking as there is no gas connections and poor people depend
on burning wood. When, after sunset she was burning the copies of newspapers,
collected from the garbage, a Muslim lady entered her house and started
shouting that Ramsha is burning the papers from holy Quran. At that time her
elder sister, Mashal, 14, was at home and her father and mother were out for
their work. At this moment both sisters told the Muslim crowd, which was
gathered after listening the shouting from Muslim lady, that the papers were
from garbage and those are from newspapers but the crowd started beating them
and suddenly their mother also arrived and she was also beaten. The other
Christian residents also tried to settle the issue but they were beaten as
well. Both sisters and her mother received injuries and in the meanwhile the
owner of the house, a Muslim man, arrived and called the police in an effort to
save the Christians.
Police took the mother and her two
daughters into custody. A first information report (FIR) was filed in the Ramna
police station in which Miss Ramsha was made the main accused of blasphemy. But
police arrested all the three. Seeing the tension in the area as Muslim
activists on the instigation from the mosques started attacking and burning the
Christian houses, Ramna police immediately sent the minor to the notorious
Adiala prison and kept her mother and sister in the women police station for
some time. When activists tried to gather outside the Ramna police station, the
police shifted both mother and sister to some unknown place and according to
police this action was taken for their safety. But the father of the victims
and other Christians are suspicious and it was accused that both mother and
daughter have been taken away by some militants.
The Christians from different slums areas
of the Islamabad, capital of Pakistan, have started leaving their communities
and apprehend that their houses would be attacked and burned. The Islamabad
administration has yet not taken any action to protect the Christian
population.
It is also accused by Christian population
that some powerful persons want to grab the Christian dominated areas for commercial
purposes and use by Muslim activists.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
Currently, extreme militant Muslim
organisations may use blasphemy laws as a way to pressure and oppress religious
minority groups. So far, the government has failed to protect the lives and
property of the minority community. Although there is formal protection in
place for religious minorities in the Constitution and although the blasphemy
law has made it compulsory that no police officer below the rank of
Superintendent of Police can investigate the charges, these statutes are rarely
respected.
Religious minority groups in Pakistan
remain vulnerable due to the continued use and abuse of blasphemy charges,
despite section 295C of the Pakistan Penal Code. The police, who fail to follow
the code and who operate under the directives of extremists in the community,
must face strong legal action. Charges of blasphemy are still met with the
death penalty in Pakistan.
The deliberate institutionalisation of
Islam’s status as protected and predominant promoted the perpetuation of
religious intolerance by Islamic fundamentalists. According to data collected
through different sources at least 1030 persons were charged under these
anti-blasphemy clauses from 1986 to August 2009, while over 30 persons were
killed extra-judicially by angry mobs or individuals.
Militant Muslim organisations are using
blasphemy as a tool as the best way to keep religious minority groups under
pressure and even forcibly take land. The State is failing to protect the lives
and property of the minority community.