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On October 31, 2018, the Supreme Court of Pakistan acquitted the blasphemy crime of a Pakistani Christian woman, known as Asia Bibi, for the crime of blasphemy. Sentenced to death by hanging in 2010. Despite the judgment of the Supreme Court that resulted in her acquittal, Asia Bibi remains imprisoned. She may soon be allowed out of the prison cell she had held for more than eight years, but she faces a new sentence. type of imprisonment; imprisonment in Pakistan. The government has effectively forbidden him to leave.
A Pakistani supporter of the Ahle Sunnat party Wal Jamaat (ASWJ), an extremist religious party, holds an image of Asia Bibi at a rally rally following the Supreme Court 's decision to rule. acquit Bibi of blasphemy in Islamabad on November 2, 2018. (Photo credit: AAMIR QURESHI / AFP / Getty Images)
The Supreme Court's decision to overturn Asia Bibi's conviction sparked violent protests led by the popular and influential Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) party. What awaits Asia Bibi in Pakistan, is almost certain of death in the hands of angry crowds who wish to see her hang.
In order to quell these violent demonstrations, the Pakistani government signed an agreement providing for the ban on travel imposed on Asia Bibi, thus preventing it from leaving Pakistan and finding refuge. In exchange, the TLP will call for an end to violent protests. As part of this agreement, the Pakistani government has agreed not to oppose an appeal against the release of Asia Bibi.
So why are the protesters thirsty for the blood of Asia Bibi?
Asia Bibi a Pakistani Christian, was found guilty and sentenced to death by a Pakistani court in November 2010. The facts of the case have always been the subject of fierce debate . However, inconsistencies in witness testimony and fragmented evidence did not prevent the court from obtaining Bibi's conviction and pronouncing the death penalty. In 2014, the Lahore High Court upheld his death sentence. Nevertheless, the execution was suspended in July 2015, when the Supreme Court of Pakistan agreed to hear his appeal. His registration should have taken place in October 2016. Unfortunately, the appeal had to be adjourned after one of the three judges hearing the case, Judge Iqbal Hameed-ur-Rehman, challenged by citing a conflict of interest. Two years later, on October 31, 2018, the Supreme Court handed down the judgment acquitting Asia Bibi. The judgment stated that the prosecution had not proved its case beyond a reasonable doubt.
The decision of the highest court of Pakistan seems to be of little importance to the protesters. They seem to have little respect for the law and the legal procedure.
It is clear that forcing Asia Bibi to stay in Pakistan is tantamount to imposing a death sentence. What is changing is that the execution will most likely be in the hands of an angry mob, not under the control of the court system. This prediction is not far removed from reality, the protesters are already asking for the hanging of Asia Bibi.
Pakistan has a very long history of mobs exercising their own justice for alleged blasphemy or other related offenses. For example, the BBC reported that a Christian couple from Kot Radha Kishan had been beaten to death and burned by a mob for allegedly profaning the Qur'an. According to sources, their legs would have been broken before they burned, so that they could not escape the fire. The BBC also reported on the case of Shahbaz Bhatti, Christian minority minister in Pakistan, who was killed in an ambush for trying to reform the blasphemy law.
Violence is not isolated either from those who commit the fictitious offense of blasphemy. Take the example of Shahbaz Gormani, for example. A lawyer defending Junaid Hafeez a university professor accused of blasphemy. Men armed with motorcycles raided his house and warned him to withdraw from the file. Shahbaz Gormani took over the case after the death of Hafeez's first lawyer, Rashid Rehman .
Similar cases are common. The Pakistani government must be fully aware of the high-level risks faced by Asia Bibi in Pakistan.
Fearing for the safety and life of his wife, Ashiq Masih, Asia Bibi's husband, recently appealed to President Donald Trump, British Prime Minister Theresa May, and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. to ask them for help. The Pakistani government must now decide whether it can guarantee peace and stability in Pakistan. If the Pakistani government is unable to provide such guarantees, Asia Bibi should be allowed to seek refuge elsewhere.
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On October 31, 2018, the Supreme Court of Pakistan acquitted a Pakistani Christian, known as Asia Bibi, of the crime of blasphemy.A Asia Bibi was convicted in 2010 and sentenced to death by In spite of the decision of the Supreme Court that resulted in her acquittal, Asia Bibi is still imprisoned and may soon be released from the prison cell she has held for more than eight years, but faces a new type of imprisonment. imprisonment: imprisonment in Pakistan: the government effectively forbids him to leave.
A Pakistani supporter of the Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat (ASWJ), a radical religious party, holds an image of Asian Bibi at a protest rally following the Supreme Court's decision to acquit Bibi of blasphemy, in Islamabad on November 2, 2018. (Photo credit: AAMIR QURESHI / AFP / Getty Images)
The Supreme Court's decision to overturn Asia Bibi's conviction sparked violent protests led by the popular and influential Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) party. What awaits Asia Bibi in Pakistan, is almost certain of death in the hands of angry crowds who wish to see her hang.
In order to quell these violent demonstrations, the Pakistani government signed an agreement providing for the ban on travel imposed on Asia Bibi, thus preventing it from leaving Pakistan and finding refuge. In exchange, the TLP will call for an end to violent protests. As part of this agreement, the Pakistani government has agreed not to oppose an appeal against the release of Asia Bibi.
So why are the protesters thirsty for the blood of Asia Bibi?
Asia Bibi a Pakistani Christian, was found guilty and sentenced to death by a Pakistani court in November 2010. The facts of the case have always been the subject of fierce debate . However, inconsistencies in witness testimony and fragmented evidence did not prevent the court from obtaining Bibi's conviction and pronouncing the death penalty. In 2014, the Lahore High Court upheld his death sentence. Nevertheless, the execution was suspended in July 2015, when the Supreme Court of Pakistan agreed to hear his appeal. His registration should have taken place in October 2016. Unfortunately, the appeal had to be adjourned after one of the three judges hearing the case, Judge Iqbal Hameed-ur-Rehman, challenged by citing a conflict of interest. Two years later, on October 31, 2018, the Supreme Court handed down the judgment acquitting Asia Bibi. The judgment stated that the prosecution had not proved its case beyond a reasonable doubt.
The decision of the highest court of Pakistan seems to be of little importance to the protesters. They seem to have little respect for the law and the legal procedure.
It is clear that forcing Asia Bibi to stay in Pakistan is tantamount to imposing a death sentence. What is changing is that the execution will most likely be in the hands of an angry mob, not under the control of the court system. This prediction is not far removed from reality, the protesters are already asking for the hanging of Asia Bibi.
Pakistan has a very long history of mobs exercising their own justice for alleged blasphemy or other related offenses. For example, the BBC reported that a Christian couple from Kot Radha Kishan had been beaten to death and burned by a mob for allegedly profaning the Qur'an. According to sources, their legs would have been broken before they burned, so that they could not escape the fire. The BBC also reported on the case of Shahbaz Bhatti, Christian minority minister in Pakistan, who was killed in an ambush for trying to reform the blasphemy law.
Violence is not isolated either from those who commit the fictitious offense of blasphemy. Take the example of Shahbaz Gormani, for example. A lawyer defending Junaid Hafeez a university professor accused of blasphemy. Men armed with motorcycles raided his house and warned him to withdraw from the file. Shahbaz Gormani took over the case after the death of Hafeez's first lawyer, Rashid Rehman .
Similar cases are common. The Pakistani government must be fully aware of the high-level risks faced by Asia Bibi in Pakistan.
Fearing for the safety and life of his wife, Ashiq Masih, Asia Bibi's husband, recently appealed to President Donald Trump, British Prime Minister Theresa May, and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. to ask them for help. The Pakistani government must now decide whether it can guarantee peace and stability in Pakistan. If the Pakistani government is unable to provide such guarantees, Asia Bibi should be allowed to seek refuge elsewhere.
