[ad_1]
The husband of Asia Bibi, a Pakistani Christian acquitted for blasphemy after eight years on death row, says it's not safe for the family to stay in Pakistan and asked for asylum in Europe.
Ashiq Masih told VOA Urdu Service that the family had requested asylum in Spain and France and is waiting for an answer.
He said that his wife was not allowed to return home after the capital decision of the Supreme Court of Pakistan, which was handed down last week, to quash his 2010 conviction for insulting him. Prophet Muhammad.
The acquittal triggered three days of widespread protests from Islamists who demanded the reinstatement of the death sentence handed down against Bibi. Members of the militant Islamist group Tehreek e-Labbaik ya Rasool Allah (TLYR) blocked the main roads in Pakistan's largest cities and called for the deaths of Supreme Court justices who acquitted Bibi.
A government team negotiated an agreement to end the protests, agreeing to take "legal steps" to prevent Bibi from leaving the country while the Supreme Court hears a petition against the verdict.
Masih said that he had not been able to contact his wife and that he did not know where she was being held.
He added that despite the end of the demonstrations, the risks to the safety of his family persisted. He said his children were in a state of fear.
Masih said even security personnel in front of his home posed a threat to the family, as their presence could allow others to know where the family's home is.
On Monday, militant Islamist group Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) vowed to avenge the acquittal of the Supreme Court and urged Muslims to launch jihad. The threat was reported by the SITE intelligence group, which monitors the threats and communications of jihadists.
Saiful Mulook, Bibi's lawyer, has already left Pakistan due to security concerns.
Mulook told Reuters in a WhatsApp message that he had gone to another country "just to save [my] the life of [an] angry crowd "and because of fears for the safety of his family." I have consulted, and everyone is of this opinion [that I should leave]. "
He added that he would return to the country to continue his work on the case if he was protected by security forces.
Masih said he was worried that the lawyer had already fled the country, saying that if an appeal was lodged against the Supreme Court decision, there would be no one to plead the case. of his wife.
According to Bibi, she was allegedly falsely accused after a heated argument with other women who had refused to drink water that she had given them because she was a Christian.
During the demonstrations that followed the acquittal of Bibi, the Pakistani government banned television coverage of the protests and suspended cell phone service in several cities to contain the crowd. Schools across the country have been closed and many workers have stayed at home.
In the United States, the acquittal of Bibi gave a sense of hope to Christians of Pakistani descent. A church in the city of Detroit held a special Sunday prayer session to mark the acquittal. Shafiq told VOA Urdu Service that this was the first court decision favorable to the minority community in Pakistan, which has comforted the Christian community as a whole. He said the community is praying for the judges who delivered the verdict.
Sarah Hasan and Aftab Borka contributed to this report.
