| Нидерланды предложили убежище адвокату, покинувшему Пакистан после отмены смертного приговора Асии Биби 9 ноября, 2018. Новостная служба Для адвоката стало «слишком опасно» находиться в Пакистане 9 ноября. ПРАВМИР. Правительство Нидерландов предложило временное убежище для адвоката христианки Асии Биби, которая была приговорена к смертной казни за богохульство. Об этом сообщил министр иностранных дел королевства Стеф Блок. «Мы предлагаем господину Малуку место в программе Shelter City в Нидерландах — для защитников прав человека, находящихся под давлением. Мы с полным вниманием следим за ситуацией вокруг Асии Биби», — написал Блок в Twitter. We offer Mr. Malook from Pakistan a place in the Shelter City program in the Netherlands for human rights defenders at risk. The situation of Asia Bibi has our full attention. pic.twitter.com/tFcOv3KSoB — Stef Blok (@ministerBlok) 8 ноября 2018 г. Программа Shelter City предлагает убежище в одном из городов Нидерландов для правозащитников, которые получили угрозы из-за своей деятельности. Участники программы могут оставаться в убежище до трех месяцев. Во время этого периода они могут продолжать вести правозащитную деятельность из безопасного места. Христианка Аися Биби в 2010 году была признана виновной в оскорблении пророка Мухаммеда и приговорена к смерти через повешение. Находясь в тюрьме, она ожидала исполнения приговора в течение восьми лет. Асия Биби стала первой женщиной в Пакистане, которой был вынесен смертный приговор за богохульство. Через восемь лет приговор был отменен. Власти страны в течение недели не решались ее освободить из-за прокатившихся по Пакистану протестов радикальных исламистов. 8 ноября Биби была освобождена из-под стражи. После этого Нидерландская правозащитная организация «Помощь преследуемым христианам» (HVC) сообщила, что для адвоката Биби стало «слишком опасно» находиться в Пакистане. Поскольку вы здесь... У нас есть небольшая просьба. Эту историю удалось рассказать благодаря поддержке читателей. Даже самое небольшое ежемесячное пожертвование помогает работать редакции и создавать важные материалы для людей. |
| More Than Half A Million People Sign Petition To Save Christian Mother Asia Bibi From Death Sentence Source: Christian Today More than 540,000 people have now signed a petition urging the Pakistani government not to execute the Christian mother of five sentenced to death for blasphemy. More Than Half A Million People Sign Petition To Save Christian Mother Asia Bibi From Death Sentence Asia Bibi’s final appeal was postponed earlier this month. In a post on its website updating the case, the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ), the advocacy group behind the petition, says: “Several weeks ago, we sent an emergency advocacy letter to Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States demanding Pakistan free Asia Bibi—the Christian mother of five currently on death row in Pakistan. “This week we sent a second letter to Ambassador Jilani. In this letter, we expressed our dismay with the Supreme Court of Pakistan’s decision to further delay justice for Asia by postponing her appeal hearing. Again, we urged the Ambassador to do everything in his power to advocate for Asia’s freedom.” More than half a million people have now signed the petition , titled: “Save Christian Mom Asia Bibi from Execution”. Bibi was falsely accused of blasphemy – speaking against the prophet Mohammad – and if she loses her appeal, will be executed by hanging. The petition says: “She would be the first woman executed under Pakistan’s Shariah blasphemy law. This is the ultimate human rights violation.” The ACLJ is mobilising its international affiliate – the European Centre for Law and Justice – and its partner in Pakistan to free Bibi. In its latest letter to Ambassador Jilani, the ACLJ says: “This further delay in Asia’s case is unacceptable. As we stated before, Asia’s arrest, imprisonment, and death sentence violate international agreements Pakistan has ratified without reservations.” Bibi has already spent seven years in prison waiting for the final outcome of her case. The majority of blasphemy cases in Pakistan are based on false accusations, followed by faulty investigations and trials full of errors – and it is accepted worldwide that this is what happened in Bibi’s case. |
| Patriarch Kirill asks Pakistani president to pardon Christian woman sentenced to death Source: TASS. Russian News Agency The Lahore High Court on September 16 upheld the death sentence a court of lower instance passed on Asia Bibi, who has long been under arrest for insulting the Islamic prophet Mohammed. MOSCOW, November 1./TASS/. Patriarch Kirill, of Moscow and All Russia, has asked the President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan Mamnoon Hussain to pardon Christian woman Asia Bibi, sentenced to death by hanging. © ITAR-TASS/Artem Geodakyan The Lahore High Court on September 16 upheld the death sentence a court of lower instance passed on Asia Bibi, a mother of five children, who has long been under arrest for insulting the Islamic prophet Mohammed, a charge she denies. “Asia Bibi’s execution would be an irreparable loss for her family, relatives and friends, cause tremendous harm to the Muslim-Christian dialogue and might trigger a surge in tensions between Christians and Muslims in Pakistan and the world over,” Patriarch Kirill said in a message his press-service published on Friday. “I am certain that the political leaders of any modern state are expected to be aware of their responsibility for the fate of the religious minorities they are entrusted with,” Patrairch Kirill said. He pointed out that the Russian Orthodox Church was greatly worried by the latest court decision. “Our multi-million congregation is joining its voice to the chorus of calls by an enormous number of people around the world for preserving the Christian woman’s life. On behalf of all believers of the Russian Orthodox Church I am asking you, Mr. President, to pardon Asia Bibi,” Patriarch Kirill said, adding that he sincerely hoped the Pakistani president would display clemency. Earlier, the general secretary of the World Council of Churches asked President Hussain to pardon Asia Bibi. Code for blog Since you are here… …we do have a small request. More and more people visit Orthodoxy and the World website. However, resources for editorial are scarce. In comparison to some mass media, we do not make paid subscription. It is our deepest belief that preaching Christ for money is wrong. |
| A Pakistani court has sentenced two Christians in Punjab to death for the crime of blasphemy, following their arrest in 2015. RIZWAN TABASSUM/AFP/Getty Images The two brothers, Qaisar and Amoon Ayub, were accused in 2011 of posting material offensive to Islam on their website, and subsequently sent to the Jhelum prison in Lahore in 2015. Qaisar testified that he had shut down the offending website in 2009 but that a Muslim acquaintance of his, Shahryar Gill, had resurrected the site keeping the copyright in Qaisar’s name. On December 13, Judge Javed Iqbal Bosal heard the case in the Jhelum prison for security reason, and there declared the brothers guilty and sentenced them to death. The men are both married and Qaisar is the father of three children. The Center for Legal Aid, Assistance and Settlement (CLAAS), an interfaith organization that offers free legal support to victims of religious intolerance, is representing the brothers and announced that it will appeal the sentence to the Lahore High Court as soon as possible. According to Nasir Saeed, the UK director of CLAAS, the accusation of blasphemy often triggers a violent reaction from Islamic radicals, which often involves threats to judges, upsetting the judicial process. “Because of the threats of the fundamentalists, lower courts pass the responsibility to the High Courts and these take years to prove the innocence of the accused. This is what we saw with the recent case of Asia Bibi,” Saeed said. “I am afraid now Qaisir and Amoon will have to wait years to get justice,” Saeed added. According to Pakistan’s blasphemy laws, insulting the Prophet Muhammad is a crime punishable by death, while disrespecting the Quran incurs life imprisonment. The death sentence of Qaisar and Amoon Ayub comes hard on the heels of the October acquittal of Asia Bibi, Pakistan’s most famous blasphemy case. Pakistan’s Supreme Court overturned the death sentence imposed on the Christian Asia Bibi in 2010, calling the accusations of blasphemy against her “nothing short of concoction incarnate,” while saying that the complainants had insulted Islam by fabricating charges. |
| Six months since Christian Asia Bibi fled Pakistan, after being imprisoned for ten years on blasphemy charges, reports highlight the plight of others accused of blasphemy in the country. Photo by Rana Sajid Hussain/REX The reports come from multiple sources including the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCRIF) and Humanists International. The USCIRF reports there are 80 people in Pakistan imprisoned on blasphemy charges. The latest Freedom of Thought report from Humanists International says Pakistan remains a “perennial offender” in imprisoning people for blasphemy – long after the country’s Supreme Court discredited the high-profile case against Asia Bibi. According to the report: “The authorities prosecuted a total of 1,170 blasphemy cases between 1987 and 2012, with scores of new cases every year. Civil society reports estimate that in 2017 alone at least 50 individuals were imprisoned on charges of blasphemy, with at least 17 facing possible death sentences.” Andrew Boyd from Release International, a charity supporting persecuted Christians told Premier: “Whether you’re found guilty or acquitted as Asia Bibi was, it is effectively a death sentence [being accused of blasphemy], there’s a number of different forms of it. It could be blasphemy against the Prophet Mohammed, it could be something that is said against Muhammad, or it could be disrespecting the Quran.” More than 70 people have been murdered following blasphemy allegations since 1990, according to Al Jazeera. In 2018 Amnesty International reported a large increase in blasphemy cases since the 1980s, claiming a total of “633 Muslims, 494 Ahmadis, 187 Christians and 21 Hindus have been accused under various provisions on offences related to religion since 1987.” Release partners believe the number of Christians imprisoned could be far higher. “Given that Christians make up just two per cent of the population, the numbers charged are disproportionately high”, said Paul Robinson, CEO of Release International. |
| A Staggering 11 Christians Are Killed Every Single Day for Simply Believing in Jesus Source: Faithwire The Christian persecution we read about in Scripture and history books is not a thing of the past Photo credit: Mohamed El-Shahed/AFP/Getty Images When we talk about Christian persecution, it is easy to get lost in the vast array of facts and figures. We say we know that, across the world, many people are dying for their faith in Jesus, but do we truly understand the scale of it? New data taken from the latest Open Doors World Watch List indicate that some 11 Christians are martyred for their faith every single day. The shockingly high death toll was taken from the top 50 countries ranked on this year’s World Watch List and demonstrates the incredible level of religious persecution that continues to plague the planet. “Today, in the 21 st century, we are living in a time when persecution against Christian believers is the highest in modern history,” the persecution watchdog explained in an update . “The Christian persecution we read about in Scripture and history books is not a thing of the past.” The top five Currently, the top five most dangerous countries in which to live as a Christian are: As is the case in all of these countries, Christians remain in grave danger for simply choosing to believe in Christ. In North Korea, believers are forced into dangerous underground congregations, the discovery of which can result in persecution, arrest and even execution. In Afghanistan, Christianity is completely outlawed, with the country’s constitution asserting Islam as the state religion. Open Doors notes that to “convert to a faith outside Islam is tantamount to treason because it’s seen as a betrayal of family, tribe and country,” adding that “very often, there is only one possible outcome for exposed and caught Christians: death.” Pakistan has made headlines in recent years due to the protracted case brought against Christian mother Asia Bibi. Bibi, who has five children, was convicted under the country’s notorious blasphemy laws over a decade ago, and was swiftly sentenced to death. However, last October Bibi was acquitted by the Supreme Court in an unprecedented ruling that gave hope to many within the marginalized faith community. |
| MARTIN BUREAU/AFP/Getty Images Though Christian mother Asia Bibi has finally been allowed to leave Pakistan, there is another woman of faith who continues to fight her death sentence for allegedly “insulting Islam.” In a case heavily resembling Bibi’s, Shagufta Kauser and her husband Shafqat Emmanuel face death by hanging for violating the same archaic blasphemy laws that left Bibi languishing in jail for a decade. Not only is Bibi’s lawyer Saif-ul Malook representing the couple, but, staggeringly, they are being held in the same cell that Bibi called home during her long, torturous years on death row. Malook has continued to protest their innocence. “They did not get a fair trial,” the courageous lawyer told Fox News . “They are innocent.” What is the case against them? The Christian couple had been living in a Church compound located in the city of Gojra along with their four children when some far-fetched allegations were made against them. According to court documents, local resident Muhammad Hussain stated that on July 18, 2013, was praying at Mosque when he received an anonymous text message that contained blasphemous content. Hussain then approached the clerics to show them the text messages. Later, it was alleged that more blasphemous were sent. Why is the case flawed? For starters, Hussain has claimed that the texts were written in English. The problem with that is both Shagufta and Shafqat are completely illiterate — they cannot read or write in their native language, let alone in English. But it gets worse. According to the British Pakistani Christian Association (BPCA), a known friend of the complainant stole the identification of Shagufta and impersonated her by buying a SIM card in her name and sending the offensive messages from the number registered to the poor Christian woman. Still, the police overlooked these glaring and crucial factors, instead choosing to arrest and charge the couple with “insulting the Koran” and “insulting the Prophet” — an indictment that carries the death penalty. |
| Christian charity highlights Pakistan on International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church Source: Premier UK Christian religious freedom charity Release International has shifted their focus to Pakistan on this year’s International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church (IDOP), which was on Sunday. Although 17 th November has been set aside for Christians in the UK and Ireland to pray for persecuted Christians, people are being urged to set aside the whole month for prayer. Some 80 per cent of those persecuted for their faith around the world today are Christians, and the indications are that violence against Christians is on the rise, according to a report commissioned by the Foreign & Commonwealth Office from the Bishop of Truro. Release International said part of the reason it chose to focus on Pakistan for this year’s IDOP is because “believers face discrimination in education, employment and the law”. The charity added: “Most Christians in Pakistan are poor, illiterate and vulnerable to abuse, especially young women and girls. Pakistan’s blasphemy laws have been used to make false allegations against Christians, often to settle personal vendettas.” Release International has helped Christians who have been falsely accused of blasphemy and given support to families of prisoners like Asia Bibi, a Pakistani mother who spent 10 years in jail on charges that were later thrown out by the Supreme Court. Speaking recently from Canada, the 54-year-old called on Christians everywhere to remember others behind bars. She said in a video posted on YouTube: “I Asia Bibi, believe in Jesus. My belief is strong. I never let my belief weaken. “Stay true to your beliefs. Even if you have to face the sword, please hold firm to your faith. Even if you have to sacrifice everything.” IDOP began in 1996, when a coalition of Christian organisations recognised that more Christians had died for their faith in the 20th century than in all the centuries combined since the Church began. They decided that the global Church must no longer be silent about the increasing persecution of Christians. |
| Pakistan Might Ban Blasphemy Laws After 60,000 Killed, Brother of Murdered Christian Official Says Source: The Christian Post November 25, 2015 Members of the Pakistani Christian community attend a protest rally to condemn Sunday " s suicide attack in Peshawar on a church, in Islamabad, September 23, 2013. A pair of suicide bombers blew themselves up outside the 130-year-old Anglican church in Pakistan after Sunday mass, killing at least 78 people in the deadliest attack on Christians in the predominantly Muslim country. The brother of Shahbaz Bhatti, a government minister who was killed by terrorists for opposing the controversial blasphemy laws in Pakistan, told the U.K. parliament that his country finally appears to be moving toward religious freedom. The people of Pakistan have seen enough religiously-motivated violence that has killed an estimated 60,000 people in 20 years, and now want tolerance, Paul Bhatti, whose brother was killed in 2011, told the parliament last week, according to Catholic Herald. " We are still facing the cruel and harsh realities of violence against the weak and voiceless people of our community, " but there is improvement, he was quoted as saying. Last October, the Lahore High Court upheld the death penalty of Asia Bibi, a Christian mother who was convicted of blasphemy. She was sentenced in 2010, a year after she was accused. She was harvesting berries with a group of Muslim women, who accused her of drinking from the same water bowl as them. Following an argument, the women told a local cleric that Bibi had blasphemed against Islam. Pakistan's blasphemy laws, which are embedded in Sections 295 and 298 of the Pakistan Penal Code, carry death penalty, and yet there is no provision to punish a false accuser or a false witness of blasphemy. Bhatti said at the parliament that violence " has left our entire nation shocked and discouraged, raising many questions " about the direction Pakistan is going. " We can gain inspiration and courage by looking to those who have gone before us who stood for peace, justice and unity at such great cost, " he added. |
| A Pakistani court acquitted 112 suspects in the 2013 torching of hundreds of Christian homes in the eastern city of Lahore over a rumour that one of the residents there had blasphemed, a lawyer said on Sunday. In March 2013, more than 125 homes in Lahore’s Josep Colony were burned by a mob of more than 3,000 Muslims responding to rumours that a local Christian man, Sawan Masih, had made derogatory remarks about the Prophet Mohammad. No one was killed in the incident but there was widespread damage to the property of the mostly destitute Christians living in the neighbourhood. Two churches and dozens of Bibles were also desecrated in the attack. Defence lawyer Ghulam Murtaza Chaudhry said an anti-terrorism court in Lahore had acquitted 112 people accused of torching and ransacking hundreds of houses, “because of lack of evidences against them.” All 112 suspects were already out on bail. Sawan Masih, a Christian road sweeper in his late twenties, told police after his arrest on blasphemy charges that the real reason for the blasphemy allegation was a property dispute between him and a friend who spread the rumour. In Pakistan, conviction under the blasphemy laws can carry a mandatory death sentence. Masih was sentenced to death in 2014, a decision he has appealed. Critics of Pakistan’s blasphemy laws say they have long been used by individuals and religious groups to settle disputes. This month, the Pakistani Senate’s human rights panel said it would debate how to prevent the country’s blasphemy laws being applied unfairly, the first time in decades that any parliamentary body had considered a formal proposal to stop the abuse of the blasphemy laws. Many conservatives in Pakistan consider even criticising the laws as blasphemy. A Christian woman, Asia Bibi, is in jail for 7 years on charges of blasphemy. She was sentenced to death in 2010 for insulting the Prophet Muhammad, which she has denied. Pakistan’s Supreme Court adjourned her death row appeal on October 13 last year, after one of the 3 judges recused himself from the case. Christian minorities minister Shahbaz Bhatti and Muslim politician Salmaan Taseer, the governor of Punjab Province, were both assassinated in 2011 for advocating on her behalf and opposing the blasphemy laws. (Source: Reuters) |
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