Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Islamabad (Agenzia Fides) - The international effort for the cause of Asia Bibi, a Christian woman sentenced to death for blasphemy, is giving the first results: through the efforts of Christian associations, human rights groups, and ordinary citizens, government offices in Pakistan have been flooded in a matter of days with about 40,000 e-mails calling for the liberation of this woman.
The Church and the Christian communities in Pakistan at an international level have formulated a petition for the abolition of the blasphemy law, issued a year ago. Thanks to an initiative of the "Justice and Peace Commission" of the Pakistani Bishops' Conference, along with other associations, over 75,000 signatures have been collected in Pakistan to demand that the government repeal the provision.
The initiative has crossed national boundaries and has been collected by the Aid to the Church in Need: in France, the Secretariat has collected and delivered to the French government recently 10.6 million signatures, while the Italian ACS Secretariat in a few weeks reached 1,400 and is preparing to relaunch the petition at the presentation of the 2010 Report on Religious Freedom which will be held November 24 in Rome.
The decision remains a matter of intense debate in the Pakistani society. The Church, the National Commission for Human Rights and other civil society groups, including Muslim ones, openly challenge the law and call for its abolition. Now they are asking the government to open an official debate in Parliament to review it. The Federal Minister for Religious Minorities, Shahbaz Bhatti, promotes its "review". The Conference of the Jamiat Ulema Pakistan (Jup), however, representing more than 30 religious parties, believes it to be "untouchable" and threatens harsh protests if it is meddled with. Local Fides sources note that, in fundamental Islamic circles, "there is an ongoing attempt to label as 'blasphemous' anyone who wants to abolish the blasphemy law. This could stir up further religious hatred in society."
The "blasphemy law" includes articles 295b, 295c, 298a, 298b, and 298c of the Pakistani Penal Code and allows for imprisonment or even capital punishment for those who insult or desecrate the name of the Prophet Muhammad and the Koran. (PA) (Agenzia Fides 15/11/2010)
