Pakistan: Debate still rages over Blasphemy laws
Monday, November 02, 2009, By Aftab Mughal
Blasphemy laws of Pakistan have come under continuous debate since several Christians were killed, dozen Christian houses were burnt and many Churches were under attack by Muslim fundamentalists in a pogrom-style attack during the last three months in many places of Punjab province. Muslim protesters used blasphemy laws for a justification to attack on Christian religious (tiny) minority of 1.5 percent of the total Pakistani population. The blasphemy laws were introduced by General Zia-ul Haq, Afghan jihads master-mind, as part of his Islamization process of the country during 1977-88. Christians and human rights organisations have been demanding for the total repeal of the laws while Islamic hard-line religious parties and other rightist parties say that no change would be accepted in the laws.
It is enough to accuse a person of this to have him arrested and imprisoned. A aberrant law and harbinger of discrimination, which "legalizes" violence against religious minorities and whose perpetrators go unpunished in most cases, thanks to the connivance of police and government officials, writes Dario Salvi in Asia News on Oct. 29, 2009.
The federal government said the government would take some measures that the law should not be misused. The religious parties opposed such moves. Suni Tehrik organized a demonstration in Faisalabad, on Oct. 2, in which they demanded that no change in the blasphemy laws will be accepted. The government was warned by speakers of another protest rally, which was organized by the Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Pakistan (JUP), on Oct. 11 that any change in the Namoos-e-Risalat Act (Blasphemy Law) would be dealt with appropriately and the entire nation would march towards Islamabad. The rally also condemned the Parliament and specifically the lady Speaker of the National Assembly who sent Namoos-e-Risalat Act to the standing committee for revision. Along with the religious parties, even major political parties have a very different opinion on the issue. According to the The News on Sunday of Oct. 18, 2009, in the National Assembly, a PML-N (the major opposition political party) legislator has vowed to resist moves to 'alter the laws on the demands of the west'.
Route to change
There is also the argument that even total repeal may not work as a remedy in cases related to offences against religion.
Very often, mob violence and police brutality in such cases follow a sluggish court procedure subjecting the accused to lengthy periods in jail, legal costs and repeated court appearances. -- The NCJP cites 32 extrajudicial executions on blasphemy charges so far, Zeenia Shaukat says in a report published in TNS, Oct. 18, 2009. The report interviewed some prominent intellectuals in this regard. "At this point, it is not possible to change these laws," Senator S.M. Zafar told TNS when asked if repeal of the Blasphemy Laws is a practical proposition. "This needs to be addressed in stages.
The HRCP Executive Director I.A. Rehman observes that "those calling for a change are heavily outnumbered by the 'no-change' crowd. -- At the moment, the room for consensus is extremely limited. The political leaders and parties are so mortally afraid of clerics that even a minor change in procedure will be an achievement."
A.H. Nayyar of the Sustainable Development Policy Institute explains: "Either you match the street power of the religious forces or you follow repeal through absolute dictatorship. There is no way a democratic process could repeal these laws."
"Even if these laws are repealed, the instances of mob violence may not go away, because it has become a kind of habit with the people (to take law into their hands)," says Doctor Tariq Rahman, academician at the Quaid-e-Azam University. Rehman suggests that a media campaign along the lines of the one followed for Women's Protection Bill can pave the way for consensus on the issue. However, analysts agree that between the two extreme positions; one, advocating total repeal, and the other aggressively defending the Blasphemy Laws, there lies ground for creating a culture of tolerance and social acceptance for religious diversity.
Peter Jacob, Executive Secretary NCPJ, says that despite their strong stand on repeal, the minorities would not like to act like stubborn trouble makers in the process. "There is need for broader education of people, and the media and the civil society could assist in the process."
President assures Pope
When Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari met with Pope Benedict XVI in Vatican on Oct. 1, Pope raise the issue of the protection of Christian minority in Pakistan and especially the blasphemy laws. President Asif Ali Zardari assured him that all stakeholders and political forces would be consulted to check and stop the misuse of blasphemy laws.
Minorities Minister
Shabaz Bhatti told a conference in London, which was organized by CSW on Oct. 10, that the Pakistani government was ready to review the blasphemy law that is routinely misused to attack and imprison Christians. According to the Christian Today, he acknowledged that Christians were being attacked, imprisoned and killed under the pretext of committing blasphemy and that the blasphemy charges being brought against Christians were false.
Pakistans former Information Minister Sherry Rehman, from the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), and Jameela Gilani, from the Awami National Party, both Muslim Members of the National Assembly (MNAs), have called for the repeal of the blasphemy laws. Asia News reported on Oct. 7 that Ms Gilani, stressed that her party was in favor of the repeal of the laws because we are against all laws introduced by dictators.
Minority law makers of parliament and four provincial assemblies in Islamabad on Oct. 12 failed to reach a consensus whether the controversial blasphemy law should be abolished or amended to prevent its misuse, daily Dawn reported on Oct. 13. It was decided that the elected members would consult their respective political leaderships over the issue before the next consultative session to be held in January 2010 to evolve a joint course of action.
Christian, Muslim and Hindu legal experts, religious scholars and human rights activists came together during a seminar to discuss the blasphemy laws in Karachi on Oct. 25, Dawn reported. The seminar was organized by the Peoples Resistance.
Retired Justice Rana Bhagwandas, a Hindu, once who served as acting chief justice of Pakistan, said, Who would be senseless enough to commit blasphemy in Pakistan? These laws have created a negative image of Islam across the world. Islamic scholar Dr Khalid Zaheer was of the opinion that according to the Holy Quran, a person cannot be put to death for blasphemy. Hilda Saeed of the Womens Action Forum said, The law is wrong and must be done away with. Pakistan has one of the poorest records when it comes to protecting minorities. M. Prakash, chairman of the Minority Rights Commission of Pakistan, said, The minorities respect the religion of Islam. But we want the blasphemy laws to be repealed.
Pakistan: Debate still rages over Blasphemy laws | Spero News
