The case of an 11-year-old Pakistani girl who was recently arrested following an accusation that she desecrated pages of the Qur’an has again raised questions about the country’s blasphemy law, and has heightened religious divisions among the 184-plus-million population.
The parents of the girl, who is believed to have Down syndrome, are currently under protective custody in Islamabad, while hundreds of their fellow Christians have fled their homes fearing attacks from Muslim fundamentalists. According to Pakistan’s Minister for National Harmony Paul Bhatti, the girl was found with a waste bag that contained pages of the Qur’an, but it appeared “unlikely she purposefully desecrated” the holy book. The minister added that police were initially reluctant to arrest her, but came under pressure from a large crowd, who were threatening to burn down Christian homes.
Pakistan’s blasphemy law was thrust in the spotlight in June 2009 when Asia Bibi, a Christian mother-of-five, was found guilty of using foul language against the Prophet Muhammad. Bibi, who strongly denied the charge against her, was sentenced to death in November 2010. Following the case, both Punjab Governor Salman Taseer and Minister for Minority Affairs Shahbaz Bhatti were murdered after speaking out against the law. Such killings are not the mark of a democratic society.
We call on the Pakistani government to urgently reform its blasphemy laws, and to re-educate its citizens on the meaning of life and the need to respect it as they expect their own beliefs to be respected.
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