By Daniel Nardini
It is unimaginable that anyone can be sentenced in this day of age for saying something that would be considered religious “blasphemy.” But this is exactly what has happened to Sawan Masih, a Pakistani Christian who was found guilty by a Pakistani court of having “defamed” the name of the prophet Muhammed in an argument with a friend. Masih’s lawyers say that they will appeal the verdict. The only thing I can say is that the court and the law that was used against poor Masih fall way below any legal standards I know about, and leave much to be desired.
Pakistan has one of the harshest blasphemy laws in the world (sadly, there are many other countries that have blasphemy laws). The penalty can even include life imprisonment and the death penalty. Although the Pakistani government has suspended the death penalty since 2008, this does not guarantee that it cannot be reinstated. But more to the point, the death penalty is being applied for speaking out or allegedly speaking out. Masih denies that he said anything against Islam, and there is no evidence to suggest he did. However, the blasphemy law only requires witnesses to testify that someone had “spoken out against Islam.”
Never mind if the witnesses are reliable or not, and apparently no evidence is needed. The Pakistani blasphemy law is a very bad, evil law that has put so many innocent people in prison and either have them serving life imprisonment or on death row. One famous case, that of a young girl named Rimsha Masih (no relation to Sawan Masih) was accused of having committed “blasphemy” because she is a Christian. Even though she was not legally an adult (believed to be no more than 14 years old at the time and therefore a minor), she was nevertheless tried. The international outcry against this case was so great that Rimsha Masih was eventually released by the Pakistani government. Her family fled to Canada, and it is believed that Rimsha Masih was taken to join her family.
This brings us back to Sawan Masih. What will become of him? He sits in a jail cell because he has still been found guilty. Sadly, this may be the safest place he can be in Pakistan, because there are extremist groups outside the prison that would love to kill him. It is a tragedy that fanaticism and political expediency have trumped the rule of law and sanity. There are places in this world I would never set foot in, and people whose lives I do not envy. In this case I do not envy Sawan Masih. I will keep him in my prayers and hope that he will be a free man and then be allowed to leave Pakistan.
Sentenced to Death for Blasphemy
By Daniel Nardini
It is unimaginable that anyone can be sentenced in this day of age for saying something that would be considered religious “blasphemy.” But this is exactly what has happened to Sawan Masih, a Pakistani Christian who was found guilty by a Pakistani court of having “defamed” the name of the prophet Muhammed in an argument with a friend. Masih’s lawyers say that they will appeal the verdict. The only thing I can say is that the court and the law that was used against poor Masih fall way below any legal standards I know about, and leave much to be desired.
Pakistan has one of the harshest blasphemy laws in the world (sadly, there are many other countries that have blasphemy laws). The penalty can even include life imprisonment and the death penalty. Although the Pakistani government has suspended the death penalty since 2008, this does not guarantee that it cannot be reinstated. But more to the point, the death penalty is being applied for speaking out or allegedly speaking out. Masih denies that he said anything against Islam, and there is no evidence to suggest he did. However, the blasphemy law only requires witnesses to testify that someone had “spoken out against Islam.”
Never mind if the witnesses are reliable or not, and apparently no evidence is needed. The Pakistani blasphemy law is a very bad, evil law that has put so many innocent people in prison and either have them serving life imprisonment or on death row. One famous case, that of a young girl named Rimsha Masih (no relation to Sawan Masih) was accused of having committed “blasphemy” because she is a Christian. Even though she was not legally an adult (believed to be no more than 14 years old at the time and therefore a minor), she was nevertheless tried. The international outcry against this case was so great that Rimsha Masih was eventually released by the Pakistani government. Her family fled to Canada, and it is believed that Rimsha Masih was taken to join her family.
This brings us back to Sawan Masih. What will become of him? He sits in a jail cell because he has still been found guilty. Sadly, this may be the safest place he can be in Pakistan, because there are extremist groups outside the prison that would love to kill him. It is a tragedy that fanaticism and political expediency have trumped the rule of law and sanity. There are places in this world I would never set foot in, and people whose lives I do not envy. In this case I do not envy Sawan Masih. I will keep him in my prayers and hope that he will be a free man and then be allowed to leave Pakistan.