I was recently contacted by Daud Masih and by Jibran Mashi Gill, a URI coordinator from Islamabad. Jibran's great concern is the recent sentencing to death of Asif Pervaiz for blasphemy. Read the story here: https://www.csw.org.uk/2020/09/10/press/4791/article.htm.
The whole question of blasphemy is a roadblock to human unity. On the one hand, freedom of speech is a basic human right. Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights says “Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.” The United States has adopted a strict standard along these lines so blasphemy is not a legal matter in the USA.
On the other hand, freedom of religion is also a basic human right, and under the customs of many religions, blasphemy is or has been a punishable offence. Currently the strongest support for blasphemy laws is from several Muslim nations. The wikipedia article has the details: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blasphemy. At the United Nations, a strong effort by many Muslim nations to take action against the “defamation of religions” had some support at the beginning of the century, but by 2011 the support had greatly diminished and it became clear that the world was not going to favor this move against blasphemy.
So how do we reconcile the blasphemy laws of Pakistan and other countries with the sense of human unity that the interfaith movement promotes? The first step is clear: there must be no death sentence for blasphemy. Asif Pervaiz must not be executed.
#vohcc #interfaith
