This is a huge subject brought to my attention by friends of Asif Pervaiz, a Christian Pakistani who was accused of blasphemy in 2013 and jailed. In 2020 he was sentenced to death. His lawyer filed an appeal but the hearing for the appeal has been postponed. Here is an article about Pakistani Blasphemy laws with the possibility of death: https://www.zenger.news/2021/06/30/i-fear-for-my-life-after-freeing-death-row-christians-says-pakistani-lawyer/.
While many Pakistani Christians have been accused, the majority of those accused have been Muslims. The lawyer who has helped those accused has himself been threatened. It appears that the laws were not much used until 1986 when the crime was made punishable by death. Then the number of cases took off. But, you think it is simple? Well what about anti-hate laws? The same folks who would be against blasphemy laws might favor anti-hate laws, but what exactly is the difference between these two types of laws? And it is not just Pakistanis. They account for just a quarter of those accused of blasphemy in the world.
What should we do? On the positive side, supporting interfaith initiatives including the Voices of Humanity inter-religious conversation, is number one. (Here is a good article on the subject by Rev Swing, founder of United Religions Initiative (URI): https://www.uri.org/uri-story/20110113-nothing-sacred). And on the negative side, of course there should be no death penalty for blasphemy anywhere. Free Asif Pervaiz!
#The_Religions #Christianity #together
