A Christian woman acquitted of blasphemy after spending eight years on death row has left Pakistan for Canada to be reunited with her daughters.
Aasia Bibi‘s departure came on Wednesday, months after her death sentence was overturned that triggered protests by Muslim hardliners.
The development was first reported by Dawn, Pakistan’s biggest English-language newspaper, and Geo News, one of the country’s largest private broadcasters, both of which cited unnamed sources.
Wilson Chawdhry of the British Pakistani Christian Association later told AP news agency on Wednesday he received a telephone text message from a British diplomat stating simply: “Aasia is out”.
A close friend of Bibi also confirmed that she had left the country, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal.
Incendiary issue
Bibi – a labourer from central Punjab province – was first accused of blasphemy in 2009 after a quarrel with a fellow farm worker.
Her case swiftly became the most infamous in Pakistan, drawing worldwide attention to the country where blasphemy is an incendiary issue. It carries a maximum death penalty under the country’s penal code.
Mere allegations of insulting Islam have sparked lynchings in the past.
After Bibi’s October acquittal the far-right Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) party called its followers onto the streets, where they protested for three days demanding Bibi’s immediate execution as well as the death of the judges who acquitted her.
Bibi has technically been free to leave Pakistan since January when the Supreme Court dismissed a legal challenge to her acquittal in October.
Since then, Bibi has been widely believed to have been held in protective custody by authorities as she awaited an asylum deal in a third country.
Many blasphemy cases in Pakistan see Muslims accusing Muslims, but rights activists have warned that religious minorities – particularly Christians – are often caught in the crossfire, with such accusations used to settle personal scores.
|
Inside Story: How powerful are religious groups in Pakistan? (25:00) |
from Viral News Reports http://bit.ly/2PTN2Dm
0 Comments