INTERNATIONAL OUTCRY AS PAKISTAN HANDS DOWN 'BLASPHEMY' DEATH SENTENCE TO PEACE ACTIVIST

For immediate release 00.01 19 August 2001

A strong multi-national protest is being made against a death sentence just given to a peace activist in Pakistan and described as an affront to civilised society.

The International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU), together with Amnesty International and the Sea of Faith, is protesting against the conviction for blasphemy and the death penalty handed down to Dr.Yunis Shaikh. (18 August, Pakistan).

Peace Activist and founder of the Progressive, Humanist group 'Enlightenment', Dr. Yunis Shaikh has also been fined an equivalent of US$1500 by the Additional Sessions Judge, Islamabad, Mr. Safdar Hussain Malik. An intimidating group of fundamentalist clergy made their presence felt throughout the open court trial to both the judge and the defence. The final two sittings of the Court itself were held in camera, and conducted in the premises of the Adiala jail itself where Dr. Shaikh has been held since his arrest in October 2000. (For background to this case, please see this article: http://www.iheu.org/shaikh/IHNarticle.htm )

Death Penalty for stating the obvious

"Civilised people will shudder at the news that in this century a human being can be tried and sentenced to die by the state merely for saying that neither Prophet Mohammed nor his parents could logically have been Muslims before Islam was revealed to the Prophet," said Levi Fragell, President of IHEU. The other charges of blasphemy against Dr. Shaikh's remarks – supposedly made in the course of a routine class-room lecture he gave in a Medical college where he was a lecturer in Physiology – are described by the IHEU as equally ridiculous and malicious.

None of those who complained to the police were eyewitnesses to the alleged offence: the complaint was lodged by leaders of the Majlis Tahaffuz Khatm-i-Nabuwat (Committee for the Protection of the Finality of the Prophethood), a organisation that is known to have harassed and attacked non-orthodox Muslims in the past.

Judges under threat from zealots

Human Rights activists closely monitoring the trial point out that one of the witnesses to the prosecution was completely discredited, as it was shown that he was not present in class on the day Dr. Shaikh supposedly made his "blasphemous remarks". Unfortunately, even this made no difference to the judge. A Human Rights activist writes, "The lower courts are always very scared of letting off accused blasphemers. Many of the judges have been bumped off when they gave decisions in favour of such persons. Why should they stick their neck out?"

Dr. Shaikh has been given only one week to appeal in the High Court, as opposed to the 30 days that is usual. While so far no one has been hanged for a blasphemy conviction in the country, hundreds of Pakistanis languish in jail after being accused of, or convicted of, blasphemy. Convicts are locked up in extremely small "death cells", where prisoners can barely stand.

Pakistan sliding towards the excesses of Taliban-controlled Afghanistan

Babu Gogineni, Executive Director of IHEU, and International Advisor to the Oslo Coalition on Freedom of Religion or Belief, today expressed concern at the evolution of the Pakistani state since independence, when it had a modern, secular constitution that safeguarded the rights of all citizens, to its present condition, where fundamentalist agitation and Shari‘a law conspire to deny basic human rights and freedom of thought and speech. "Pakistan, the birth place of the Taliban which infests Afghanistan today, is itself sliding down the slope and is on the way to becoming an international pariah. The blasphemy law in Pakistan is an affront to civilisation"." said Babu Gogineni.

Campaign for Dr Shaikh

The international campaign for Dr. Shaikh will be coordinated by the International Humanist and Ethical Union (IHEU), in close cooperation with Amnesty International and the Sea of Faith Network. Supporters are asked to email IHEU if they can help in any way. World-wide demonstrations in front of the Pakistani Missions and Consulates are being planned.

The IHEU is calling on Western democratic governments to put pressure on the Pakistani government to get the death sentence commuted, and to provide a safe haven and refuge to Dr. Shaikh.

IHEU advocates abolishing of all blasphemy laws all over the world and the separation of religion and state in every country, which alone can guarantee democratic and civilised freedoms to citizens of all religious faiths, and those with none.

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