ASIA/PAKISTAN - In connection with the violence in Jaranwala: young Christian sentenced to death

Tuesday, 2 July 2024 human rights blasphemy religious minorities

PAKISTAN

2024-07-02
In connection with the violence in Jaranwala: young Christian sentenced to death

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Sahiwal (Agenzia Fides) - In a controversial decision, the Anti-Terrorism Court in Sahiwal has sentenced the young Christian Ehsan Shan to death for allegedly sharing a blasphemous post on social media, considered the cause of the violence in Jaranwala on August 16, 2023. The verdict, published on July 1, provides that the convict must first serve a total of 22 years in prison and pay a fine of one million rupees. Ehsan Shan was accused of sharing blasphemous content on the social media site TikTok, which was blamed for the violence in Jaranwala in August 2023.
Following accusations of desecrating the Koran, a mob of militants destroyed and set fire to dozens of Christian homes and about 26 churches in the Christian quarter of the Punjab city. Based on intelligence reports, police arrested several people accused of blasphemy three days after the riots. According to the police, the young man did not write the blasphemous content himself, but shared it, making it go viral on the Internet. According to representatives of the local Christian community, the young man is "just a scapegoat" while those who attacked and burned churches and Christian homes go unpunished. Last February, Pakistan's Supreme Court had rejected the prosecution's report on the Jaranwala mass violence, calling it "extremely flawed" as it lacked relevant information and details about the arrests. In a hearing before the Supreme Court, a judicial officer from Punjab province said that after 304 arrests, only 22 complaints had been registered and only 18 charges had been formally filed. Therefore, the court ordered that a new report be prepared. "Now a grave injustice has been done. The verdict against Ehsan Shan symbolizes the virtual death of all Christians in Pakistan today. Only one culprit is identified for the violence and destruction that took place in Jaranwala and that is a Christian," laments the non-governmental organization Centre for Legal Aid, Assistance and Settlement (CLAAS). The case has reignited the debate on the blasphemy law and its impact, and has drawn renewed attention to the urgent need for legal reform. The law is often misused when it comes to personal disputes. There are numerous cases of Christians, Hindus, Muslims and Ahmadi being wrongly accused and imprisoned, while simple accusations can lead to mass violence and arbitrary executions A recent case is a lynching in Sargodha (see Fides, 27/5/2024), where the accused were released on bail. And in recent days, a violent mob killed a Muslim man, a tourist accused of insulting the Koran in the mountain town of Madyan in the Swat district of the Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (see Fides, 21/6/2024). "Such incidents," said Catholic lawyer Khalil Tahir Sandhu, Senator and Minister for Human Rights in Punjab province, "underline the growing trend of mob violence in Pakistan, which is increasing the sense of insecurity in society." The abuse of blasphemy laws and the lack of judicial action, said Sandhu, "not only undermine the national fabric of Pakistan, but also have significant international implications." (PA) (Agenzia Fides, 2/7/2024)