A Pakistani judge has sentenced a Christian to death for blasphemy,
lawyers said on Thursday, in the latest of a rising tide of such legal
cases.
Judge Lahore Ghulam Murtaza Chaudhry sentenced Sawan Masih
to hang after a Muslim said he had insulted the Prophet Muhammad in the
eastern city of Lahore a year ago.
The accusation against Masih sparked a riot in which Muslims burned more than 100 Christian homes.
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| A demonstrator burns a cross during a protest in the Badami Bagh area of Lahore, March 9, 2013. Another Christian was sentenced to death for blasphemy on Thursday. (Reuters/Adrees Hassain ) |
"Today
(the judge) announced his verdict that says that Sawan must be hanged
and fined," said Nameem Shakir, a lawyer for the accused. Masih planned
to appeal, he said.
At least 16 people are on death row in Pakistan for blasphemy and at least 20 others are serving life sentences.
Pakistan
has not yet executed anyone for blasphemy. Members of religious
minorities say they are often threatened with such accusations.
The law does not require evidence to be presented in court and there are no penalties for false allegations.
Courts
often hesitate to hear evidence, fearful that reproducing it will also
be considered blasphemous. Activists who want to reform the law say it
is often abused by those seeking to grab money or property from the
accused.
Often the accused do not even make it to court. At least
52 people accused of blasphemy have been lynched since 1990, according
to a 2012 report from the Islamabad-based think tank the Center for
Research and Security Studies.
"The severe penalties for
Pakistan's blasphemy law make it one of the most repressive laws in the
world," said a report released this month by the U.S. Commission on
International Religious Freedom, a government advisory panel.
"Blasphemy
charges commonly are used to intimidate members of religious minorities
or others with whom the accusers disagree or have business or other
conflicts."
Judges have been attacked for acquitting blasphemy defendants, the report said.
Writing by Katharine Houreld; editing by Andrew Roche
© 2014 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.
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