Blasphemy Laws in Pakistan and Its Impact on Society

I read a letter today in The News by some Christian writer and that became a reason for me to write this blog post. The following is the text of the letter as it appears in The News:

Saturday, August 15, 2009

The prime minister recently said that he would ‘make history’. I hope the honourable prime minister will consider the gravity of his words. As an equal citizen of Pakistan, I request that the blasphemy law and its effects be reconsidered and done away with. All I ask for is air to breathe without my lungs being crushed.

Roger Francis

Rawalpindi

Now i wonder why the writer has come out with a just plain demand to repeal one of the fundamental law of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan? Is there any justification for it or is it just a plain nonsense demand by a Christian who has been shocked by the incidents in Gojra? To answer this question, we have to first look into the fact as to what is the Blashphemy Laws in Pakistan and how they have impacted the lives of the citizens of this country. Once it has been done, we will be in a position to let our readers to take their stance.

Blasphemy Laws in Pakistan

By its Constitution, the official name of Pakistan is the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. More than ninety-six percent of Pakistan’s one hundred and sixty-seven million citizens (2008) are Muslims. Among countries with a Muslim-majority, Pakistan has the strictest anti-blasphemy laws. The first purpose of those laws is to protect Islamic authority. By the Constitution (Article 2), Islam is the state religion. By the Constitution’s Article 31, it is the country’s duty to foster the Islamic way of life. By Article 33, it is the country’s duty to discourage parochial, racial, tribal, sectarian, and provincial prejudices among the citizens.

Judges need not be Muslim but few are not. Mr. Alvin Robert Cornelius, a Christian, was the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Pakistan in 1960. After General Zia-ul-Haq took power in the late 1970s, non-Muslim judges were very rare. In March 2007, a Hindu judge, Mr. Rana Bhagwandas, became the acting Chief Justice of Pakistan. In 2009, Mr. Jamshaid Rehmatullah, a Christian, became a judge of the High Court.

Several sections of Pakistan’s Criminal Code comprise its blasphemy laws. Section 295 forbids damaging or defiling a place of worship or a sacred object. Section 295-A forbids outraging religious feelings. Section 295-B forbids defiling the Quran. Section 295-C forbids defaming Prophet Muhammed (PBUH). Except for Section 295-C, the provisions of section 295 require that an offense be a consequence of the accused’s intent. Defiling the Quran merits imprisonment for life. Defaming Prophet Muhammed (PBUH) merits death with or without a fine. If a charge is laid under Section 295-C, the trial must take place in a Court of Session with a Muslim judge presiding.

Section 298 of Pakistan Criminal Code states:

Whoever, with the deliberate intention of wounding the religious feelings of any person, utters any word or makes any sound in the hearing of that person or makes any gesture in the sight of that person or places any object in the sight of that person, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to one year, or with fine, or with both.

Section 298-A prohibits the use of any derogatory remark or representation in respect of religious holy personages. Section 298-B and Section 298-C prohibit the Ahmadiyya from behaving as Muslims behave, calling themselves Muslims, proselytizing, or “in any manner whatsoever” outraging the religious feelings of Muslims. Violation of any part of Section 298 makes the violator liable to imprisonment for up to three years and liable also to a fine.

No judicial execution of a person charged with blasphemy has occurred in Pakistan. Article 45 of the Constitution says,

“The President shall have power to grant pardon, reprieve and respite, and to remit, suspend or commute any sentence passed by any court, tribunal or other authority.”

Do keep in mind the fact that these laws are mostly general and not specific to Islam or Muslims. They can be applied against Muslims who try to defame or defile the religious personalities or religious books of any minority religion in Pakistan. The laws can be applied by minorities to defend their religious freedom. Since Pakistan is an Islamic Republic with 96% of its residents are Muslims, the law has certain additional clauses to give the due respect to the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) by strictkly punishing all acts of defamation or defiling of Muslims holy book of Quran. The laws have been made to bring peace and harmony in the society. The laws also serve the purpose of keeping any acts that may aggravate the situation in check.

The Breakup of Pakistani Population based on Religion is as following:

Islam: 96%

1.85% 1.6% Sikhism .04% Other .51%

Hinduism: 1.85%

Christianity: 1.6%

Sikhism: 0.04%

Others: 0.51%

The Muslims are in clear majority and hence the addition of few clauses into the Section 295 and 298 is a logical step. At the end of the day it is democracy and hence the opinion and religion of the majority of the people is respected. However, the laws have been made in such a way that it protects the minorities from the oppression of the majority people. Since Islam itself teaches us to respect the religious beliefs of others, the promulgation of this law has its basis in Islam as well. Prophet Muhammad (SAW) has repeatedly asked Muslims to respect the religious feelings of non Muslims living in the Islamic State. I will go to an extent to claim that minorities enjoys maximum rights in an Islamic State since Islam has made it the duty of Islamic state to protect the minorities.

Now the above laws of Blaspehmy has nothing to do with the ground actions of few misguided Muslims. Non Muslims and other lobbies have long been associating the Blasphemy laws in Pakistan with the isloated incidents taking place in different parts of the country. Therefore, our readers should not confuse the law with the acts of the people on the group who defies law and hence committs criminal acts. The incidents of Gojra are sad incidents but what we really need to see is how Blasphemy laws have helped the incident? In fact the proper implementation of the Blashphem laws would result in stopping all such incidents.

Lastly, media and other human rights groups should abstain from blaming the Pakistani constitution and its laws without any logical basis and arguments. The publishing of the above letter by The News is baseless since the author of the letter himself has no solid grounds for his request. The Human Rights bodies should instead focus on other countries where human beings are not allowed to practise their basic human rights like France. The minorities are segregated from the society based on religion and forced to show their flesh in the public. These are the laws which needs the scrutiny by the media and the public from across the globe.