Asiya Noreen , better known as Asiya Bibi [4] (born 1971 [5] , Pakistan ) is a Pakistani Christian who was previously sentenced by a Pakistani court to death by hanging for blasphemy . If the sentence were to be executed, then Noreen could become the first woman in Pakistan to be executed under the law for blasphemy. The verdict of the court, which was to be confirmed by the highest court of Pakistan, attracted worldwide attention, while Minority Affairs Minister Shahbaz Bhatti (Christian) and Punjab governor Salman Tasir (Muslim) were killed for speaking out about the brutality of Pakistani blasphemy laws and the need for pardon of Asia Asia Bibi . On October 31, 2018, the Supreme Court of Pakistan acquitted her.
| Asia Bibi | |
|---|---|
| Asia Noreen | |
| Birth name | |
| Date of Birth | 1971 |
| Place of Birth | |
| Citizenship |  Pakistan |
| Occupation | |
| Spouse | |
| Awards and prizes | Honorary Citizen of Paris ( 2015 ) |
Content
History
On June 14, 2009, Catholic Asiya Noreen, a mother of five children [6] , who worked on picking berries in the village of Ittan Vali in Shekhupur County , drank water from a “Muslim” well. Muslim women who worked with her accused her of defiling the water. Asia denied her guilt, the argument had a religious connotation. After 5 days, thinking that the situation had calmed down, Asia again came to pick berries, as her family was in dire need of extra money. An angry mob attacked her with accusations that grew into beating. Police officers who arrived drove away to Asia for allegedly under Article 295 of Part C of the Pakistan Penal Code.
From that moment she was in prison, and in November 2010, Muhammad Navid Iqbal, a judge in the Shekhupura court, sentenced her to death by hanging with a fine of $ 1,100 [7] [8] .
On October 16, 2014, the Lahore High Court upheld the death sentence passed earlier by the lower court. [8] [9] [10]
Court Response
The Vatican . Pope Benedict XVI requested a lenient sentence for Noreen.
France In March 2012, French President Nicolas Sarkozy stated that France was ready to provide Asiya Bibi and her family with political asylum [11] .
Pakistan According to the governor of Punjab, who considered the case at the request of President Asif Ali Zardari , Noreen may have mercy on the president if the Supreme Court of Pakistan sentenced him to probation. However, the local imam threatened that if she was forgiven or released, then there are people who "take the law into their own hands." Her family received threats and is now hiding.
Russia On October 31, 2014, the patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, Cyril, appealed to Pakistani President Mamnun Hussein with a request to pardon Christian Asiya Bibi, who was imprisoned and sentenced to death.
- The verdict of the court aroused criticism from human rights groups. According to Ali Dian Hassan, a member of the Human Rights Watch organization: “ This law creates a legal framework that will then be used in various informal methods of intimidation, coercion, to exert pressure and provoke persecution .”
Murders for comments on the Noreen case
On 4 January 2011, the governor of Punjab Salman Tasir was killed in Islamabad because he defended Noreen and opposed blasphemy laws. Tashir spoke openly, criticizing the law and the verdict in the case of Asia Bibi. The day after the murder, thousands of people, despite warnings from the Taliban and religious leaders, gathered for the funeral of Governor Salman Tasir in Lahore.
At the same time, thousands of Muslims came out in support of blasphemy laws in Pakistan after this assassination.
The Pakistani Minister for National Minorities, Shahbaz Bhatti , the only Christian in the Pakistan cabinet, was also killed in March 2011, as they say, also for his position on blasphemy laws. He was shot dead during an armed attack on his car near his residence in Islamabad.
Acquittal
On October 31, 2018, the Supreme Court of Pakistan acquitted Asia, including referring to Firman Muhammad , who promised Christians the free exercise of their faith [12] [13] . The sentence provoked protests from a number of extremist groups [14] . Under their pressure, Asiye was banned from leaving Pakistan until a possible review of the Supreme Court decision on the prosecution’s complaint (the consideration of similar complaints took years) [6] [15] [16] .
In Culture
- In 2013, in Moscow, in a translation into Russian, a book by Asiya Bibi and Ann-Isabelle Tolle “Sentenced for a Glass of Water” was published.
See also
- Human Rights in Pakistan
- Christianity in Pakistan
Notes
- ↑ Pakistani Sentenced to Death May Get a Pardon ". - The New York Times , 2010.
- ↑ Aasia Bibi and Impurities in the Land of the Pure. - digital journal , 2010.
- ↑ John L. Allen Jr. The Global War on Christians: Dispatches from the Front Lines of Anti-Christian Persecution - 2013 .-- P. 36. - ISBN 0770437362
- ↑ Bibi is a respectful address to a woman in Urdu (similar to the words of Mrs. , Miss , etc.)
- ↑ Kazim, Hasnain . Eine Ziege, ein Streit und ein Todesurteil , Der Spiegel (November 19, 2010). Date of treatment November 19, 2010.
- ↑ 1 2 Christian woman cleared of blasphemy barred from leaving Pakistan . The Telegraph (2 November 2018). Date of treatment November 2, 2018.
- ↑ St. John, Hal . 'Ten million people now want to kill me' , Catholic Herald (June 14, 2012). Date of treatment November 28, 2013.
- ↑ 1 2 Freedom of Asia Bibi!
- ↑ Supreme Court reserves verdict on Asia Bibi's final appeal against execution
- ↑ Rafia Zakaria. A Death Sentence Over a Cup of Water? (eng.) . The New Republic (October 16, 2018). Date of treatment November 1, 2018.
- ↑ France may grant Asia Bibi Christian asylum (inaccessible link)
- ↑ Pakistan Frees Asia Bibi from Blasphemy Death Sentence
- ↑ Pakistan court acquits Christian after accusation of blasphemy
- ↑ Pakistani authorities postpone Christian Bibi's release due to mass protests
- ↑ Govt & Tehreek-e-Labbaik reach agreement to end protests . Radio Pakistan (November 2, 2018). Date of treatment November 2, 2018.
- ↑ Pakistan Makes Concessions to Protesters in Blasphemy Case . The New York Times (November 2, 2018). Date of treatment November 2, 2018.
Links
- Your signature to save Asia Bibi and Pakistan , AsiaNews.it .
- Online petition drive launched by The Voice of the Martyrs to call for Asia's release , www.CallForMercy.com
- Freedom to Asia Bibi! petition
- Ensure the safety of Asia Bibi! petition