Today in a session court in Pattoki the postponement of a blasphemy charge hearing against a Christian teenager, illustrates the continual decline
in sane governance, within a country hell bent on reaching new records of human degradation.
Apparently to rub salt in the wounds of the poor victim Nabeel Masih (who has no doubt been tortured by the despotic Pakistani police force), the local
constabulary have been hard at work concocting a series of other cyber-crimes that they believe Nabeel has committed. The investigation is taking longer
then expected so they have asked for more time to complete their supplementary report. In other words just in case Nabeel escapes a blasphemy charge
due to international outrage, the police will find another way to detain Nabeel against his liberty. Evidence enough to suggest the anathema
status held by Christians in Pakistan.
16 year old Nabeel a resident of Kasur in Punjab Province was charged with a blasphemy after a ‘First Incident Report’ (FIR) was registered at Kasur Police station after a compliant reported by a Mr Akhtar Ali. The FIR claims that
Mr Ali viewed a blasphemous post on Nabeel’s Masih’s Facebook timeline. He maintained that the picture had been posted in a “derogatory manner”
which would hurt the religious sentiments of Muslims.
Without proper investigation as soon as the allegation was made on a pariah Christian, Pakistan’s police force did their usual job of arrest without
hesitation with text book precision. The boy was Christian after all – they’re all criminals say most of the Muslim population of Pakistan.
So now this beleaguered Christian teen faces death by hanging for something posted on his FB wall, most of us in the west find it incredulous. But
if you were outside Pakistani courts of Pattoki today you would have felt the venomous zeal of the thousands of Muslims ready to pounce on Nabeel with
ropes ready to lynch a ‘filthy Christian.’ The place was heaving with Islamic clerics calling for the blood of a blasphemer. In true form
the Pakistani Police ignored the incitement towards hatred and continued to lead Nabeel through the terrible baying. Not one of these Imams calling
for the extrajudicial killing of Nabeel was arrested, a special privilege afforded to the holy men of Islam only. Nabeel physically shook as he wept
on his way to the court, the fear in his eyes a palpable indication that hope for justice was bleak.
I still remember the brutal killing of Shama and Shahzad burned alive after a gang-rape of Shama before her husbands eyes and then the two them being beaten, roped to a tractor and dragged across rough terrain. Their three children watched as the gruesome attack unfolded and only survived as one Muslim women said it was ‘gunnah’ (a sin) to kill children – kill the adults though! The violence on Shama and Shahzad was
also meted out in the city of Kasur (yes the same city as poor Nabeel Masih), the angst and schism that caused their death shows little sign that it
has dissipated.
British Pakistani Christian Association labelled this blasphemy case a farce immediately. So concerned were we with the flimsy evidence for a
crime that warrants a death sentence, that we sent a letter to the Pakistani Government asking them to intervene on behalf of the frightened teenager.
There response lacked any passion, in that they did not even have enough passion to respond. You can write to them too by (clicking here)
British and American tax-payers have every right to make demands on Pakistan for its human right failures. The fact remains that the UK and the US
are ploughing billions of dollars into Pakistan the largest recipient of foreign aid from our two countries. Yet despite our generosity the extremist
ideology in the country continues to spread to the detriment of minorities living there. A Muslim NGO “Movement of Solidarity and Peace” estimated that 700 Christian girls are kidnapped raped and forced into Islamic marriage every year. Their report shocked the world but Christians would argue that the true figure is in the thousands per year. 95% of brick kiln workers in Pakistan
are Christian slaves yet the world stays silent?
Pakistan draws a thin line between democracy and theocracy but lets be honest they have always labelled themselves an Islamic state – ah the
penny drops. Pakistan is the original Islamic state (IS) long before Iraqi and Syrian militants allegedly coined the concept. Sadly no-one in the western
world during the creation of Pakistan, perceived the decline in tolerance towards minorities that would overwhelm the nation – more fool them. A
country that breeds such hatred will one day implode like other Islamic nations in the Middle-East. However when that day arrives the world with
face the consequences of extremists primed with nuclear power.
Pleasesign our petition (click here)
If you would like to donate to the work of the BPCA who provide advocacy and aid to persecuted Christians in Pakistan please (click here)