Culture & Lifestyle / Blasphemy Laws In Pakistan: A Weapon Used To Silence Religious Minorities

Blasphemy Laws In Pakistan: A Weapon Used To Silence Religious Minorities

Culture & Lifestyle Feb 17, 2021

by Devika Goberdhan

In the spirit of World Day Of Social Justice (happening on Saturday February 20th), we have a 3-part series examining various social justice issues across Pakistan, Sri Lanka and India. In this first instalment, we take a closer look at how blasphemy laws in Pakistan are being used as a weapon to silence religious minorities in that country.

Read our report on Sri Lanka’s decades-long history of enforced disappearances of their citizens

Read our report asking if India’s Prime Minister Modi is turning a blind eye when it comes to human rights issues with Muslims and farmers.

When I think about the word ‘blasphemy’ I associate it with ideas that were misunderstood and considered to be terrible wrongs hundreds of years ago.

However, things haven’t changed much in Pakistan, where blasphemy laws and their politicization is stronger and more prevalent than ever.

According to The Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online, Pakistan’s Penal Code outlines blasphemy and the associated penalties as follows:

“Defilement of places of worship (punishable by a two-year prison sentence or a fine, or both, per Section 295 of the Pakistan Penal Code)
Insulting the Prophet Muhammad by written or spoken word or by visible representation (punishable by death or life imprisonment and a fine, per Section 295-C of the Pakistan Penal Code).
It further prohibits insulting Muhammad by innuendo or insinuation.
The language of Section 295-C does not require proof of blasphemous intent.”

Blasphemy Laws In Pakistan: A Weapon Used To Silence Religious Minorities: Section 295-C of Pakistan’s Penal Code is problematic as it limits an individual’s right to freedom of expression, religion, and more. Photo Credit: www.twitter.com

Meanwhile, BBC reports that “data provided by National Commission for Justice and Peace (NCJP) shows a total of 776 Muslims, 505 Ahmedis, 229 Christians and 30 Hindus have been accused under various clauses of the blasphemy law from 1987 until 2018.”

Sadly, approximately 50 of these individuals who have had allegations brought against them were killed by “vigilantes before their trials,” which is a common occurrence with these cases, reports The Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online. In fact, the accused are not the only ones at risk during these cases by vigilantes who feel strongly about the blasphemy laws, as “families and lawyers of the accused, and even judges who have acquitted defendants, have been targeted,” explains Al Jazeera.

Let’s Explore The Origin And Evolution Of Blasphemy Laws In Pakistan:

Before we go further, it’s important to understand the origin of the blasphemy laws in Pakistan and their subsequent evolution.

According to Al Jazeera, Pakistan’s blasphemy laws were established by “its former British colonial rulers, who in 1860 introduced a set of laws related to religion in order to quell Hindu-Muslim violence.”

Under these guidelines, notes BBC, “it [was] a crime to disturb a religious assembly, trespass on burial grounds, insult religious beliefs or intentionally destroy or defile a place or an object of worship. The maximum punishment under these laws ranges from one year to 10 years in jail, with or without a fine.”

Then, in 1927, the blasphemy laws were amended to highlight that “it [was] a crime to deliberately and maliciously offend religious sentiments of any religious group,” reports The Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online.

That said, following Pakistan’s independence, blasphemy laws were not widely utilized until 1977 as only 10 instances had been reported prior to, notes Al Jazeera.

However, according to The Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online, the catalyst for the heavy use and politicization of religion and blasphemy laws stemmed from former Prime Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, who instituted an “amended the constitution to state that anyone who does not recognize Muhammad as the final prophet of Islam is not a Muslim.” This amendment served to identify “members of the Ahmadiyya sect [as] “non-Muslim,” notes Al Jazeera, since they did not accept Muhammad as the prophet of Islam.

To take things a step further, under General Zia-ul-Haq, additional stipulations were added to blasphemy laws, which were “…specific to Islam and criminalizing offences such as defiling the Holy Quran, insulting Islam’s Prophet or using “derogatory” language against certain religious figures,” notes Al Jazeera.

These changes resulted in an increase of ‘blasphemy’ accusations, reports Al Jazeera, despite the fact that these accusations do not require proof and may be baseless.

Does anyone else see a problem here?!

Should Blasphemy Laws Be Banished?

Blasphemy laws are highly revered by Pakistanis, despite the fact that there is no clear definition of the word in Islamic law and there isn’t an agreement on what the punishment would even be. They do not understand that these concepts were introduced years ago and were previously used to settle tribal issues including personal disputes and ongoing issues over land ownership.

Today though, according to Amnesty International, blasphemy laws serve to limit the Pakistanis community “…rights to freedom of religion and belief and of opinion and expression.” Instead, blasphemy laws are often “…used to target some of the most marginalized people in society, including children, individuals with mental disabilities, members of religious minorities, and poorer people,” it reports.

According to Al Jazeera, what makes these laws even more harmful is the fact that it signifies that “the state has defined Islam as the ultimate source…for national belonging in Pakistan.”

Although this feels like a no-brainer, it seems clear that Pakistan’s blasphemy laws should be banished as they perpetuate political, religious, and socio-economic divisions that has more to do with maintaining the power of the ‘majority’ and less to do with actual well-founded concerns.

That said, these draconian laws are deeply rooted in Pakistani culture and have proved to be very difficult, if not impossible to overturn, particularly when the sitting Prime Minister Imran Khan, has committed to safeguarding these laws.

While I understand banishing these laws may not be possible at this point in time, it is important that there is further accountability when it comes to the application of these laws, in terms of having tangible evidence and introducing consequences for abusing these laws.

**Blasphemy Laws In Pakistan: A Weapon Used To Silence Religious Minorities: Repealing blasphemy laws are a touchy subject in Pakistan as many are afraid to offend the Pakistani community.** Photo Credit: www.secularism.org

This would, at the very least, be a step in the right direction and it will be interesting to see how Pakistan’s Ministry of Law and Justice responds to this request in the year to come.

Although this might not be an ideal resolution, sometimes a small win is an incredible start, and we are (ever-so-patiently) here for it!

Main Image Photo Credit: www.cornellilj.org

Devika Goberdhan

Author

Devika (@goberdhan.devika) is an MA graduate who specialized in Political Science at York University. Her passion and research throughout her graduate studies pushed her to learn about and unpack hot button issues. Thus, since starting at ANOKHI in 2016, she has written extensively about many challe...