jailed 19 months for blasphemy, still denied her freedom

Shagufta Kiran, a Christian woman and mother of four children, the victim of false accusations because of comments she made in a social network chat. The judge denied her request for release on bail. Voice for Justice: “Cases are continually increasing, courts are subjected to threats from extremists.”

Islamabad () – Human rights activists have expressed grave concern over the rejection of the bail request of Shagufta Kiran, a Christian woman and mother of four who has been behind bars for more than 19 months for a fabricated case. of blasphemy. In a judgment handed down on 27 March, Judge Muhammad Azam again refused to grant him bail.

Rana Abdul Hameed, lawyer for Shagufta Kiran, via the association Voice for Justice, argued that Shagufta Kiran is completely innocent and that she was unfairly implicated in the case due to the bad faith of the complainant. No incriminating material is available linking the defendant to the commission of the alleged offence, and the circumstances of the case raise doubts and make it a matter requiring further investigation. In addition, there is also a procedural flaw: according to the Pakistan Penal Code, the case could not be registered against the defendant without special permission from the government authorities.

The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) arrested Shagufta Kiran on July 29, 2021 for expressing her opinion during a discussion about religion in a WhatsApp group called “Pure Discussion”. Her comments about the Islamic religion were deemed disrespectful to Islam under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act 2016 and the anti-blasphemy sections of Pakistan’s Penal Code, which provide the death penalty for this crime. .

Shagufta Kiran’s four children fasted and prayed on the day of the court hearing to see their mother and celebrate Easter with her, and were disappointed by the denial of bail. “God is asking us to go through a big test, I hope one day my mother will be released because she is innocent,” said daughter Nihaal.

The president of Voice for Justice, Joseph Jansen, stated that it was deeply disturbing to see a Christian woman easily targeted for her beliefs and to restrict freedom of expression, thought, conscience or religion. Abuses of blasphemy laws – brought to the world’s attention a few years ago by the case of Asia Bibi – continue to grow exponentially in Pakistan and are always motivated by personal vendettas, property disputes or religious prejudice. The authorities fail to carry out investigations and fair trials due to the involvement of extremist groups. He regretted that the complainants and witnesses involved in presenting false accusations against the defendants often enjoy impunity and are not effectively prosecuted for false testimony.

Ashkinaz Khokhar, a human rights activist, stressed that the government should reform blasphemy laws by removing disproportionate death sentences, making blasphemy-related offenses bailable and ensuring that no arrests or investigations are carried out. without a court order, something that was lacking in the arrest or investigation of the Shagufta Kiran case.