Indonesia: A blasphemy trial begins

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVgnkOFTTeTBHhbddOk5G0v9udFPwmQtE_qMGSbvpy6Fmi3DMQE0EDmCxEiPz7CLxULXVv1DgSEM3KZFLelSLA3KOyKcZJYm8IFgCuVs60AY_Q9AQKp0wFDz9JDxJHwNz-LhgiAX4kGWk/s1600/Ahok_blasphemy_trial_INDONESIA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Ahok's blasphemy trial begins" border="0" height="295" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVgnkOFTTeTBHhbddOk5G0v9udFPwmQtE_qMGSbvpy6Fmi3DMQE0EDmCxEiPz7CLxULXVv1DgSEM3KZFLelSLA3KOyKcZJYm8IFgCuVs60AY_Q9AQKp0wFDz9JDxJHwNz-LhgiAX4kGWk/s400/Ahok_blasphemy_trial_INDONESIA.jpg" title="Ahok's blasphemy trial begins" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ahok's blasphemy trial begins</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Welcome to the 21st century!</b><br /><br />Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama will receive legal assistance from 80 lawyers for his blasphemy trial, which will start on Tuesday at the North Jakarta District Court – now temporarily located at the former Central Jakarta District Court building on Jl. Gajah Mada No.17, Central Jakarta.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: justify;">Indonesian court gives go-ahead to blasphemy trial of Jakarta governor Ahok</h3><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Basuki Tjahaja Purnama has denied he intended to insult the Qu’ran while campaigning</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">An Indonesian court will proceed with a controversial blasphemy trial against Jakarta’s Christian governor, who is accused of insulting the Qur’an, a judge said on Tuesday.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The case is seen as a test of religious freedom in the Muslim-majority nation.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">A panel of judges rejected a call by lawyers defending governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, who is known by his nickname Ahok, to strike down the case because it had violated the ethnic Chinese politician’s human rights and breached procedures.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“The exception by the defendant will be considered and decided by the court after examination of all evidence. The defendant’s exception is not accepted,” said judge Abdul Rosyad.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">A tearful Ahok denied at his first hearing on 13 December that he had intended to insult the Qur’an while he was campaigning ahead of elections in February for the governorship of Jakarta, capital of the world’s largest Muslim-majority nation.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Ahok angered religious conservatives after he referenced a verse from the Islamic holy book, Al-Maidah 51 of the Qur’an, rather boldly telling voters they should not be duped by religious leaders using the verse to justify the claim that Muslims should not be led by non-Muslims.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">On Tuesday hundreds of white-clad Muslim protesters chanted “Allahu Akbar” (God is greatest) outside the court in north Jakarta and called for the jailing of the governor.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">A smaller group of his supporters were also present outside the courthouse, which was flanked by lines of police.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The presiding judge on the panel, Dwiyarso Budi Santiarto, said the defence could appeal to a higher court if they did not agree with the decision to proceed with the case.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Ahok, after consulting his lawyers, told the court he would consider doing so.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The governor was named a suspect after hundreds of thousands of people, led by Muslim hardliners, attended rallies in recent months calling for his arrest.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Blasphemy convictions in Indonesia can carry a jail term of up to five years and nearly always result in conviction.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Amnesty International has criticised the law for hurting freedom of expression and for targeting religious minorities.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">President Joko Widodo, seen as an Ahok ally, has blamed “political actors” for fuelling the protests, but declined to elaborate.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">As governor, Ahok has won credit for cutting red tape and improving the performance of Jakarta’s bloated bureaucracy. However, his abrasive language and insistence on clearing city slums has alienated many voters.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">After suffering a slide in support in opinion polls, Ahok has rebounded to become the frontrunner again in the election race to lead Jakarta, according to a poll by the Indonesian Survey Institute earlier this month.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The next court hearing is scheduled for 3 January and will be moved to an auditorium in the agriculture ministry in the south of the city for security reasons, authorities said.</div><br />Sources: DPN, Jan. 14, 2017; <a href="http://www.thejakartapost.com/multimedia/2016/12/13/ahoks-blasphemy-trial-begins.html" target="_blank">The Jakarta Post</a>, Jan. 14, 2017; <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/dec/27/indonesia-court-blasphemy-trial-ahok-jakarta-governor" target="_blank">The Guardian</a>, Dec. 26, 2016<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">⚑ | Report an error, an omission, a typo; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece, a comment; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: <a href="mailto:deathpenaltynews@gmail.com">deathpenaltynews@gmail.com</a>.</div><br /><table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="4" style="background-color: white; border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px solid rgb(255, 204, 0); color: black; text-align: center; width: 100%;"><tbody><tr> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/WebDPN/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL4sspwgGptzvuHVklum5TwxKppRN-lIC5TN8RLZFq_B4ZOtBrX1ssXPNKQ6XpSyQFRJRtVQN45HMkpt3VX0JtOW0TovwxZAurG-AV6gh98IAXo7Ip6QlpkZr9WrM3_m943Mwy-gGxBAY/s1600/Find+us+Facebook.jpg" /></a></div></td> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://twitter.com/WebDPN" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiULIPEaT_P6oIauxAZd17XRRxljesDLS7iIjdQXT7Xct99uHeohx4IYmiAB6S044gTjMDGSy50sL2vDzOyPZ-3vJj9zwcYQ2rgzJh9v1-QDiunKAQtLLLqJ83s38qN3HABxGIC8GsIOD0/s1600/Find+us+twitter.jpg" /></a><span id="goog_1427852018"></span><span id="goog_1427852019"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a></div></td> </tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><b>Opposed to Capital Punishment? 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Indonesia: A blasphemy trial begins

Ahok's blasphemy trial begins Welcome to the 21st century! Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama will receive legal a...

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Pakistani Christian faces death penalty for allegedly "desecrating Quran"

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_-e66uv8K24rMCI65Q_4P54e89vQadImRcuOzgIYNSVkCwhiuKCHQjsjlnF7OFUrt3Nd2qsTdMFW70XBonaCISq5VvHgtjV7zDQVAjt4TnUKhRLtFMgH1rSnTXYmIL36XvVbvCiQsolk/s1600/Quran.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_-e66uv8K24rMCI65Q_4P54e89vQadImRcuOzgIYNSVkCwhiuKCHQjsjlnF7OFUrt3Nd2qsTdMFW70XBonaCISq5VvHgtjV7zDQVAjt4TnUKhRLtFMgH1rSnTXYmIL36XvVbvCiQsolk/s400/Quran.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Pakistani Christian faces the death penalty after being accused of ripping pages out of a Quran by a Muslim involved in a business dispute with the arrested man's family</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">A Pakistani Christian faces the death penalty after being accused of ripping pages out of a Koran, it has emerged.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Shahbaz Babu was accused of desecrating the holy book by writing his name on it and scattering torn-up pages in front of a mosque in Kamahan, near Lahore.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The 41-year-old was thrown in jail on blasphemy charges following a complaint by a man who is in a business dispute with the married father-of-three's family, it has been claimed.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Activists from the British Pakistani Christian Association (BPCA) say Badu, an evangelical Christian, is illiterate and cannot have written his name on the Quran.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The organisation reports that Badu was taken to Nishtar police station before being moved to Model Town station to avoid 'possible reprisals' arising from the charges against him.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">There were no eyewitnesses to him writing his name on the book while his accuser, is said to be in dispute with Badu's brother who owns a 'thriving' grocery store, the BPCA said.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Others have pointed out inconsistencies in the accusations.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Badu was accused of desecrating the Koran in secret - but ripping up the pages would have left public clear evidence of his alleged activities.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">According to Asia News, Babu was arrested on December 30 under Article 295B of the Pakistan Penal Code.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Wilson Chowdhry, Chairman of the BPCA. said: 'This latest blasphemy case highlights the little progress made by the Government of Pakistan towards improving the rights of minorities under their protection. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">'Wholly biased laws such as the notorious blasphemy laws of Pakistan have no place in egalitarian modern democracies, suggesting that the nation has moved forward little from its feudal past. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">'In every blasphemy case in Pakistan common-sense flies out of the window as a corrupt and incredibly inadequate police force goes about it's business with prejudice and avarice.'</div><br />Source: <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4101416/Pakistani-Christian-faces-death-penalty-accused-ripping-pages-Koran-Muslim-involved-business-dispute-arrested-man-s-family.html" target="_blank">Mail Online</a>, January 9, 2017<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">⚑ | Report an error, an omission; 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Pakistani Christian faces death penalty for allegedly "desecrating Quran"

Pakistani Christian faces the death penalty after being accused of ripping pages out of a Quran by a Muslim involved in a business dispute w...

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Islamic Group Calls for Death of Son of Murdered Pakistani Politician After He Criticized Blasphemy Law

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT64NZKMHWoGvcf2sEllCGTn55g_NS8aFlpSPU-wUJhMjCg7oJBXRdJI5KlkJDOzw_um-MGeoIl0m4msdp71HPXkztDwPfka8uFY-BQmq2pp25WqliZUVqncNhR7bWJ-4izBNraLg_zV0/s1600/Blasphemy+law+supporters+PAKISTAN.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Blasphemy law supporters, Pakistan" border="0" height="231" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT64NZKMHWoGvcf2sEllCGTn55g_NS8aFlpSPU-wUJhMjCg7oJBXRdJI5KlkJDOzw_um-MGeoIl0m4msdp71HPXkztDwPfka8uFY-BQmq2pp25WqliZUVqncNhR7bWJ-4izBNraLg_zV0/s400/Blasphemy+law+supporters+PAKISTAN.jpg" title="Blasphemy law supporters, Pakistan" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Blasphemy law supporters, Pakistan</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;"><i>Shaan Taseer was condemned after recording Christmas message that was critical of the country's law</i></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Shaan Taseer, the son of a prominent Pakistani politician assassinated over blasphemy allegations, is himself now the target of a police case and a fatwa calling for his killing after he recorded a Christmas message criticizing the country's blasphemy law.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Mr. Taseer, a human-rights activist, was condemned in the religious edict by an Islamic group from the country's mainstream religious tradition, after he recorded the message for Pakistan's Christian minority.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In the video message, he called the country's blasphemy law "inhumane" and expressed sympathy for Asia Bibi, a Christian woman sentenced to death by Pakistan's courts on blasphemy charges.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In Pakistan, blasphemy is illegal and it carries the death penalty. Activists say that the threat of being accused of blasphemy has created a climate of fear, where anyone can be targeted and the law can't be discussed.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"I'm now in a position something like Salman Rushdie," said Mr. Taseer, referring to the novelist who has had to live in hiding since a 1989 edict condemned him to death. "They have called for my assassination."</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">His father, Salmaan Taseer, then governor of Punjab province, was shot dead in 2011 by his own bodyguard, Mumtaz Qadri, after he criticized Pakistan's blasphemy laws. Mr. Qadri was executed last year after a Supreme Court verdict, but his funeral was attended by huge crowds, and his followers are building an ornate shrine just outside Islamabad over his grave.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">According to the fatwa, issued by a group called Tehreek Labaik Ya Rasool Allah, the younger Mr. Taseer has "crossed all limits of insulting God and the prophet" and is now "condemnable to death". The group, which is legal, is from the Barelvi sect, the biggest Muslim denomination in the country, which is normally considered moderate but on the issue of blasphemy, it is the most hardline.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"In no unclear terms, they've told their supporters to prepare another Mumtaz Qadri," said Mr. Taseer, adding that he had received hundreds of messages of hate and death threats since he was accused.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Police in Lahore also registered a case against Mr. Taseer under the blasphemy law. The case is under a section of the law meant for hate speech.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">According to the charge, dated Dec. 30, police found a recording on a memory stick left outside a police station in which a person "ridiculed a religious law, which may cause provocation."</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Nasir Hameed, the police officer in charge of the Islampura police station in Lahore where the case is registered, said officers were investigating further. The case doesn't name Shaan Taseer, but he identifies himself by name in the recording.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"Having a fatwa and a blasphemy case against you is putting a target on your back," said Jibran Nasir, a lawyer and activist. "These fanatics can motivate people to get you anywhere."</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Mr. Taseer, aged 45, is currently outside Pakistan and asked for his location not to be revealed. Activists fear that the fatwa still puts him in danger abroad and also prevents his ability to return.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In Pakistan, crowds often surround police stations to pressure police into registering blasphemy cases, in which both Muslims and non-Muslims are targeted. Activists say that the evidence is usually flimsy and the blasphemy law is regularly used to settle personal scores. Allegations of blasphemy have repeatedly in the past motivated mobs to kill the accused.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Separately, the same religious group threatened on Dec. 31 to issue a fatwa against leading opposition politician Imran Khan, unless he apologizes for a supposed insult to the Prophet Mohammad in a speech. There was no immediate response from Mr. Khan's spokesperson.</div><br />Source: Wall Street Journal, January 3, 2017<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">⚑ | Report an error, an omission; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: <a href="mailto:deathpenaltynews@gmail.com">deathpenaltynews@gmail.com</a>.</div><br /><table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="4" style="background-color: white; border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px solid rgb(255, 204, 0); color: black; text-align: center; width: 100%;"><tbody><tr> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/WebDPN/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL4sspwgGptzvuHVklum5TwxKppRN-lIC5TN8RLZFq_B4ZOtBrX1ssXPNKQ6XpSyQFRJRtVQN45HMkpt3VX0JtOW0TovwxZAurG-AV6gh98IAXo7Ip6QlpkZr9WrM3_m943Mwy-gGxBAY/s1600/Find+us+Facebook.jpg" /></a></div></td> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://twitter.com/WebDPN" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiULIPEaT_P6oIauxAZd17XRRxljesDLS7iIjdQXT7Xct99uHeohx4IYmiAB6S044gTjMDGSy50sL2vDzOyPZ-3vJj9zwcYQ2rgzJh9v1-QDiunKAQtLLLqJ83s38qN3HABxGIC8GsIOD0/s1600/Find+us+twitter.jpg" /></a><span id="goog_1427852018"></span><span id="goog_1427852019"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a></div></td> </tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><b>Opposed to Capital Punishment? 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Islamic Group Calls for Death of Son of Murdered Pakistani Politician After He Criticized Blasphemy Law

Blasphemy law supporters, Pakistan Shaan Taseer was condemned after recording Christmas message that was critical of the country's law S...

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Christian Mother Asia Bibi Spends 7th Christmas on Death Row in Pakistan for Blasphemy

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTc27d7GTaZWvODgflbvMPlJ2Xh6HvH0RtwcxrzBy3PunpfNwGlkOilnNmJOltkT4G_gjOV25YD3r13EHInd3gWMmt47uJeolRxycSE2cKmsjuqDibhb3GbeZlCgRdjB-rvbk4I8y7Xiw/s1600/Asia+Bibi+PAKISTAN+Blasphemy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="375" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTc27d7GTaZWvODgflbvMPlJ2Xh6HvH0RtwcxrzBy3PunpfNwGlkOilnNmJOltkT4G_gjOV25YD3r13EHInd3gWMmt47uJeolRxycSE2cKmsjuqDibhb3GbeZlCgRdjB-rvbk4I8y7Xiw/s400/Asia+Bibi+PAKISTAN+Blasphemy.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Pakistani Christian mother of five Asia Bibi is spending her seventh Christmas in prison after her death sentence appeal was put on hold in October when a judge abruptly recused himself from hearing her case. </b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Bibi, 45, was sentenced to death in 2010 on allegations of blasphemy after two Muslim co-workers accused her of insulting the Muslim prophet Muhammad, something which she denies.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Bibi's blasphemy allegation stems from an altercation in June 2009 that she had with a group of Muslim women in the town of Sheikhupura in the Punjab province. As the women were picking berries, the Muslim women became enraged when Bibi drank from the same water bowl that they women drank out of.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Since Bibi was a Christian, the women considered her unclean. After an argument between the women ensued, the Muslim women went to the police and <a href="http://www.christianpost.com/news/christian-mother-of-5-asia-bibis-death-sentence-appeal-date-finally-set-by-pakistans-supreme-court-168435/" target="_blank">accused Bibi of saying something along the lines</a> of "My Christ died for me, what did Muhammad do for you?"</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Bibi was supposed to find out in October at a final appeal hearing at Pakistan's Supreme Court whether or not she would be executed, but that decision was delayed indefinitely after one of the senior judges, who was set to preside over her appeal, s<a href="http://www.christianpost.com/news/asia-bibis-supreme-court-judge-suddenly-quits-over-apparent-fear-of-pakistani-mob-attack-171162/" target="_blank">uddenly resigned</a>.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Local media said that Justice Iqbal Hameed recused himself from the case without giving a specific reason.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">William Stark, a regional manager for South Asia for International Christian Concern, which advocates for persecuted Christians around the world, said in a phone interview with The Christian Post that Bibi's struggle is "the premier case for why blasphemy laws are a problem."</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Bibi's case, as it now stands, is in what he calls a "wait-and-see" period.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"Hopefully in 2017, the Pakistani Supreme Court will form a new bench and will be able to hear her case," Stark said. "And, frankly, if the case is actually heard on the merits, the Supreme Court has no other option but to find for her and actually let her go." </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Stark told CP that he's somewhat optimistic for Bibi's case based on recent court rulings on the rights of religious minorities and conversations he's had with her attorney, Saif Malook, who is a Muslim. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">If the court rejects her appeal, however, Bibi would be the first woman in Pakistan to be executed for blasphemy.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"Asia's case is very much a lightning rod within Pakistan itself," Stark said, referencing the 2011 assassination of Punjab Gov. Salman Taseer, a supporter of Bibi who had planned to reform the country's <a href="http://www.christianpost.com/news/pakistani-muslims-cheer-executed-murderer-salman-taseer-158838/" target="_blank">strict blasphemy law</a>.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Taseer had been accused by hardline groups of committing blasphemy himself by criticizing the law, which is supposed to protect Muslim sentiments, but according to human rights groups is often used to settle personal scores and oppress Christians and other religious minorities.</div><br /><b><a href="http://www.christianpost.com/news/christian-mother-asia-bibi-spends-7th-christmas-death-row-pakistan-blasphemy-172314/" target="_blank">Click here to read the full article</a></b><br /><br />Source: The Christian Post, December 25, 2016<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">⚑ | Report an error, an omission; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: <a href="mailto:deathpenaltynews@gmail.com">deathpenaltynews@gmail.com</a>.</div><br /><table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="4" style="background-color: white; border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px solid rgb(255, 204, 0); color: black; text-align: center; width: 100%;"><tbody><tr> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/WebDPN/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL4sspwgGptzvuHVklum5TwxKppRN-lIC5TN8RLZFq_B4ZOtBrX1ssXPNKQ6XpSyQFRJRtVQN45HMkpt3VX0JtOW0TovwxZAurG-AV6gh98IAXo7Ip6QlpkZr9WrM3_m943Mwy-gGxBAY/s1600/Find+us+Facebook.jpg" /></a></div></td> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://twitter.com/WebDPN" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiULIPEaT_P6oIauxAZd17XRRxljesDLS7iIjdQXT7Xct99uHeohx4IYmiAB6S044gTjMDGSy50sL2vDzOyPZ-3vJj9zwcYQ2rgzJh9v1-QDiunKAQtLLLqJ83s38qN3HABxGIC8GsIOD0/s1600/Find+us+twitter.jpg" /></a><span id="goog_1427852018"></span><span id="goog_1427852019"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a></div></td> </tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><b>Opposed to Capital Punishment? 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Christian Mother Asia Bibi Spends 7th Christmas on Death Row in Pakistan for Blasphemy

Pakistani Christian mother of five Asia Bibi is spending her seventh Christmas in prison after her death sentence appeal was put on hold in ...

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