Christian’s Death Sentence Suspended
The death sentence given to a Pakistani Christian convicted of blaspheming Islam and the Prophet Muhammad has been suspended by a Pakistani court.
The suspension--issued Tuesday by a two-judge panel of the Lahore High Court--remains in effect until a full appeal of the sentence is decided.
The judges’ decision came after two days of Muslim-Christian clashes and the suicide of a prominent Roman Catholic bishop, who killed himself to protest the death sentence given to Ayub Massih, 26.
Massih, a Catholic, was sentenced to death in April after he was convicted of blasphemy, a capital offense in predominantly Muslim Pakistan.
Massih was charged with speaking favorably about Salman Rushdie, the writer who went into hiding nearly a decade ago after Iranian Muslim officials declared his controversial novel “The Satanic Verses†blasphemous and placed him under a death sentence.
Reports from Pakistan say the charge against Massih was part of a land dispute between Muslims and Christians.
Meanwhile, the National Council of Churches has sent a letter to Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif expressing regret over the death of Bishop John Joseph and concern for Massih.
The New York-based church group described Massih as “a man medically and emotionally ill as well as innocent of the charges brought against him by religious fanatics. . . . We understand he has been deprived of legal help due to threats by these same fanatics against lawyers who might take his case.â€
The NCC urged repeal of the blasphemy law “in order to create fairness and equity for all religious communities†in Pakistan.
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