Muslims

[sprintcyclist]

The husband of a Pakistani Christian woman acquitted on charges of blasphemy has begged Theresa May to grant his wife and their family asylum in the UK.

In a video message seen by the Observer, Asia Bibi’s husband, Ashiq Masih called on the British prime minister to “help us exit from Pakistan” where thousands of people have protested against the supreme court’s ruling and demanded that she be punished.

The plea came a day after Imran Khan’s government announced it would try to prevent Bibi from leaving the country, which her supporters likened to “signing her death warrant”.

Bibi, a farm labourer, spent eight years on death row after being falsely accused of insulting the prophet Muhammad. This followed a row after she had sipped water from the same cup as a Muslim. On Saturday her lawyer, Saif-ul-Malook, said he had fled Pakistan in fear of his life.

In the message recorded on Saturday, Masih, 55, called on May, as well as the prime minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau, and US president Donald Trump, to bring his family and their longstanding guardian, Joseph Nadeem, to safety in the west.

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“I am requesting the prime minister of Britain to help us exit Pakistan and give us asylum if she can,” he said, speaking slowly in a bare white room in a safe house in Pakistan. “We are so under threat we are stuck in this house,” he said later on WhatsApp, requesting that the media refrain from sharing the video to keep his identity hidden.

Wilson Chowdhry, of the British Pakistani Christian Association, said Masih had already applied for asylum at one western embassy but it was not expediting the request. Chowdhry said the family needed “immediate asylum”, adding that it was “incredible” no government had stepped forward so far. “It would not do for her to die because of the tangle of red tape,” he said. The association has launched a petition calling on Jeremy Hunt, the British foreign secretary, to grant Bibi’s family asylum.

The overturning of Bibi’s death sentence infuriated Islamists and on Thursday a petition was filed calling on the supreme court to reverse its verdict. The government of Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf agreed not to oppose the petition in a much-criticised pact signed with protest leaders on Friday night, in which it also said it would seek to place Bibi, 47, on the Exit Control List (ECL), which would bar any flight.

In return, Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), a fast-growing political party dedicated solely to punishing blasphemy, ended its protest, leaving behind charred husks of burnt-out vehicles on the motorways it had blockaded.

On Saturday Rowan Williams, the former archbishop of Canterbury, said the refusal of the Pakistani authorities to allow Bibi to leave the county was a tragedy.

“The Pakistani government has to decide whether it respects the rule of law or not. Asia Bibi has at last been cleared in court of a fabricated charge. The delay in securing justice for her has already damaged respect for Pakistan worldwide,” he told the Observer.

“This latest development is another tragedy not only for Asia Bibi but for a nation whose foundational principles honoured religious freedom.”

A senior Conservative MP urged the Foreign Office to raise Bibi’s case with the Pakistani government. Tom Tugendhat, the chair of the foreign affairs select committee, said: “I will be asking the Foreign Office for an urgent evaluation of the situation and assurance from the Pakistan government that Asia Bibi, who has been found innocent by the supreme court, will not be abandoned to a hate-filled mob.

“It is clear that Ms Bibi, and other religious minorities, are in grave danger and prime minister Imran Khan needs to decide if he believes in the rule of law or the rule of the mob.”

Pakistan’s 3 million Christians are lying low in the aftermath of the court ruling. The government ordered them not to attend the graves of family members on All Soul’s Day, which fell on Friday, saying that large gatherings could present a target for attack.

One senior community member told the Observer he had temporarily removed the cross from his car’s rear view mirror. “It’s very difficult to stay in this country now,” added a Christian woman. “I feel scared.”

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/ ... lea-asylum

[Rorschach]

o oh, bwian has run away again when presented with facts that disprove his opinions.

Yes bwian there are a great many more "bad" Muslims than those nice one you keep telling us about.

Asia Bibi's family seeks asylum and lawyer flees the country after Pakistan blasphemy ruling
By Sam Blewett
4 November 2018 — 9:45am

London: The husband of a Christian Pakistani woman who spent eight years on death row after being accused of blasphemy has asked Theresa May to grant them asylum in Britain.

And the lawyer for the woman, Asia Bibi, has fled the country, fearing for his safety.

Bibi has faced calls for her death amid widespread protests after she was acquitted of an allegation of insulting Islam's Prophet Muhammad.

Her husband, Ashiq Masih, on Saturday called for the UK to grant Bibi's mother and their family refuge amid fears for their safety.

In a video seen by the Press Association, he says: "I am requesting the Prime Minister of the UK help us and as far as possible grant us freedom."

Speaking in Punjabi, he also called for asylum from Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and US President Donald Trump in the footage.

Wilson Chowdhry, chairman of the British Pakistani Christian Association, who has also launched a petition calling for their asylum, said: "The fact no offer has manifested is shocking.

"Hundreds of thousands of people have rioted and called for her death."

The official route to asylum would mean the family would need to make the request after fleeing Pakistan. However, the Pakistani government has reached a deal with Islamists to restrict Bibi's travel while her case is reviewed.

The chairman of Britain's foreign affairs select committee, Tom Tugendhat, said he has asked the Home Office for an "urgent evaluation of the situation", the Guardian reported.

"It is clear that Ms Bibi, and other religious minorities, are in grave danger and Prime Minister Imran Khan needs to decide if he believes in the rule of law or the rule of the mob," the Conservative MP added.

May has previously called for the death penalty to be abolished globally when asked about Bibi's case.

Bibi was arrested in 2009, accused of insulting Islam's prophet during an argument with fellow farm workers and sentenced to death for blasphemy. Lawyers have denied she ever insulted Islam.

Campaigners have long criticised Pakistan's blasphemy laws, saying they are misused to abuse religious minorities.

Pakistan's Supreme Court acquitted Bibi on Wednesday, upholding the law but saying there was not enough evidence to convict her.

France and Spain have reportedly offered Bibi asylum

It has been requested that the footage of her husband's message is not made public for fear of reprisals.

The government reached a deal with the Islamists in which it agreed to impose a travel ban on Bibi while the case is reviewed. In return, the Islamists halted their protests, which had blocked roads and brought life to a standstill in parts of the country.

Malook told The Associated Press earlier this week that he would have to leave Pakistan because the followers of hard-line cleric Khadim Hussain Rizvi had threatened to kill him as well as the judges who acquitted Bibi.

The Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera reported that Malook passed through Rome en route to Amsterdam. It said he would speak at a conference in Amsterdam next week before permanently relocating to London.

Blasphemy against Islam is punishable by death in Pakistan, and the mere rumour has caused lynchings. Islamists have made the blasphemy law a central rallying cry.

Salman Taseer, the governor of Punjab province, was shot and killed by one of his guards in 2011 for defending Bibi and criticising the misuse of the law. The assassin, Mumtaz Qadri, was hanged for the crime, but later was hailed by religious hard-liners as a martyr, with millions visiting a shrine set up for him near Islamabad. Malook had served as the prosecutor in Qadri's trial.

Bibi was arrested in 2009 on allegations that she insulted Islam's Prophet Muhammad during an altercation with other farmworkers. Her family and lawyers deny she ever insulted Islam.

Rights groups have called for Bibi's release and criticised the blasphemy law, saying it has been used to settle scores or abuse religious minorities. The court upheld the blasphemy law, but said there was not enough evidence to convict Bibi.

Pakistan's Supreme Court has not been known to reverse its decisions, but court reviews typically take years. Bibi's ordeal looks set to continue until the review is completed.

Bibi's family had expected her release by Thursday night. Her husband, Ashiq Masih, returned from Britain with their children in mid-October and was waiting for her release so that they could fly out of Pakistan. Though the family has not disclosed her destination, France and Spain have offered asylum.

I've been telling you about this sort of behaviour for years bwian and you have lived in total denial about it crapping on and posting lies to support your opinion.
Wake up.

[Valkie]

Such a tolerant a peaceful cult innit?

No wonder they expect us to bend over backward for them.
After all we allow them to practice their cult without restrictions, and it's obvious that they have the same system in muzzo countries.

No?
Oh that's right mighty Mo, the paedophile lying, sociopath gave them a mandate to kill.

The only thing wrong with the cult of death is that it even exists.

China has the right idea
Now we just have to start thinking and acting like China when it comes to the cult of death.