The Blasphemy Case of Shahzad Masih

In the year 2017 16-year-old Shahzad Masih was working as a janitor at the Shamim Riaz Hospital in the city of Dinga in the Punjab Province of Pakistan.   One day at work Shahzad got into a confrontation with one of the hospital's pharmacy employees: Ishtiaq Ahmed Jalali.  Over the next 10 days Ishtiaq and another acquaintance pressured Shahzad to convert to Islam but Shahzad declined, stating that although he doesn't know much about religion, he said that a friend of his father's swears whenever he hears that someone has Muhammad in his name.  After resisting this attempt at conversion, Ishtiaq and his acquaintance accused Shahzad of blaspheming Muhammad.  On July 14, 2017 Shahzad was arrested by the police.  At the age of 17 Shahzad was officially charged with blasphemy.  He has been in prison ever since and is currently on death row.  

According the police superintendent, Shahzad Masih is illiterate and was not a devout follower of his faith and during his confrontations with Ishtiaq he knew very little about any religion.  He further stated that there were no eyewitnesses gave any statement that supported the blasphemy accusation.  So in truth, the police stated that Shahzad committed no crime to warrant his arrest, and yet he was charged nonetheless and has been in prison for no reason.  Shahzad's attorney attempted to get the conviction overturned, citing the statements made by the police superintendent to illustrate that Shahzad has committed no crime nor made kind of statement that could be considered blasphemous.  The attorney also pleaded that Shahzad is a minor and should not be subjected to such harsh treatment, but the courts have rejected all of these these pleas.  It appears that it this case will have to be taken to the Supreme Court of Pakistan, but in the meantime Shahzad will remain in prison.  Making matters worse, Shahzad's family has also been repeatedly threatened by Islamists who continually threaten them with mob attacks.  They have been forced to flee from place to place to avoid being discovered and subjected to mob violence.  

Niger Alam & Priyantha Diyawadanage: Both Murdered over Blasphemy Accusations

Even if Shahzad is acquitted, his life is still in terrible danger.  One of Ishtiaq's relatives, Muhammad Saqib Shakeel Jalai is a leader of the Tehreek-e-Tahfuz-e-Islam movement in Pakistan and told the press that “If the blasphemer is acquitted of the charge then each member of our organization would attack him.”  This type of mob violence is not unheard of as many accused blasphemers.  On Dec. 03, 2021 a Pakistani mob attacked and murdered Priyantha Diyawadanage,  a Sri Lankan Factory Manager in Sialkot over a blasphemy accusation.  Even Muslims have fallen victim to this as was the case in May of 2023 when Niger Alam, a local religious cleric in the village of Sawalder in the Mardan district, was beaten to death by a mob after being accused of blasphemy while giving a speech at a rally for former Prime Minister Imran Khan.  So it appears that even if Shahzad is acquitted, he will have to remain in hiding within Pakistan let he be discovered & killed by vigilantes, or he will have to be granted asylum in another nation, as was the case with Asia Bibi.  

Sources:

Bulut, Uzay.  "Pakistan: Young Christian Unjustly Sentenced to Death."  The Gatestone Institute.  Jan. 19, 2024.  Accessed from https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/20318/pakistan-christian-death-sentence.

"Human Rights Council 48th Session."  United Nations General Assembly.  Sept. 13, 2021.  Accessed from https://documents.un.org/doc/undoc/gen/g21/250/80/pdf/g2125080.pdf?token=EhdKinWzzFtSZuHFmK&fe=true.

"Islamists in Pakistan Accuse Christian Minor of Blaspheming Islam's Prophet."  Morning Star News.  July 17, 2017.  Accessed from https://morningstarnews.org/2017/07/islamists-pakistan-accuse-christian-minor-blaspheming-islams-prophet/.

"Pakistan: Death Sentences Over Killing of Sri Lankan Accused of Blasphemy."  BBC.  Apr. 18, 2022.  Accessed from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-61144442.

"Pakistani Christian Boy, 16, Charged with Blasphemy for Discussing His Faith."  World Watch Monitor.  July 19, 2017.  Accessed from https://www.worldwatchmonitor.org/2017/07/pakistani-christian-boy-16-charged-blasphemy-discussing-faith/.

"Pakistani Man Lynched Over Alleged Blasphemy Remarks During Rally."  AlJazeera.  May 07, 2023.  Accessed from https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/5/7/pakistani-man-lynched-over-alleged-blasphemy-remarks-during-rally.