Home / News / Urgent Appeals / PAKISTAN: A suspect in a blasphemy case died after being attacked by a policeman with a brick cutter

PAKISTAN: A suspect in a blasphemy case died after being attacked by a policeman with a brick cutter

June 1, 2004

URGENT ACTION URGENT ACTION URGENT ACTION URGENT ACTION

ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISION - URGENT APPEALS PROGRAM

1 June 2004

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
UA-56-2004: PAKISTAN: A suspect in a blasphemy case died after being attacked by a policeman with a brick cutter

PAKISTAN: Right to life; Abuse of blasphemy laws
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dear friends

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that Samuel Masih, 27, a suspect in a blasphemy case, who was in a critical condition after police constable Faryad Ali hit him on the head with a brick cutter, died on 28 May 2004.

Samuel was a tuberculosis patient who got TB while in jail, and on 22 May 2004 he was sent to Gulab Devi Chest Hospital for his treatment. Faryad Ali was appointed as one of the guards to go with Samuel, but instead he attempted to kill Samuel. He did this despite the presence of the other guards with Samuel. Faryad allegedly said that he wanted to earn a place in heaven by killing Samuel and was reportedly calm after the attempt.

AHRC is deeply concerned that the incident is an example of the state of rule of law and treatment of minorities especially on charges such as blasphemy. Your urgent action is required to assert the government of Pakistan to correct this matter. Please also demand the government of Pakistan to abolish the blasphemy and other discriminatory laws without delay.

Urgent Appeals Desk
Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)
-----------------------------------------------------

DETAILED INFORMATION:

Samuel Masih, 27, a suspect in a blasphemy case, who was in a critical condition at the Lahore General Hospital after a police constable hit him on the head with a brick cuter, died in the afternoon of 28 May 2004.

Samuel was a tuberculosis patient who got TB while in jail, and on 22 May 2004 he was sent to Gulab Devi Chest Hospital for his treatment. Faryad Ali was appointed as one of the guards to go with Samuel, but instead he attempted to kill Samuel. He did this despite the presence of the other guards with Samuel. Faryad allegedly said that he wanted to earn a place in heaven by killing Samuel and was reportedly calm after the attempt. Faryad Ali was sent to jail after a case was registered against him.

Since it happened, the authorities have been trying to keep entire incident secret. The Punjab Home Department had banned visitors to the hospital's ward No 18, where Samuel was treated. His relatives were reportedly refused permission to see him too. Hospital staff were also reluctant to speak.

Samuel was charged with blasphemy under Section 295 of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC). Chaudhry Muhammad Yaqoob, librarian of the Darul Islam Lawrence Garden, Lahore, registered a First Information Report (FIR) against Samuel, accusing him of littering the wall of Darul Islam Masjid in Lawrence Gardens on 23 August 2003. The Centre for Legal Aid Assistance and Settlement (CLAAS), a non-governmental organization working for minority rights, had been pursuing the case since 23 August 2003. The NGO said it was the second case of its kind in which Section 295 of the PPC was imposed. Samuel was sent to Kot Lakhpat jail while awaiting for trial.

There are four sections of the PPC which provide punishment for a person accused of blasphemy: Sections 295, 295 A, B and C. Section 295 says that the punishment of a person could be extended to a maximum of two years or a fine or both if he defiled a place of worship with the intent of insulting the religion.

According to Samuel's younger brother Sarwar, the family was told about the incident two days later. He added that Samuel had become mentally unstable after the death of their mother and he was thus not in his senses when he left home on 23 August 2003. He testified that the day when this incident happened, Samuel left home in anger because he had had a fight.

CLAAS has filed a writ petition in the Lahore High Court against the Kot Lakhpat jail superintendent and Dr Sikandar, who were in charge of the emergency ward when Samuel was admitted after being hit over the head by the constable. The court hearing of the case was scheduled on 2 June 2004.

AHRC is of the opinion that minority religious groups in Pakistan, especially the Christians, are being prosecuted by the blasphemy laws. Currently, if an individual goes to the police and simply accuses someone of blasphemy, the police have to make an immediate arrest before an investigation. Subsequently, the accused is subjected to inhuman, degrading and horrible forms of torture to confess.

AHRC is deeply concerned that the incident is an example of the state of rule of law and treatment of minorities especially on charges such as blasphemy. Your urgent action is required to assert the government of Pakistan to correct this matter. Please also demand the government of Pakistan to abolish the blasphemy and other discriminatory laws without delay.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
Religious discrimination is inscribed in Pakistan's blasphemy laws 295 B and C, whose violation brings severe punishment, including the death penalty, and is imbedded in societal structures. This has resulted over the years in religious intolerance and violence against Christians, Hindus and members of the Ahmadiye community, the imposition of discriminatory and repressive laws against religious minorities, and extremist attacks against religious minorities, especially Christians.

The laws in their present form are a source of victimization and persecution of the minorities in Pakistan who are often falsely accused. Even though vaguely defined, blasphemy carries a mandatory death sentence when against the prophet. As a result, many of the accused are killed, in some cases even before they are brought to trial. Furthermore, it has become virtually impossible to get a fair hearing for those charged under these laws in the prevalent environment of intolerance and of pressure exercised on the judiciary.

SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please send a letter to the addresses below and express your concern of this serious case.

Sample letter:

Dear

Re: PAKISTAN: Case of Samuel Masih; A suspect in a blasphemy case died after being attacked by the policeman with a brick cutter

I am deeply concerned that Samuel Masih, 27, a suspect in a blasphemy case, who was in a critical condition after police constable Faryad Ali hit him on the head with a brick cutter, died on 28 May 2004. Faryad Ali was appointed as one of the guards to go with Samuel, but instead he attempted to kill Samuel. He did this despite the presence of the other guards with Samuel. Faryad allegedly said that he wanted to earn a place in heaven by killing Samuel and was reportedly calm after the attempt.

This case is another example of an example of the state of rule of law and treatment of minorities especially on charges such as blasphemy. This has resulted over the years in religious intolerance and violence against religious minorities, the imposition of discriminatory and repressive laws against religious minorities, and extremist attacks against religious minorities. Many people are often falsely accused by the blasphemy laws. As a result, many of the accused are killed, in some cases even before they are brought to trial. Furthermore, it has become virtually impossible to get a fair hearing for those charged under these laws in the prevalent environment of intolerance and of pressure exercised on the judiciary.

Therefore, I strongly urge you to prosecute Faryad Ali, who is responsible for death of Samuel Masih, and bring him to justice as soon as possible. I also urge the government of Pakistan to provide adequate compensation to the victim's family. I further call for the government of Pakistan to repeal the blasphemy laws and ratify the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) and the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT), that it has not yet ratified without delay. The government of Pakistan must take strong steps to protect the lives, property and respect of all its citizens, especially the minority groups.

Sincerely yours,


----------------------

Send a letter to:

1. General Pervez Musharraf
President
Pervez Musharraf, Pakistan Secretariat
Islamabad
PAKISTAN
Fax: +92 51 922 4768/ 920 1893 or 1835
E-mail: CE@pak.gov.pk

2. Syed Sultan Shah
Joint Secretary for Law, Justice and Human Rights
Islamabad
PAKISTAN
Tel: +92 51 920 3464
Fax: +92 51 9203119

3. Hon. Mr. Khalid Maqbool
Governor
State Government of Punjab
Lahore, Punjab Province
PAKISTAN
Tel: +92 42 920 0016
Fax: +92 42 920 0052
E-mail: governor.sectt@punjab.gov.pk

4. Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi
30-C, Ch. Zahur Elahi Road,
Gulberg-II, Lahore
or
House No.9, Street
72, F-8/3, Islamabad
PAKISTAN

5. Mr. Kamran Rasool
Chief Secretary of Punjab
Tel: +92 42 920 3162
E-mail: chiefsecy@punjab.gov.pk

6. Mr. Sahadat Ullah Khan
Inspector General of Punjab Police
Lahore, Punjab Province
PAKISTAN
Tel: +92 42 921 0062
Fax: +92 42 921 0028, 921 0064

7. Ms. Asma Jahangir
Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, summary or arbirary executions
C/o OHCHR-UNOG, 1211 Geneva 10,
SWITZERLAND
Fax: +41 22 917 9006

8. Mr. Zdizlaw Kedzia
Working Group on Minorities
C/o OHCHR-UNOG, 1211 Geneva 10,
SWITZERLAND
Tel: +41 22 917 9137
Fax: +41 22 917 9010


Thank you.

Urgent Appeals Desk
Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
UA-56-2004
Countries :
Campaigns :
Issues :
Document Actions
Share |
Subscribe to our Mailing List
Follow AHRC
Extended Introduction: Urgent Appeals, theory and practice

A need for dialogue

Many people across Asia are frustrated by the widespread lack of respect for human rights in their countries.  Some may be unhappy about the limitations on the freedom of expression or restrictions on privacy, while some are affected by police brutality and military killings.  Many others are frustrated with the absence of rights on labour issues, the environment, gender and the like. 

Yet the expression of this frustration tends to stay firmly in the private sphere.  People complain among friends and family and within their social circles, but often on a low profile basis. This kind of public discourse is not usually an effective measure of the situation in a country because it is so hard to monitor. 

Though the media may cover the issues in a broad manner they rarely broadcast the private fears and anxieties of the average person.  And along with censorship – a common blight in Asia – there is also often a conscious attempt in the media to reflect a positive or at least sober mood at home, where expressions of domestic malcontent are discouraged as unfashionably unpatriotic. Talking about issues like torture is rarely encouraged in the public realm.

There may also be unwritten, possibly unconscious social taboos that stop the public reflection of private grievances.  Where authoritarian control is tight, sophisticated strategies are put into play by equally sophisticated media practices to keep complaints out of the public space, sometimes very subtly.  In other places an inner consensus is influenced by the privileged section of a society, which can control social expression of those less fortunate.  Moral and ethical qualms can also be an obstacle.

In this way, causes for complaint go unaddressed, un-discussed and unresolved and oppression in its many forms, self perpetuates.  For any action to arise out of private frustration, people need ways to get these issues into the public sphere.

Changing society

In the past bridging this gap was a formidable task; it relied on channels of public expression that required money and were therefore controlled by investors.  Printing presses were expensive, which blocked the gate to expression to anyone without money.  Except in times of revolution the media in Asia has tended to serve the well-off and sideline or misrepresent the poor.

Still, thanks to the IT revolution it is now possible to communicate with large audiences at little cost.  In this situation there is a real avenue for taking issues from private to public, regardless of the class or caste of the individual.

Practical action

The AHRC Urgent Appeals system was created to give a voice to those affected by human rights violations, and by doing so, to create a network of support and open avenues for action.  If X’s freedom of expression is denied, if Y is tortured by someone in power or if Z finds his or her labour rights abused, the incident can be swiftly and effectively broadcast and dealt with. The resulting solidarity can lead to action, resolution and change. And as more people understand their rights and follow suit, as the human rights consciousness grows, change happens faster. The Internet has become one of the human rights community’s most powerful tools.   

At the core of the Urgent Appeals Program is the recording of human rights violations at a grass roots level with objectivity, sympathy and competence. Our information is firstly gathered on the ground, close to the victim of the violation, and is then broadcast by a team of advocates, who can apply decades of experience in the field and a working knowledge of the international human rights arena. The flow of information – due to domestic restrictions – often goes from the source and out to the international community via our program, which then builds a pressure for action that steadily makes its way back to the source through his or her own government.   However these cases in bulk create a narrative – and this is most important aspect of our program. As noted by Sri Lankan human rights lawyer and director of the Asian Human Rights Commission, Basil Fernando:

"The urgent appeal introduces narrative as the driving force for social change. This idea was well expressed in the film Amistad, regarding the issue of slavery. The old man in the film, former president and lawyer, states that to resolve this historical problem it is very essential to know the narrative of the people. It was on this basis that a court case is conducted later. The AHRC establishes the narrative of human rights violations through the urgent appeals. If the narrative is right, the organisation will be doing all right."

Patterns start to emerge as violations are documented across the continent, allowing us to take a more authoritative, systemic response, and to pinpoint the systems within each country that are breaking down. This way we are able to discover and explain why and how violations take place, and how they can most effectively be addressed. On this path, larger audiences have opened up to us and become involved: international NGOs and think tanks, national human rights commissions and United Nations bodies.  The program and its coordinators have become a well-used tool for the international media and for human rights education programs. All this helps pave the way for radical reforms to improve, protect and to promote human rights in the region.