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SEP // 2024

Another innocent Christian has been thrown behind bars and sentenced to execution by hanging under Pakistan’s blasphemy laws because of his faith in Jesus. We’re taking urgent legal action to overturn this injustice before it’s too late.

Last year, we reported that an angry Muslim mob in Pakistan had burned down over 20 churches and 80 homes of Christians in Jaranwala after two Christian brothers were accused of desecrating the Quran. The only evidence presented to the police was a page from the Quran with some handwritten words scribbled on it. In response, the police arrested the two brothers who were alleged to have desecrated the page.

During the frenzied attack, members of the mob took pictures and made videos, sharing them with others and posting them on social media. A picture of the alleged evidence – the desecrated page of the Quran – also circulated with the pictures and videos of the attack and was forwarded or reposted on social media by thousands.

Three days later, however, about 100 kilometers (over 62 miles) away from Jaranwala, police arrested our client, Ahsan Masih, a 26-year-old Christian man, for allegedly reposting the photo of the desecrated page on TikTok. Despite the countless violent rioters who posted the “blasphemous” image on their social media accounts or forwarded the picture to others to share and repost, this young Christian, who wasn’t even present during the riot, was the only person arrested as a result of the event.

Our affiliate in Pakistan, the Organization for Legal Aid (OLA), took on Ahsan’s case, which was assigned to Pakistan’s Anti-Terrorism Court because the police not only charged him with blasphemy but also with terrorism. Their reasoning was that, by allegedly reposting the picture on TikTok, Ahsan had not only committed blasphemy, but he had also committed terrorism because Muslims might be enraged by the picture and, in turn, attack Christians. We’re expected to believe that Pakistan authorities tacked on this heinous – not to mention completely illogical – charge against this innocent Christian as an attempt to protect Christians?

Notably, Ahsan’s “crime,” even if proven, was that he reposted the picture of the evidence from another case – the very same picture that was already made widely available on the internet by Muslims and others. For that, our client has been branded a criminal and a terrorist deserving of death? It’s absurd.

During Ahsan’s trial, our attorneys on the ground cross-examined the prosecution witnesses (police officers) and asked them if they had any evidence proving that Ahsan had actually posted the picture. No such image was recovered from Ashan’s phone or from his TikTok account. In fact, the forensic reports did not find any evidence against Ahsan. Furthermore, we cited a case of precedential value by the Lahore High Court, which held that, in order to convict the accused, the prosecution must prove that the accused was the author of the alleged blasphemous material and that he actually published it.

Much like in a similar case we’re currently fighting in Pakistan for Shahzad Masih, who is also on death row based on false blasphemy charges, no evidence was presented showing that Ahsan actually reposted the picture.

Nonetheless, without giving any plausible reason, the Anti-Terrorism Court stated that all of these arguments were “devoid of any force” and, also tragically similar to Shahzad’s case, sentenced Ahsan to death by hanging.

This is a sick injustice predicated on archaic blasphemy laws that must be changed. As a United Nations Member State, Pakistan has an obligation to uphold human rights and protections for all of its people, even its Christians. We have appealed the decision in the High Court and will continue to fight for this young Christian man.

As we work with our legal team in Pakistan, we ask for your prayers for Ahsan, as well as for the OLA’s other two clients on death row, Shahzad Masih and Amoon Ayub. But we also need you to take action with us to save these Christians’ lives. Sign our urgent petition.

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