The persecution of Asia Bibi was a particularly ugly chapter in the history of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and its enforcement of Sharia blasphemy laws. Asia Bibi, a Christian woman, was falsely accused of blasphemy against Islam, sentenced to death, imprisoned for eight years, and then when she was acquitted by the Pakistani Supreme Court, mobs all over the country began rioting, baying for her blood, and hunting house-to-house for her.
She made it out of the country. But Christians who are still in Pakistan live a precarious existence under near-total enforcement of Sharia.
“Christians still fearful in Pakistan, says Aasia Bibi,” Tribune India, February 1, 2020:
For nearly a year, Aasia Bibi, a death row prisoner in Pakistan and now rehabilitated in Canada, has not been heard of. A Christian, her trauma began when she intervened in a fight and was herself charged with blasphemy, a law in Pakistan’s books which has been criticised by the entire spectrum of civil society. A trial court in 2010 sentenced her to death on blasphemy charges and her fate hung in balance for eight long years till she was acquitted by a higher court and allowed to leave for Canada.
Now, a book details the years of uncertainty and terror that Aasia Bibi spent for eight years on the death row. The book ‘Enfin libre!’ (Finally Free!) by French journalist Anne-Isabelle Tollet is out in French while the English version will hit the stands in September.
“You are far from understanding my daily life in prison or my new life. I became a prisoner of fanaticism and tears were the only companions in the cell,” she co-wrote about the dreadful conditions in filthy jails, where she was chained and other inmates were allowed to taunt her and demand a death sentence for her.
“My wrists are burning me, it is hard to breathe. My neck is encased in an iron collar that the guard can tighten with a huge nut. A long chain drags along on the filthy ground. This connects my neck to the handcuffed hand that pulls me like a dog on a lead. Deep within me, a dull fear takes me towards the depths of darkness. A lacerating fear that will never leave me,” she recalls.
What about the conditions of Christians in Pakistan now that she has been freed? “Even with my freedom, the climate does not seem to have changed and Christians can expect all kinds of reprisals. They live with this sword of Damocles over their head,” she said….
mortimer says
Perfect observation from Asia Bibi: (Pakistani Christians) “… live with this sword of Damocles over their head.”
Pakistan is one of the worst countries for human rights violations.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_rights_in_Pakistan
James Lincoln says
mortimer,
I’m always a little bit leery about using Wikipedia as a linked reference. It’s pretty darn good for nonpolitical stuff, like the specs on a 1964 GTO, but it leans far left in the world of anti-jihad.
Surprisingly, your linked Wikipedia article on human rights in Pakistan was surprisingly balanced.
gravenimage says
Good to hear about Wikipedia in this case, Mortimer and James. I agree.
mortimer says
There are about 10 ways that Pakistan violates human rights. The article is a compendium of these with examples. If you read the article you will be astounded at how bad things are for minorities in Pakistan and how CALLOUS and FANATICAL the Pakistani leaders are about their persecutions of minorities!
‘PAKISTANI HUMAN RIGHTS’ IS A BIG OXYMORON.
Crusades Were Right says
Perhaps Western feminists will inaugurate an “Iron Collar Day” so that Western women can experience what it’s like to be a Christian in Pakistan?
Should I be holding my breath? lol
Gamzu says
Powerful suggestion!
Bulldog says
I’ve long wondered why the sisterhood, particularly the Muslima living in the west, have remained so thoroughly silenced on this and fgm!l they are clearly overtaken by their hate of white Christian men!
gravenimage says
Most Muslimahs follow Islam just as do Muslim men. It was Muslim women who filed the claim against Asia Bibi in the first place.
As for FGM, this is often enforced by Muslim women.
observer says
VERY POWERFUL SUGGESTION Crusades Were Right.
Thank you Robert for keeping Asia Bibi’s narrative alive. I have often wondered if I would have her staying power (grace !) in her circumstances.
Blessings to you and your loved ones always, as well as to Aasis and her beloved family ✝️
Most athiests never think as far as what it IS that prompts Christians to risk their lives (as Asia & Robert Spencer have done & continue to do). ?
gravenimage says
There are many Atheist and Agnostic Anti-Jihadists here, Observer–including long term Jihad Watch contributor Hugh Fitzgerald, who often writes about the Muslim persecution of Christians.
Peter35 says
“Mobs began baying for her blood….”
Pakistan. A semi-literate, inbred, hate-filled, blood-thirsty, totally corrupt islamic hellhole. In other words, a typical islamic country. Any non-moslems should have got out of there long ago, since for any non-moslem to live in an islamic country means to live as a slave—Europeans, take notice!
PRCS says
Well put!
observer says
YES !
EUROPEANS TAKE NOTE.
tim gallagher says
Pakistan is a terrible country where non-Muslims seem to be treated appallingly. Some Muslim countries may be a bit better and not as vicious in the way they treat non-Muslims as Pakistan is, but they all have a pretty intolerant attitude towards non-Muslims. I get annoyed at how so many people in our societies ( the left wingers, etc) are so tolerant towards Muslims when the same tolerance is never displayed by Muslims towards non-Muslims in any country where Muslim have power. Many people in our societies are just too damned nice when it comes to Islam. The followers of Islam don’t deserve to be treated with tolerance. It is never reciprocated. However, the main thing our countries should do is just stop letting Muslims migrate into our overly tolerant countries. They’re nothing but trouble out of all proportion compared to other groups of people, such as, say, Buddhists. I hope Asia Bibi gets over the trauma that her treatment in Pakistan has caused her in time. I’d say she would still be haunted by terrible memories. I’m glad she is safe in Canada these days.
PRCS says
“I get annoyed at how so many people in our societies ( the left wingers, etc) are so tolerant towards Muslims when the same tolerance is never displayed by Muslims towards non-Muslims in any country where Muslim have power.”
And in non-Muslim countries–like yours and mine–where our overly nice neighbors and friends abet their behavior.
IMO, much of that undeserved sympathy is driven by 1) the erroneous PC notion that every Muslim is a ‘person of color and 2) their hatred of Christianity.
BTW: are those fires being brought under control yet?
tim gallagher says
I think those two reasons you give for the too generous attitude towards Muslims in our countries are spot on, PRCS. I think it is generally a good thing that, in western, civilised countries, most of us have a pleasant and tolerant attitude towards the people around us, but I think it just can’t work at all when it comes to Islam. But my solution, the only one I can come up with that I think can work, is to try to keep Muslims out. Of course, most people here in Australia are nowhere near seeing things that way yet (probably the same in the USA and most other western countries). I don’t see why Islam deserves to be tolerated at all. Thanks for asking about the bushfires. The bushfires are under control at the moment and there is some rain expected this week in many areas. So much has burned and it has gone on for so long. By the way, PRCS, you remember how you mentioned what a monstrous fire danger eucalyptus trees are, which I sort of knew. Well, that has got quite a bit of attention in the past week or so. There’s a biologist named Jeremy Griffith who has been interviewed by a top rating radio presenter out here, named Alan Jones, and Griffith has described eucalyptus trees as “hellish incinerators disguised as trees’, etc. Google Jeremy Griffith and click on “Jeremy Griffith bushfires” and you’ll see some of what he has had to say. He says people should not build houses anywhere near eucalyptus trees. I like to visit the bushland areas but have always thought don’t live too close to them. Also, Griffith said that it was a damned shame that some Australians spread them to California, etc. Of course, koalas can only survive by eating eucalyptus leaves and, given that eucalyptus trees are native here, we just have to live with them sensibly. I’m sure it has been such a terrible summer because we have had an extremely prolonged drought for ages leading into it.
PRCS says
Thank you, Tim.
I suspect the Australian Federal and State governments will be cleaning up the duff on forest floors soon, as that dry debris contributes significantly to those firestorms.
“But my solution, the only one I can come up with that I think can work, is to try to keep Muslims out.”
That will prevent ADDITIONAL future problems, but the more than half a million Muslims in Oz (and their as yet to be born offspring) will continue to cause trouble Same with Muslims in the U.S., UK, France, Germany, Sweden, etc.The solution for THAT population (IMO) is to force politicians and journalists to make clear which specific aspects of Islamic law are antithetical to, and incompatible with, the man-made laws of those lands.
The excuses have to stop.
James Lincoln says
tim gallagher says
“I think it is generally a good thing that, in western, civilised countries, most of us have a pleasant and tolerant attitude towards the people around us, but I think it just can’t work at all when it comes to Islam.”
Spot on, tim gallagher. islam is the one exception to the rule…
tim gallagher says
Thanks for the comments, PRCS, James and Mortimer. PRCS, yes, I’m sure there will be more work done to prevent the build up of all that debris which has fuelled the huge fires this summer, although I can imagine a certain amount of slackness will set in as time passes. You are right about the problem we’ll all have with the quite large numbers of Muslims our countries have foolishly imported. Then again, I have to admit that, when Muslims first were let into Australia, I didn’t have a clue and I wasn’t concerned about it. I woke up a bit later on. What you say about making clear what aspects of Islam are antithetical to our values, I have to say I don’t trust that Muslims will ever change and fit in with our more civilised way of life. I do hope that our government will just quietly (to avoid controversy) reduce to a tiny level or end future Muslim migration. James, as you say, Islam is the exception. I consider it to be an exercise in futility to try to get along with Muslims. I also agree with your term “pathological altruism” for some of our people who are just too nice and act like doormats for Muslims to stomp all over. Mortimer, about how Pakistan has become far worse. I see that pattern everywhere in Muslim countries. Maybe I’m wrong but I can’t see progress towards more mellow societies. Turkey, Malaysia, Indonesia all seem more hardline Muslim countries these days. Maybe the fanatics always take over. I think, when it comes to islam, that old saying from the Vietnam War (I think it was from that conflict) “Hell Sucks” applies. Things get worse, Islam seems to get worse. Well, I guess that Islam’s content is all set in stone, it’s supposedly perfect, so all its backward rubbish can’t change. I just wish we could keep all of Islam’s garbage away from our societies.
mortimer says
RRCS, Muslims come in many different shapes and sizes and political views. Pakistan was founded with progressive ideas of equality, but over the years, real FANATICAL MUSLIMS have taken over and passed many discriminatory bills that contradict the equality provisions in the Pak constitution. The Pak supreme court could over-rule those discriminatory laws if they had a will to do so. But the fanatics would come gunning for the judges if they did.
Pakistan is now at the mercy of Muslim fanatics who will KILL YOU if disagree with strict 7th-century Sharia.
PRCS says
But they all read the same ‘version’ of Qur’an.
Amputations and all.
James Lincoln says
PRCS says, regarding muslims:
“much of that undeserved sympathy is driven by 1) the erroneous PC notion that every Muslim is a ‘person of color and 2) their hatred of Christianity.”
Spot on, that is the situation in a nutshell. I call it “pathological altruism”.
PRCS says
Their sign says:
Hang the
blasphemer
cursed Asia
Same brain-dead, booger eatin’ morons who stone Muslim adulteresses to death.
Some of the world’s Muslim whackjobs who want to subjugate all mankind under the hegemony of Islamic law.
And, of course, CAIR ‘reps’ and their useful idiots want the ‘Muslim’ ban lifted.
Norger says
And poor Asia Bibi isn’t 100% safe in Canada either.
PRCS says
True.
gravenimage says
Asia Bibi: Christians in Islamic Republic of Pakistan “live with this sword of Damocles over their head”
………………..
So glad to hear from Asia Bibi–she is a brave woman! It would be understandable if she has just wanted to keep a low profile here with her family, since even in Canada and the rest of the West there are Muslims who want to murder her.
And yes–as awful as her case was, it is one among countless others in Pakistan and the rest of Dar-al-Islam.
I will look forward to reading her book.
Marigold says
The suffering that that poor poor woman must have endured makes me shiver. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and the rest of the royal family ought to be sent a copy of the book then perhaps it may influence their very unwise decision to keep visiting Pakistan.I have never been anti royalist or a republican but they are not endearing themselves to their subjects who can think for themselves.
Bulldog says
Unlike you,Marigold, I am an anti royalist, and particularly incensed by the ginger one, with his Nazi uniforms, promotion of hunting and his kowtowing to muslims, along with his stepfather. I have travelled extensively in the Muslim countries of the Mideast and have found only One that does not treat non Muslims with hate and contempt. We should of course forbid their entry into all western countries and then begin the repatriation of those already here, I wouldn’t be surprised if Donald begins this in his second term.
Michael says
In the rural parts of Pakistan, Christians and other minorities can often be harshly abused and mistreated. But in the cities, where Pakistanis are more educated and modern, Christians and religious minorities have a much better quality of life.
gravenimage says
Micheal, your idea that Christians are only being persecuted in ignorant rural areas is mistaken.
There was a suicide attack targeting Christians celebrating Easter at a Lahore playground in 2016 that left 70 dead and more than 340 wounded, and two bomb blasts at churches in Lahore in 2015 killed 14 and hurt more than 70 people.
More than 100 homes were set on fire by outraged Muslims in Badami Bagh, Lahore, in March 2013 after a Christian man was accused of speaking against the Muslim prophet Mohammad.
Lahore is often considered Pakistan’s most cosmopolitan city.
In 2005, hundreds fled their homes in Faisalabad as churches and Christian schools were set on fire by a mob, after a resident was blamed for burning pages of the Koran. Faisalabad is Pakistan’s third largest city.
City hospitals have refused to treat Christians and other non-Muslims.
There are many other examples.
Michael says
Though there is still a lot of room for improvement for the status of religious minorities in Pakistan. In both rural and urban areas.
observer says
You portray a vast minimization of reality in Pakistan methinks Michael.
Harsh mistrearment and abuse in rural Pakistan was not what Aasia Bibi experienced !
Nothing less than HORRIFIC TORTURE is what Aasia Bibi endured.
Please try to imagine yourself in SOLITARY confinement for 8 years in a dark, cockroach-infested cell with no lights, 1.5 x 1.5 metres, where she had to cook her own food (such as it was) for fear of being poisoned, with your
neck encased in an iron collar THAT THE GUARD CAN TIGHTEN WITH A HUGE NUT. A long chain drags along on the filthy ground which connects your neck to the handcuffed hand that pulls you like a dog on a lead.
All this and probably a lot more besides is what Aasia Bibi suffered FOR EIGHT YEARS.
CAN YOU PICTURE YOURSELF IN THIS SITUATION MICHAEL ?
Do you think your description of the not-so-brutal Pakistan would apply HAD IT BEEN YOU LIVING IN THOSE CONDITIONS FOR 8 YEARS IN SOLITARY CONFINEMENT ?
Please try for Aasia’s sake and the innumerable others who suffer a similar fate because of a typically islamist falsehood against them.
My conscience would not let your comments pass without a response.
What Aasia went through calls into question any limp/dilute Western or islamist (?!) response.
Michael says
Yes. Asia Bibi went through a terrible ordeal and torture, like many others have gone through, and are going through, thanks to religious, Islamist fanatics. Her case is an extreme case though. My point is that in many parts of Pakistan (mainly in urban areas), the status of religious minorities is a lot better and their lives are probably reasonably decent.
gravenimage says
This is simply not the case. And Muslims all over Pakistan rioted against Asia Bibi being released. This involved the whole country and the courts–this was not just about a handful of countrified rubes as you appear to believe.
And it is Islam itself that teaches the persecution of non-Muslims, not just some weird rural-only version.
At this point, most Christians and other non-Muslims have been driven out of Pakistan, forcibly converted to Islam, or murdered outright. Only a little over 3% of Pakistanis are non-Muslim today.
observer says
GI I suspect what Michael is attempting to say is that JUST ‘SOME’ PEOPLE “DID SOMETHING” SOMEWHERE. And the folk who did the SOMETHING were merely rural (…’unsophisticated’) mortals. But everything is kosher in the “more educated & modern” areas of Pakistan. He must have missed the images of vast swathes of the populous baying for her blood & is probably in need of a boost of ‘education & modernism’ himself. It appears he also lives according to 7 AD norms.
If there’s any logic in what you say Michael, I’m not getting it.
Finally…
You avoided a direct answer to my questions.
Why would that be ?
You have to be courageous enough to see YOURSELF suffering Aasia’s horror to be able to respond honestly to my questions. This is hard for even the best of us to do. You gotta learn the art of walking in another soul’s shoes… I get nervous even saying this bec I too fall on my face at times.
Try speaking from your HEART Michael, not from your HEAD.
You’re simply way off the truth about Pakistani/Islamist brutality.
May even the merest chink of Light penetrate your intellectual darkness.
May you be given what is necessary to accomplish the very difficult journey from your head into your HEART, where truth resides.
gravenimage says
I hope that Michael wises up, Observer.
observer says
So do I GI.
So do I…
Michael says
To answer your question;
Yes, I can imagine myself living in those horrible conditions, and it would probably make me very bitter and resentful towards the many Islamist fanatics and bigots who put me there.
However, I would try also to acknowledge the decent people in Pakistan, who wouldn’t support this treatment. And some of them (like lawyers and some politicians) would be trying to help me.
Just because I myself would have been brutalised doesn’t mean that the entire country of Pakistan is infested with Islamist fanatics. There are many decent people in Pakistan. It’s just that they don’t have the political power to oppose Islamist fanatics. Hopefully someday they will.
observer says
Thank you for your response Michael…
gravenimage says
When decent people in Pakistan have tried to help those like Asia Bibi, they have been threatened and frequently murdered. Her lawyer had to flee the country. The Minister of Minority Affairs was murdered, and his post never refilled.
Pretending that Pakistan is just fine and that only a tiny minority of “Islamist fanatics and bigots” are responsible for the suffering in Pakistan is ludicrous.
Moreover, does Michael believe that Asia Bibi has been the only victim–or does he just hope that we imagine that she has been?
In that case, why would Asia Bibi herself note that all Christians in Pakistan are at risk?
“Pakistan: ‘There are 200 more Asia Bibis’”
https://www.jihadwatch.org/2019/07/pakistan-there-are-200-more-asia-bibis
And this is just Christians. Hindus, Sikhs, and Atheists are all at risk in Pakistan, as well.
And this is what Islam teaches–pretending that it is only “fanatics” who persecute unbelievers is mistaken at best.