Pakistan: Ranjha Masih Acquitted of Blasphemy
Nov 21 2006
Postings >> Pakistan

Ranjha Masih has been acquitted of blasphemy -- after eight-and-a-half years in jail on unsubstantiated charges.

The Lahore High Court cleared the former hospital worker in a two-hour appeal hearing on November 10 -- three years after Masih was granted leave to appeal against his life sentence. Masih endured five years' detention before he was convicted, in April 2003. Defence lawyers and members of RI partner Centre for Legal Aid Assistance and Settlement (CLAAS) are now trying to find a permanent safe home for Masih, his wife and six children. CLAAS has been supporting the family during Masih's imprisonment.

Masih, now 58, was arrested in 1998, during the funeral procession of a close friend, former Bishop of Faisalabad John Joseph who committed suicide in protest at Pakistan's blasphemy laws. Masih was accused of throwing stones and knocking down a shopkeeper's sign that displayed a verse from the Koran. At the November 10 appeal hearing, his defence team made much of the fact that it was 20 days before Masih's accusers even produced the damaged sign.

As 7x7 reported recently, Masih's health has deteriorated severely in jail. According to Compass Direct, Masih says that police beat and tortured him repeatedly in the first weeks of his detention.

In May, Germany's International Society for Human Rights Honoured Masih with an award for 'steadfastness in maintaining his Christian beliefs' under persecution. He has long been tormented by Muslims offering to secure his release if he embraced Islam.

• Ask God to protect Ranjha Masih and his family, and provide a safe home for them. Extremists have killed individuals accused of blasphemy, even after an acquittal.
• Continue to pray for the repeal of Pakistan's loosely worded blasphemy laws, which are often abused to target religious minorities and settle petty scores.