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Pakistan: Fatwa-mob kills "blasphemer" In the North West Frontier Province (NWFP), a villager has been chased and killed by an agitated mob, after a local cleric of the ruling Islamic fundamentalist alliance Muttahida-Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) issued a fatwa against him, announcing his death for "desecrating" the Quran. The victim, Aasheq Nabi from Spin Khak village in Nowshera district (ca.30 km from Peshawar) was accused of burning a copy of the Quran. His uncle Janab Shah and other family members - in order to "settle" property arguments, sources said - registered a blasphemy case against him. Police raided his house, but could allegedly not arrest the man in his 40s, as he was hiding. The henchmen of the local cleric, however, found him. Not willing to rely on legal proceedings, they resorted to lynch law. Leading a 400-strong mob, they chased him over the fields and shot him down from a tree, which he had climbed in despair. He begged for his life, but was brutally killed. Police did not make any arrest. According to their claims they were not even in a position to identify the local cleric responsible for the murder. Pakistan's blasphemy laws are a handy tool for the self-styled guardians of Islam to enforce total submission under their rule.. Even though in most cases (mis-)used to settle issues without any religious connection, they are always oiling the engines of the religious establishment. In a modest effort to curb the abuse of the blasphemy laws, the National Assembly of Pakistan passed a bill in November 2004 - against the votes of the MMA - demanding that nobody can be arrested and accused of blasphemy, before a senior police officer has investigated the case for substance. The amendment will come into effect, if and when the Senate will pass the bill [see Bulletin 135]. |