A Christian security officer at the Karachi Airport was threatened with a blasphemy charge after she reprimanded a man for allowing an acquaintance’s vehicle through the security check without a vehicle pass.
Following the incident at the cargo area, the man also allegedly threatened that he would “call the preachers” and “cut you up”. The man was caught on camera saying he would accuse her of blasphemy and “call the mullahs”.
“If you don’t let my car go, I will accuse you of blasphemy, will call mullahs and we will cut you into pieces,” he is purportedly seen threatening the officer in the footage.
The officer is then heard calling the man out on his threat and daring him to go ahead with a blasphemy case against her.
Condemning the incident, former Pakistan President and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari, an ally in the present Shehbaz Sharif government, said it was shameful to accuse a security officer of blasphemy in order to prevent her from performing her duties.
According to Pakistan’s The News International newspaper, Zardari has asked the Pakistan government to provide security to the officer. He said the accused should be punished if the accusations against the security officer turn out to be false.
“Accusing someone of blasphemy is a very serious matter,” Zardari said, as quoted by the newspaper. The blasphemy allegations should be investigated, he said.
Blasphemy is punishable by death in Pakistan, and although no executions have been carried out, suspects are often killed by vigilantes.
The Dawn newspaper recently quoted Joseph Jansen, chairperson of the rights group Voice for Justice, as saying that the existing blasphemy laws do not guarantee a fair trial and religious freedom, and the accuser enjoyed impunity despite presenting false evidence and false testimony.
Jansen noted that Pakistan’s blasphemy laws were incompatible with international human rights standards.
“The accuser, who levels blasphemy allegations against any person, is bound to prove malicious intent, but this stipulation is missing in legislation and is not taken into account during blasphemy trials,” he was quoted as saying.
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