Capital Punishment For Change Of Religion

I s l a m a b a d (idea) - In Pakistan, death penalty shall be ruled for every men changing from Islam to another religion. This is being planned by a so-called Apostasy Law which has passed the first reading in the Parliament. Female converts are to receive lifelong imprisonment.

The law was being brought in by six – mostly Islamic – praties. The International Society for Human Rights (ISHR) fears that n Apostasy Law may abet "further Islamic terror". The Frankfurt/Germany based society is concerned that because of a growing Islamization, violence against Christians will increase. The Blasphemy Law, which threatens insults against the prophet Muhammad with death penalty, is often being misused against Christians. Envy and greed are often motives for respective charges. In the youngest case on May 9, a Muslim employee of an automobile company has accused his 84-year old boss for allegedly having burnt a copy of the Qur'an. The background was a dispute because of the selling of a piece of land. The car dealer Walter Fazal Khan has been arrested and is now in custody in Samanabad near Lahore. His 86-year old wife was violently forced to convert to Islam, as to ISHR. She appeals to the Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf to stop this Apostasy Law and to line up with the abolishment of the Blasphemy Law, promised by him. According to information of IGFM, 48 new cases of alleged Blasphemy was reported last year. In 38 cases Muslims were affected and ten Christians.

PESHAWAR: Christians in Charsadda have received threatening letters warning them to shut their churches and convert to Islam whereas 17 shops were destroyed after bombs ripped through video and music markets in Mardan and Charsadda.

Copies of the handwritten letter were delivered to two churches and several Christians' homes in Charsadda. Christians have alerted police to the letters and security has been stepped up at churches, said a local police official, Ali Haider.

Police are investigating who sent the unsigned notes, which gave the Christians 10 days to convert, Haider said. He said the letter did not say what consequences they might face if they did not comply with the ultimatum, which expires May 17.

NWFP Information Minister Asif Daudzai said authorities would uphold minorities' freedom of religion. "No one will be allowed to do it (force them to convert). Christians and other minorities are free to go to churches and temples and live according to their religion," Daudzai said.

Meanwhile, shopkeepers have sought protection from the government after two bombs ripped through a video market in Mardan on Thursday destroying 15 shops while another blast in Charsadda damaged two shops. Owners of video shops in Gujar Khan market in Parhuti area have received anonymous letters three weeks ago threatening them to shut down their businesses or their shops would be blown up.

At about 1:00 am Thursday, two powerful bomb explosions damaged 15 shops, 11 of them of video and music. Nobody was hurt in the blasts as shops were closed. Later, all traders of the market gathered at PR Chowk and protested against the incident and demanded the government to give them protection. They said the blasts damaged the shops and all the merchandise and rendered them unemployed.

In Charsadda, unidentified militants blew up two music and video shops in the main market of Mirabad early Thursday morning. There were no casualties as the market was closed. Owners of the shops told Umer Zai police that the blast destroyed all the merchandise worth millions of rupees. Others shops in the market were partially damaged.