Asia Bibi's appeal against the death sentence she received for blasphemy in 2010 has been postponed five times. In all that time, she has been on death row in prison.
Asia Bibi is a mother of five from a poor family. One day she was picking berries with a group of Muslim neighbor women. When she drank water from the same well they were drinking from, they scolded her, calling her unclean because she is Christian. She retaliated and it turned into an argument. What she said was twisted to be blasphemous and she was reported to the police. The case against her in the lower court ended with her being sentenced to death. The case was appealed, but the death sentence was upheld.
Her lawyers will now appeal the case to the country's highest court, but it could take several more years of uncertainty for Asia and her family as she languishes in prison. The previous four years in prison have already taken a heavy toll on her health, both physically and mentally.
Human rights groups in Pakistan have also protested the way Asia Bibi has been treated and many Muslim activists have added their names to the protests.
Pastor James Asher from Lahore says the Christians in the churches there will make Sunday, October 19 a day of prayer for her.
Source: AsiaNews
