Christian mother sentenced to death

Shagufta Kiran was sentenced to death on Wednesday, September 18, 2024, her lawyer told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News. She is the mother of four children. Shagufta has been convicted of insulting Muhammad, the prophet of Islam, which carries the mandatory death penalty under Section 295-C of Pakistan's blasphemy law. Her lawyer Rana Abdul Hameed says Judge Muhammad Afzal Majoka of Islamabad also fined Shagufta 300,000 rupees ($24,410) after her three-year trial.

On July 29, 2021, Shagufta was arrested in Islamabad after she allegedly shared blasphemous content in a WhatsApp group in September 2020. Her husband and two sons were also detained during the raid but were later released.

Read more about the blasphemy laws and insecurity for minorities in Pakistan: Pakistan's Christians must navigate one of the world's most insecure societies

Shagufta's lawyer, Rana, says "The complaint against Kiran was filed by a Muslim named Shiraz Ahmed Farooqi, who claimed that she had shared content that was disrespectful to the Prophet of Islam. However, Kiran has maintained that she did not author the content and that she forwarded it in the WhatsApp group without reading it." 

Shagufta had joined several interfaith WhatsApp groups where she preached the gospel and defended her Christian faith. One of the groups she joined, Pure Discussions, was managed by the complainant, Farooqi, Muhammad Ameer Faisal from India and Muhammad Jaleel from Canada.

Rana, Shagufta's lawyer, says Shagufta was a brave woman who remained steadfast during the trial. He says, "I met her after the judge handed down the verdict and I can confirm that she is very confident of a positive outcome on appeal, but she misses her family very much and wants to be reunited with them as soon as possible."

He further says that he will file an appeal once the court issues the detailed order. The verdict did not come as a surprise as 99 % of those accused under section 295-C are convicted by the courts as they are under pressure from Islamists. Rana continues, "If you examine all the cases of 295-C, the courts tend to convict the accused even though the cases against them are very weak. This is due to the pressure from the religious groups and the fear of mob violence. If you analyze all 295-C cases, you will see that all first instance convictions are overturned by the higher courts." 

Read also: Elderly Christian man dies from injuries after crowd attack

According to a report by the Center for Social Justice (CSJ), the numbers are as follows:

• Nearly 3000 people have been accused of blasphemy since 1987. The actual extent of abuse of these laws may be three to four times higher.
• Hundreds of defendants were imprisoned last year, with 552 of them in jail in Punjab province. 
• At least 350 people remained behind bars in June, with 103 new people having been charged with blasphemy this year between January and June.
• At least seven people accused of blasphemy have been killed by individuals or crowds since January. 
• In total, 94 people accused of blasphemy have been killed in mob attacks between 1994 and 2023.

The Danish European Mission has a school project in northwestern Pakistan for children from poor Christian families. In this area, the Pakistani Taliban and other Islamic extremist groups are stronger than in other parts of the country. It costs DKK 1,040 to ensure that a child from a poor and persecuted Christian family can attend school. In this way, the most vulnerable Christian families can help themselves and lift themselves out of extreme poverty.