I just happen to run into this article and pleased to share it here at www.BlasphemyLaws.com and www.WorldMuslimCongress.com - Its well written for those who want to get a good idea about the law - Mike Ghouse
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Blasphemy Law in Islam – A Definition 

http://www.waqarhussain.net/blog/2011/09/blasphemy-law-in-islam-a-definition-1074/

on SEPTEMBER 9, 2011 · in PAKISTAN

In November 2010, I posted some research work about Blasphemy Law in Pakistan. I got a great response from all over the world and specially from Pakistan. Since then I was assigned to collect some more and detailed information about Blasphemy Law. During my research I visited several websites, journals and newspapers and also verified their responses. I feel first there is high requirement to chalk out the basic & important details about Blasphemy Law before discussing the detail version about Blasphemy Law. So here I have come up with some basic information about Blasphemy Law in Islam.

What does Blasphemy Law means ?

In Islam it is any irreverent behavior toward holy person, religious artifacts, customs, and beliefs that Muslims admire. Let be clear that the Quran and the hadith do not speak about blasphemy. Law experts created the offense, and they made it part of Sharia. Where Sharia applicable, the penalties for blasphemy can include fines, imprisonment, flogging, amputation, hanging, or beheading. Muslim leader (religious) may call for the punishment of an alleged blasphemer by issuing a fatwa.

Who would be Blasphemers?

It is agreed by all Islamic authorities that a blasphemer can be Muslim or non-Muslim. To be declare as guilty of blasphemy offense, an individual must be an adult, of sound mind, and not under threat. Some jurisdictions do not punish individuals who commit blasphemy accidentally. The Maliki school of jurisprudence permits the exoneration of accused individuals who are converts to Islam.

How Blasphemy against holy persons yet?

• Speaking ill of Allah.
• Finding fault with Muhammad.
• Slighting a prophet who is mentioned in the Qur’an, or slighting a member of Muhammad’s family.
• Claiming to be a prophet or a messenger.
• Speculating about how Muhammad would behave if he were alive (happened in Nigeria).
• Drawing a picture to represent Muhammad or any other prophet, or making a film which features a prophet (happened in Egypt).
• Writing Muhammad’s name on the walls of a toilet (happened in Pakistan).
• Naming a teddy bear Muhammad (happened in Sudan).
• Invoking God while committing a forbidden act.

How Blasphemy against beliefs and customs of Islam yet?

• Finding fault with Islam.
• Saying Islam is an Arab religion; prayers five times a day are unnecessary; and the Qur’an is full of lies (happened in Indonesia).
• Believing in transmigration of the soul or reincarnation or disbelieving in the afterlife (happened in Indonesia).
• Finding fault with a belief or a practice which the Muslim community (Ummah) has adopted.
• Finding fault with or cursing apostles (Rasul or Messenger), prophets, or angels.
• Expressing an atheist or a secular point of view or publishing or distributing such a point of view.
• Using words that Muslims use because the individuals were not Muslims (happened in Malaysia).
• Praying that Muslims become something else (happened in Indonesia).
• Whistling during prayers (happened in Indonesia).
• Flouting the rules prescribed for Ramadan.
• Reciting Muslim prayers in a language other than Arabic (happened in Indonesia).
• Consuming alcohol.
• Gambling.
• Being alone with persons of the opposite sex who are not blood relatives.
• Finding amusement in Islamic customs (happened in Bangladesh).
• Publishing an unofficial translation of the Qur’an (happened in Afghanistan).
• Practicing yoga (happened in Malaysia).
• Watching a film or listening to music (happened in Somalia).
• Wearing make-up on television (happened in Iran).
• Insulting religious scholarship.
• Wearing the clothing of Jews or of Zoroastrians.
• Claiming that forbidden acts are not forbidden.
• Uttering “words of infidelity” (sayings that are forbidden).
• Participating in non-Islamic religious festivals.

How Blasphemy against artifacts yet?

• Touching a Qur’an or touching something that has touched a Qur’an because the individuals were not Muslim (happened in Nigeria).
• Damaging a Qur’an or other books of importance to Islam, for example, hadith (happened in Pakistan).
• Spitting at the wall of a mosque (happened in Pakistan).

What would be Punishment in Blasphemy?

The punishments for different instances of blasphemy in Islam vary by jurisdiction / region / country and even cities. A guilty blasphemer may, among other penalties, lose all legal rights. The loss of rights may cause a blasphemer’s marriage to be dissolved, religious acts to be rendered worthless, and claims to property (including any inheritance) to be rendered void. Repentance may restore lost rights except for marital rights; lost marital rights are regained only by remarriage. Women have blasphemed and repented to end a marriage. Women may be permitted to repent, and may receive a lesser punishment than would befall a man who committed the same offense.

Difference between Blasphemy against Allah and Muhammad

There is a distinction between a blasphemer who insults Allah and blasphemenr who finds fault with Muhammad. Difference is based on the notions of the  “right of God” and the “right of Man.” A blasphemer who violates the “right of God” can seek forgiveness through repentance.

The Qur’an advises Muslims to reject those who find fault with God. Detail Reference

A blasphemer who violates the “right of Man” must seek forgiveness from the person insulted. In the case of an insult to Muhammad, the Muslim community is considered to be under an obligation to avenge the insult because the possibility of forgiveness expired upon the death of Muhammad.

Here is summary and brief version of my long research work. It took time to collect and verify the information about such sensitive topic. Please share your opinions regarding Blasphemy Law and its relationship with Islam in comment section. Subscribe with my rss for more updates. To get more details and information about project management,web design you can connect to me on twitter, facebook, linked in and google+.

Blasphemy Article by Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

The Quran is the most authentic source of Islam. The Quran clearly states which actions are crimes and specifies what kind of punishments are to be meted out for them.

One notable example is what is called ‘qazaf’. The following is the verse of the Quran in this regard: “Those who defame chaste women, but cannot produce four witnesses, shall be given eighty lashes.” (24:4)

We learn from this verse of the Quran that if a pious woman is defamed without any proof, such a person, in the eyes of the Quran, becomes a criminal who deserves physical punishment by a court of law. When the Quran mentions this crime, it also mentions the specific punishment along with it.

Now let us look into this matter from another aspect. The Quran states that since ancient times God has sent prophets in succession to every town and every community. It says, moreover, that the contemporaries of all of these prophets adopted the same negative attitude -- but with far greater intensity -- as has been mentioned in the Quran with regard to chaste women. For instance, the Quran says: “Alas for human beings! They ridicule every messenger that comes to them.” (36:30)

There are more than two hundred verses of this nature, which reveal that the contemporaries of the Prophet repeatedly perpetrated the same act which is now called ‘abuse of the Prophet’ or ‘using abusive language about the Prophet’. Prophets down the ages have been mocked and abused by their contemporaries (36:30), some of the epithets cited in the Quran being “a liar” (40:24), “possessed” (15:6), “a fabricator” (16:101), “a foolish man” (7:66). The Quran mentions these words of abuse used by prophets’ contemporaries but nowhere does the Quran prescribe the punishment of lashes, or death or any such deterrent punishment.

This clearly shows that ‘abuse of the Prophet’ is not a subject of punishment, but is rather a subject of dawah. That is, one who is guilty of abusing the Prophet should not have corporal punishment meted out to him: he should rather be given sound arguments in order that his mind may be addressed. In other words, peaceful persuasion should be used to reform the person concerned rather than attempting to kill him.

There is a verse in the Quran to this effect: “God knows all that is in their hearts; so ignore what they say, admonish them and speak to them in such terms as will address their minds.”(4:63)

This verse means that those who adopt a negative stance towards the Prophet will be judged by God, who knows the innermost recesses of their hearts. The responsibility of the Prophet and his followers is to observe the policy of avoidance, and, wishing well, convey the message of God to them in such a manner that their minds might be properly addressed.

This case is made out in the Chapter entitled Al-Ghashiya: “Do they never reflect on the camels and how they were created, and on the sky, how it is raised aloft, and on the mountains, how they are firmly set up, and on the earth, how it is spread out? So, exhort them; your task is only to exhort, you are not their keeper. But whoever turns back and denies the truth, will be punished by God with the greatest punishment. Certainly, it is to Us that they will return.” (88:17-26)

These verses of the Quran tell us about what approach the Prophet was required to adopt. This approach was that people should be addressed by arguments. Attempts should be made to satisfy them rationally as to the veracity of the religion. And notwithstanding any negative reaction on the part of those addressed, this same positive style of dawah (conveying the message of God to people) has to be adhered to. It is not the task of the dayee to assume the role of a keeper. So far as punishment and reward are concerned, that is a subject wholly in the domain of God. God will gather together everyone on the Day of Resurrection and then, according to their deeds, will reward or punish them.

Another important aspect of this matter is that at no point in the Quran is it stated that anyone who uses abusive language about the Prophet should be stopped from doing so, and in case he continues to do so he should be awarded severe punishment. On the contrary, the Quran commands the believer not to use abusive language directed against opponents: “But do not revile those [beings] whom they invoke instead of God, lest they, in their hostility, revile God and out of ignorance.” (6:108)

This verse of the Quran makes it plain that it is not the task of the believers to establish media watch offices and hunt for anyone involved in acts of defamation of the Prophet, and then plan for their killing, whatever the cost. On the contrary, the Quran enjoins believers to sedulously refrain from indulging in such acts as may provoke people to retaliate by abusing Islam and the Prophet. This injunction of the Quran makes it clear that this responsibility devolves upon the believers, rather than that others be held responsible and demands made for them to be punished.

Looked at from this angle, the stance of present-day Muslims goes totally against the teachings of the Quran. Whenever anyone -- in their judgement -- commits an act of ‘abuse of the Prophet’, in speech or in writing, they instantly get provoked and their response is to start leading processions through the streets, which often turn violent, and then they demand that all those who insult the Prophet be beheaded.

All those who initiate such provocative processions and demand the killing of supposed ‘abusers of the Prophet’, are instead themselves the greatest culprits when it comes to abuse of the Prophet. Their violent conduct has resulted in the public being lead into believing that Islam is a religion of a pre-civilized era, that it imposes a ban on free thinking, that it is a religion which believes in thought crime, and that it is a religion of violence, etc.

It is Muslims themselves who are entirely responsible for the formation of this negative image of Islam. Distorting the image of Islam in this way is, indeed, the greatest of all crimes.

Center for Peace and Spirituality - USA

www.cpsglobal.org

www.alquranmission.org

www.alrisala.org

Muslims Condemn Blasphemy Charges Against Christian Girl in Pakistan

Blasphemy has become a tool of harassment to a few who have nothing better to do than create chaos. We ask the people of Pakistan to seriously debate the blasphemy laws. Islam is about free will and as Muslims we need to stand against any oppression towards any human being following in the footsteps of the prophet.

Full article at: 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/muslims-condemn-blasphemy-charges-against-pakistan-christian-girl_b_1815127.html

Blasphemy Law & Use of Violence - History

Pakistan’s Penal Code Section 295, better known as the Blasphemy Law, was first introduced to a pre-partition India in 1860. Back then, the law was applicable to every religion and any person with a maximum punishment up to two years with bail. And any disturbance of any religious gathering was also in violation of the law. There have been an estimated 1,274 people charged under the blasphemy laws between 1986 till 2010 according to reports. 1927: • There was an amendment made after the loss of a controversial case defended by India’s leading lawyer M.A. Jinnah. The Indian legislature cautioned against using the words “intentional outrage” or “attempted outrage” for their vagueness and instead chose to use words such as “deliberate” or “malicious intent.” REFERENCE: High-profile blasphemy cases in the last 63 years DAWN.COM | 8th December, 2010 http://dawn.com/2010/12/08/high-profile-blasphemy-cases-in-the-last-63-years/

Blasphemy Law & Violence - 4

Blasphemy Law & Violence - 4 (Reporter - Dawn News Jan 2011)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WjsSs712CSo

LAHORE, May 28: An under-trial blasphemy accused, who was attacked and wounded by a policeman on May 25, died in the Lahore General Hospital on Friday.

Labourer Samuel Masih (29) of Basti Saidan Shah had been accused of blasphemy in August 2003. The accused was caught by prayer leader Chaudhry Yaqoob of the Jinnah Bagh.

The prayer leader had alleged that the labourer had littered the walls of a religious institute in the garden, inscribed with some Quranic verses. Together with the prayer leader, dozens of people had allegedly tortured the accused before handing him over to the police.

A blasphemy case under Section 295 of PPC was registered against the accused with Civil Lines police and he was sent to the Kot Lakhpat jail. The accused fell ill there and doctors diagnosed him with TB in prison hospital.

He was shifted to the Gulab Devi Hospital. Two policemen were deployed on his guard duty. One of the policemen, Faryad Ali, on May 25 allegedly attacked him in his head with a hammer.

The staff caught the policeman and immediately shifted the blasphemy accused to the General Hospital where he died on Friday. The body was removed to the city mortuary for autopsy.

A case already registered against the accused policeman was turned into a murder case. He had already been sent to jail. The accused policeman is reported to have no regret for his act and believes that it will earn him paradise.

Condemning the killing, All Pakistan Minorities Alliance chairman Shahbaz Bhatti called upon the government to repeal the blasphemy law. "This is not the first example of the misuse of the law." He said his organization was going to file a petition against a senior police official and prison hierarchy for their negligence, which had resulted in the murder.

Already a writ petition filed by advocate Pervaiz Chaudhry in the LHC had pleaded for an action against the police hierarchy. The judge had directed the city police chief and the police concerned to produce relevant record before him on Monday, the lawyer said.

He alleged the police were attempting to give favour to their colleague by distorting evidence against him. "The accused policeman has been sent to jail without completion of investigation." REFERENCE: LAHORE: Blasphemy accused dies By Our Reporter 29 May 2004 Saturday 09 Rabi-us-Saani 1425 http://archives.dawn.com/2004/05/29/local25.htm

Muslims Condemn Blasphemy Charges against Christian teen In Paksitan

MUSLIMS CONDEMN BLASPHEMY CHARGES AGAINST CHRISTIAN TEEN IN PAKISTAN

Blasphemy has become a tool of harassment to a few who have nothing better to do than create chaos. We ask the people of Pakistan to seriously debate the blasphemy laws. Islam is about free will and as Muslims we need to stand against any oppression towards any human being following in the footsteps of the prophet.

Full article at: 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/muslims-condemn-blasphemy-charges-against-pakistan-christian-girl_b_1815127.html

Blasphemy laws go against Islam

http://blasphemylaws.blogspot.com/2012/04/blasphemy-laws-go-against-islam.html

Blasphemy laws have no basis in the Quran, God is about justice and mercy, and not cruelty and tyranny. Those who claim to defend the dignity of God, Prophet, Quran, and Islam really do not have faith in the four. They are afraid God, the Prophet, the Quran, and Islam will disappear from the face of the earth without their protection. They are wrong! We are bloody mortal beings here today and gone tomorrow, whereas God, Prophet, Quran, and Islam have been around and will always be there.

There should be no punishment for Blasphemy, it is not in the Quran and it was not practiced by the prophet. God (Quran) says the dearest human to him is one who forgives, and Prophet practiced it by praying for those who cursed him. He could have smashed those miscreants in Taif, but he chose to pray. As followers, we are supposed to pray and not punish. 


Blasphemy Laws are not God's laws, they are the tools of oppression by the tyrants to force obedience from others, it goes against the principle of the Quran - there is no compulsion. 

Insecure men do not have the confidence in themselves to dialogue and resolve the conflicts, nor do they have faith in God and his word.

When people disagree with them, they will beat them up or eliminate them with power, screams, deaths, and threats. 

Secure men believe in God and the Day of Judgment, and he is the only one who knows what is in our hearts. He says in the Quran, I am closer to you than your jugular vein. Meaning, he knows our thoughts, intentions, and actions on time, as we do.

Secure men discuss things, square the difference through dialogue. Indeed, that is the reason God gave us a tongue to dialogue instead of what the animals are programmed to do.

Who are we to punish then? 

It is un-Islamic and cooked up by the tyrants. Unless a few of us start speaking against Blasphemy, the evil vigilantist anti-Islamic practice of insecure men will continue. There is no punishment for Blasphemy.

Except for the first four caliphs, who were chosen to govern,  we have a bad history of oppression.  It is not just us, until 100 years ago with the exception of the United States; the whole world was run by dictators and kings particularly in Muslim majority nations. Most nations are moving towards civil societies run by the consensus of the people and sadly Muslim societies have not been able to free themselves from the shackles put in by the dictator Caliphs and Kings.  At least one thing is right about secondary Muslim literature - they called the first four Caliphs Rashidun - the rightly guided ones. Since then we have good, bad, and ugly Muslim rulers. 

Look at our history, we have been prevented from independent inquiry, we are run over by the damned dictators and kings. 

Unfortunately, Muslims do not have the breathing room to be themselves, they are continuously bonded by one tyrant or the other… We certainly can pray to ask God to help Muslims to be free to govern themselves and not throw them in the mouths of Mullahs from the dictators. One bad Mubarak goes and the brotherhood is out there to force their laws on the unwilling people, and now we have another tyrant Sisi, where will it end? 

We the Muslims have been reduced to Pavlovian Muslims - we are too damned conditioned with the laws created by men like dictator Zia ul Haq, intolerant Ibn-e-Wahhab, sneaky Maududi and Banna. We need to be free and follow the guidance from God.

Prophet Muhammad said I am leaving this book to you - he did not say, well, I have assigned the interpretation of the book to the Imams, Kings and the dictators... you don't need to read the Quran any more, just follow the rules made by the dominant partners of God, you will get a free pass on the Day of Judgement. They will take care of you.

Time to start from Zero and follow the Prophet. Pull down the "Great Work" of big-time Imams and not equate their work with the Quran, they have made us cowards and insecure with Blasphemy and Apostasy laws that go against God's will.  

Here are verses from the Quran;

 [5:57] O you who believe, do not befriend those among the recipients of previous scripture who mock and ridicule your religion, nor shall you befriend the disbelievers. You shall reverence GOD if you are really believers.

[6:68] If you see those who mock our revelations, you shall avoid them until they delve into another subject. If the devil causes you to forget, then, as soon as you remember, do not sit with such evil people.

[18:106] Their just requital is Hell, in return for their disbelief, and for mocking revelations and My messengers. 

My note: Hell and punishment is God's business and not ours. Ours is to forgive and pray for the goodwill. 

[39:48] The sinful works they had earned will be shown to them and the very things they used to mock will come back to haunt them.

[45:33] The evils of their works will become evident to them, and the very things they mocked will come back and haunt them.

Why the Muslim masses ignore the Messenger Muhammad?  Who they want to please?

The punishment is delivered by God, not by you or me.

The killing is justified only if people wage war against you. 

[5:33] (Asad) It is but a just recompense for those who make war on God and His apostle, ^[43] and endeavor to spread corruption on earth, that they are being slain in great' numbers, or crucified in great numbers, or have, in l' result of their perverseness, their hands and feet cut off in great numbers, ^[44] or are being [entirely] banished from [the face of] the earth: such is their ignominy in this world . ^[45] But in the life to come [yet more] awesome suffering awaits them


43- The term "apostle" is evidently generic in this context. By "making war on God and His apostle" is meant a hostile opposition to, and wilful disregard of, the ethical precepts ordained by God and explained by all His apostles, combined with the conscious endeavor to destroy or undermine other people's belief in God as well

44- In classical Arabic idiom, the "cutting off of one's hands and feet" is often synonymous with "destroying one's power", and it is possible in this sense that the expression has been used here. Alternatively, it might denote "being mutilated", both physically and metaphorically -similar to the (metonymical) use of the expression "being crucified" in the sense of "being tortured". The phrase min khilaf-usually rendered as "from opposite sides"-is derived from the verb khalafahu, "he disagreed with him", or "opposed him", or "acted contrarily to him": consequently, the primary meaning of min khilaf is "in the result of contrariness" or "of perverseness"

The killing is not justified if people evict you. You may only evict them:

[2:191] You may kill those who wage war against you, and you may evict them whence they evicted you. Oppression is worse than murder. Do not fight them at the Sacred Masjid, unless they attack you therein. If they attack you, you may kill them. This is the just retribution for those disbelievers.

The killing is not justified if people insult the Prophet. God will take care of it.

[18:106] Their just requital is Hell, in return for their disbelief, and for mocking My revelations and My messengers

And, these are some of the Quranic wisdoms:

[42:37] They avoid gross sins and vice, and when angered they forgive

[42:40] Although the just requital for an injustice is an equivalent retribution, those who pardon and maintain righteousness are rewarded by GOD. He does not love the unjust.

The Muslim masses need to learn a lot from the Quran.  They are shackled by their Ulams and Allamas!

# # #

Mike Ghouse is a Muslim thinker, speaker and writer. Information about him is available in 63 links at www.MikeGhouse.net and his current writings are at www.TheGhousediary.com.

About Blasphemy

The purpose of this site is to bring together differing views on Blasphemy, and develop an understanding from Islamic point of view for the good of all humanity. Current Blasphemy laws and practices do not go with the values of Islam; free will and respect for life.

Your articles are invited and you can send to wmcarchives@gmail.com

What Islam do you subscribe to?

Evil exists in a given society because good people do nothing about it.

Obviously everyone is scared of speaking up and as long as you are scared, those few will establish that Islam is their religion and a religion of punishment, oppression and coercion.  Sadly, that is their understanding, one of the many ways to change that perception is to speak up, they need to know that there is a different view and most Muslims do not subscribe to their view.

The least you can do, particularly the Pakistani Americans is to speak up and show the support to those gutsy men and women like Sherry Rahman and Prof. Hoodbhoy who are not scared. As he alludes, Zardari has a choice to leave a legacy of goodness for his country and live in peace or run for his life.

Please visit the site www.BlasphemyLaws.com a variety of articles are being posted to increase our own understanding of it.  

To Save Pakistan, what Miracles need to happen?
http://blasphemylaws.blogspot.com/2011/01/to-save-pakistan-what-miracles-shall-we.html

Pakistan’s defiant leader
http://blasphemylaws.blogspot.com/2011/01/pakistans-defiant-prisoner-of.html

Arab News

Qadri and Muslim Majority.  

http://arabnews.com/world/article232984.ece

Your Signature for Asia Bibi http://www.petitiononline.com/Asiabibi/petition.html

Whom do you fear, public opinion, fatwa or Allah?

Continuation of exchange on Blasphemy at WorldMuslimcongress@yahoogroups.com it is a public forum, all are welcome to join by sending an email to: WorldMuslimCongress-subscribe@yahoogroups.com  The group is about nurturing the pluralistic ideals embedded in Islam

Whom do you fear, public opinion, fatwa or Allah?

Good fatwa against Qadri

http://blasphemylaws.blogspot.com/2011/01/whom-do-you-fear-public-opinion-fatwa.html

 

Dear Javed,

I am copying a few paragraphs from the material published in Arab News yesterday.

Islam forbids killing anyone, unless it is in self-defense and it is indeed a morbid sin to commit suicide. This statement breeds an enormous confusion among a few Muslims and non-Muslims, they want to know what to believe, what the radicals are doing in the name of Islam or the ones who say they are misrepresenting it. http://arabnews.com/world/article232984.ece

If we take Brother Shamim’s position and your partial agreement with him, you are making Islam look like a religion of dominance, punishment and revenge. Let me submit to you, Islam is a religion of leadership, leading people out of chaos into peace through free will, it is a religion of peace and the majority of the Muslims believe that.  Prophet Muhammad is indeed the mercy to mankind; Salaam us per ke jis nay bekasoon pay dastagiri ki.  He brought the idea of equality and showed how to work it through the rituals embedded in Islam, he raised the level of consciousness towards the oppressed, forgave the wrong doers, he took over Mecca peacefully and did not order killing of the very people who were determined to kill him.

It calls for a serious discussion, in the name of the man of the peace, you guys are creating chaos, you are making the prophet of peace look like a man of revenge, you have to stop this and stop denigrating the prophet that we admire, adore and hold him as the ultimate peace maker, the Rahmatul Aalameen.

A few, very few in every majority community, be it Christian, Hindu, Muslim or Jewish claim themselves to be the guardians of the community and act out bullying with the power bestowed in them as a majority and make the lives of the minorities difficult.  Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) showed the examples of how to subdue the arrogance within oneself and not exercise the power of the beast for the sake of peace. He initiated the Madina Treaty as a man in charge of the political, military and religious power to protect the minorities from the onslaught of the majoritarianism. The Prophet taught us to stand up for the oppressed.

Javed, ruefully, brother Shamim and his ilk is discarding the examples of kindness prophet set; towards a lady who threw trash on him, praying for the ones who pelted stones on him and more and more at …http://www.petitiononline.com/Asiabibi/petition.html 

Javed, let’s wake ourselves up from our arrogance and do the inner Jihad, Islam is about peace and not dominance. For the conversion-bent among us, this an opportunity missed out.

The silent majority needs to speak out at crucial times like this where the murderer Qadri is being hailed as a hero in defending the very Prophet who was a mercy to mankind. This entire sordid affair started when Bibi, a Christian woman was denied the water by a few senseless individuals, they are the ones that need to be questioned (not punished). Does not Quraan and Hadith say, don’t denigrate the faith of others, lest they do that to you?

Javed, please speak up your mind, you don’t need to appease any one, you are one of the leaders and you need to lead and not worry what others say and compromise.  Standing up will bring fatwas on your door, the question is whom do you fear, Allah or Fatwa?

Mike Ghouse

www.MikeGhouse

From: doctorforu
To: TSidd, WorldMuslimCongress@yahoogroups.com, MikeGhouse@aol.com, hasniessa, Sent: 1/12/2011 7:30:46 A.M. Central Standard Time
Subj: Re: MuslimAgenda :: RE: Good fatwa against Qadri...

Mohatram Shamim Sb

ASAK

I have absolutely no doubt in my mind that the punishment for what is called in Fiqh as “Shatim-e Rasool” is nothing but death. A person who has blasphemed against a personality or book, which is dearer to a community more than their own nafoos certainly deserves to be sentenced to death because his action is an insult to the beliefs of huge numbers of people and also because it can cause widespread trouble leading to a great number of deaths. Death to him is therefore a preventive measure against greater number of deaths. But my point is that we have to understand the finer differences when deciding on the issues:

1. There is difference between committing blasphemy and supporting for condonement of a person accused of blasphemy. Both are not crimes of equal severity. The person who supports condonement of a person for crime of blasphemy does not necessarily have disrespect for Prophet himself. Many people whose Iman cannot be doubted did not support the fatwa by Khomeini against Rushdie. Does that mean that they committed blasphemy themselves and deserve to be given the same punishment as Rushdie? I have no first hand knowledge but my feeling is that Taseer did not support the views of Asia Bibi and only spoke against the punishment of death for her. I do not think that Taseer had ever expressed any views that make him a shatim-e rasool. Does he deserve death for merely advocating mercy for a person who committed a serious offence? I have my doubts. If Taseer had been tried in a shariah court, would a Mufti declare his crime worthy of punishment by death?

2. If a person does not deserve death for an offence committed by him, howsoever serious or condemnable his offence is, can his killing be justified?

3. Even if his killing is justified under Sharaiah, would anyone be allowed to kill him without any fatwa issues for it or without proceeding in a court in a country where the current laws punish blasphemy by death?

Emotions and sentiments must not dither us from making judgements in accordance with Quran. Allah forgive me if I am wrong!

Javed Jamil

---

From: "TSidd @ >
To: doctorforu123@yahoo.com; WorldMuslimCongress@yahoogroups.com; MikeGhouse@aol.com; hasniessa; .. and the list

Sent: Tue, January 11, 2011 7:21:57 PM
Subject: Re: MuslimAgenda :: RE: Good fatwa against Qadri...

Mohtram Javed Bhai,  ASA

Perhaps you are otherwise busy and had no time to go through the write-up by the  undersigned and that of HK Saheb. You are missing the very genesis  of the issue.

I. Act of blasphemy is crime against humanity when one insults the personality of our beloved Prophet (S), he injures the finest feelings of the Muslim Ummah as a whole. His punishment is death as prescribed in law.

2. If government is hesitant and shows sympathy with the person who has been committing this horrible crime, the  Muslims who love him (S) will have to take the law in their hands as it is the matter of "crime" against an individual person, specially when the person is arrogant and feel proud of doing it as Taseer was behaving.

3, The law of blasphemy is the target of the government  to change under the outside pressure from the secular West, the entire Christendom and the prejudiced Vatican.

4. General Muslim masses have natural sympathy with the assailant who did a noble job to revenge the insult of their Mahboob Prophet Muhammad (S). He act was not a crime but the need of time,

5. The issue is the inefficiency and weakness of Pakistani Government and the lopsided propaganda of the secular vested press that is siding  with the late  secular Governor. and the wilful interference of foreign powers.    

6. If the government  declares that the  Act of Blasphemy  will stay as it is, the Movement  will subside immediately and the fate of the assailant will then be sealed by the legal process. 

7. It will be left to public pressure wether to set him free or hanged to death. Let love for Prophet (S) decide  the  issue on the streets of Pakistan - the most authentic court of democracy that west loves most.         

Justice  demands it.

Shamim Siddiqi

In a message dated 1/11/2011 7:46:28 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, doctorforu @yahoo.com writes:

I have been closely following the discussion emanating from the murder of Punjab Governor and support for the one who killed him because he defended a person who insulted Prophet Muhammad SAW. Two opinions are emerging and I have a middle position. If anyone says that there should be no punishment for blasphemy, he is only befoolng himself. In a world where denial of holocaust is a punishable act, where burning of flags and insult to the constitutions are punishable crimes, to think that insult to religious figures should be made illegal is nothing but an open attempt to defeat religion as a system and institution. The Law aims to keep society away from drifting to chaos, disorder and such conditions where life and honour of the people is at stake. Blasphemous actions are an insult not only of the figures related to a religion but an insult to the conviction and commitment of a vast section of society or almost the whole society in a country dominated by single religion. Such acts of blasphemy are bound to creat chaos at a large scale and cannot be condoned. In such cases the law must act swiftly s that the hurt feelings of the people do not convert into open violence.

If the Law does not act rightly or swiftly, there is every chance that Qadris will emerge.  If the acts of blasphemy are committed or are supported in one way or the other by the custodians of law themelves, people will surely lose confiedence in Legal institutions. But to openly admire an act of reprisal without a legal aurtority in a country where legal recourse was available is not justified. Such an action could have been justified in a country where the culprit cannot be boked under law (for example, Salman Rushdi). In that case, the one who acts like that must be reay to face the law for his act. But in Pakistan, there is a blasphemy law in force. Instead of taking recourse to that, if someone kills a person taking law in his own hands, he should definitely be put to trial for murder. It is another matter that the judge should take all the circumstances into consideration before declaring his punishment. If he hasd one something that has pleased Allah, He will have his reward in Hereafter; but in the world he should face the law.  The sympathies of the people towards him are understandable but the Law must not act on sympathies.

Javed Jamil

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From: Faiz <tahir
To: MikeGhouse@aol.com; hasniessa  ; and the list
Sent: Mon, January 10, 2011 5:05:55 PM
Subject: MuslimAgenda :: RE: Good fatwa against Qadri...
 From another forum:

Brother Munir alHaq,

 I am not blaming the whole nation.  All I am saying is that a large section of Pakistani society is sympathetic towards Qadri. So much so that many ‘educated people” (some on this forum as well) have lost their minds in this frenzy—and that I find VERY disturbing. There are more facebook pages on Qadri side than on Taseer side.

I am still a citizen of Pakistan and I love my country from the core of my heart. I have spent 32 years of my life living in it in good old days.

 When I see a large segment of society (which means most of the villagers who are unlettered, but also many of the educated class), it tears apart my heart.  I say, how come we don’t think, how come we don’t reflect, how come we don’t listen to the voice of reason? 

I have yet to find a person in the US who opened his mouth to praise Jared Loughton!  And that’s the point I am making.

On the other hand, Qadri—as of today—is being treated with some respect, flower petals and garlands—even the lawyers are willing to fight his case out when the government had a real hard time to lead the funeral prayers for the slain governor!

This is rape of common sense—a ‘toofaan-e-badtameezi’ that I simply fail to understand.

People are scared to death to speak about how they feel about the whole orgy. I am waiting for the day when some enlightened people will pick up the courage and appear in rallies and TV shows to let people know that the concept we call “tahaffuz-e-namoos-e-risalat” can best be achieved by following the Qur’an—the book that Prophet Muhammad (sws) himself followed and commanded all of us to follow.  That Book has clear guideline about all kinds of blasphemies.

And that book never ever allowed its followers to take law in their own hands and commit murderous activities—for any reason whatsoever.  The legislative bodies have the responsibility to make and enact laws, and the Law enforcement agencies will be enforcing them.  There are no ifs and buts in this governing protocol.  If we are not happy with a law, let’s make it known our concerns and let’s adopt legally allowed ways to change it by mutual discussion and deliberation in the legislative domain.

All people of conscience and enlightenment in Pakistan should stand up as one man and push forward to modify this law in a way that the mischief-mongers will find it real hard to misuse and manipulate.  I am hoping this  but I realized it’s not going to happen any time soon because of the presence of ‘scare crows’ everywhere.  The government is weak and corrupt—so is a significant segment of the opposition contingent. The scare tactics of the religious clergy is dancing naked and there’s chaos that can only promote further irrational behavior.

As for as I am concerned, I believe that these blasphemy laws MUST be repealed immediately before anyone else gets hurt.  I call these laws barbaric and draconian---not because they would seem so to anyone sane around---but because these laws violate the basic tenets of the Holy Qur’an.  They do not protect the noble name of the blessed protect at all; in fact, believe me or not, they have the opposite effect.  These laws go way to the ‘tauheen’ o the Prophet because the reasons behind making these laws—the cruel, fabricated historical stories—go a long way to vilify the blessed prophet.  Let anyone go over those stories and you will appreciate what I am saying.   We are not realizing it because many of our enlightened minds are ‘disoriented’ and benumbed at the moment—thanks to the military dictator Zia-ul-Haq; he gave us a murder and vilification gift that, sadly, we love to keep close to our hearts. 

Best,

Irfan

From: Moderate s@yahoogroups.com  
Sent: Monday, January 10, 2011 5:12 PM
To: fff
Subject: Re: [ModerateMuslims] RE: Asia Bibi Petition for Signature

Thanks for sharing your thoughts! I understand the anger we all have against Qadri and that is justified. But the point was that these murderers do not represent the entire society. 

All societies are different from different aspects, some greatly better than others but from specific angles, of course, and vice versa. No religions, races or societies are monoliths that we just paint these with a broad brush as essentially good or evil.

The fanatic zealots supporting Qadri exist as well but my point is one should also realize that there are rallies and protests that were also held against Qadri's horrific actions as well in different parts of the country.

Just wanted to toss out that it seems we should keep the target of our anger to specific groups responsible and not entire religions or entire nations because that tends to undermine our criticism.

Thanks again,

Munir

From: MikeGhouse@aol.com [mailto:MikeGhouse@aol.com]
Sent: Monday, January 10, 2011 4:04 PM
To: hasniessa

Check it out at:

www.Blasphemylaws.com

Mike

In a message dated 1/10/2011 2:53:45 P.M. Central Standard Time, hasniessa.com writes:

• Pope Asks Pakistan To Reverse Blasphemy Law

ASSOCIATED PRESS

VATICAN CITY— Pope Benedict XVI urged Pakistan to reverse its blasphemy laws, saying Monday they were a pretext for violence against non-Muslims, and demanded that all governments do more so Christians can practice their faith without fear