Christian woman freed after years on death row for blasphemy speaks out

Shagufta Kausar © ACN

Source: Aid to the Church in Need

With the numbers in Pakistan's prisons for blasphemy having surged to more than 700, a woman who spent seven years on death row for the crime has said the legal system is failing Christians.

Christians falsely accused of blasphemy in Pakistan struggle to find a lawyer and are discriminated against in the justice system, according to Shagufta Kausar, a mother of four who was imprisoned for allegedly sending text messages - despite being illiterate and not owning a mobile phone - insulting the Muslim Prophet Mohammed.

Speaking with Aid to the Church in Need (ACN), Mrs Kausar said that Christians, who are "the poorest of the poor" and "marginalised", often fail to get justice.

She said: "If you are a Christian in Pakistan, and accused of blasphemy, no lawyer will willingly take your case, and no judge is willing to rule on it fairly. In the past, radical groups have murdered lawyers or even judges who declared Christians to be innocent."

Stressing their poverty, she added: "This means that they need financial help to hire a lawyer. For these reasons, it is difficult for us to survive both as citizens and as Christians."

Mrs Kausar and her disabled husband were acquitted and released in 2021 after more than seven years' imprisonment and are now living in a European country after being granted asylum.

She said: "After being sentenced to death I suffered from heat, hunger and separation from my family. The only thing that nurtured me, and which became my source of serenity, was my faith in Jesus Christ."

She added: "I read Matthew 6:27 ('And which of you by being anxious can add one cubit to his span of life?') - I meditated and reflected on my faith, and I felt strengthened inside. I was no longer alone - God was with me in this struggle between life and death."

She stressed that many Pakistani Christians like her "are unjustly accused of blasphemy and incarcerated… For us, even the simple things of daily life are difficult, because you might just be accused by a neighbour."

She concluded: "Thanks to the benefactors of Aid to the Church in Need, and to so many other friends in the world who help to support us, we manage not only to survive, but also to profess our faith."

With thanks to Massimiliano Tubani

LINK

Aid to the Church in Need: www.acnuk.org