Brussels, 31/03/2015 (Agence Europe) - On 26 March, 68 MEPs called on Pakistan's President Mamnoon Hussain to pardon Asia Bibi, who has been sentenced to death on the basis of Pakistani blasphemy legislation. The MEPs said they were “very concerned for the fate awaiting Asia Bibi” (see EUROPE 11201).
“Pakistani law allows the president to grant a presidential pardon in certain situations. We (…) ask you, Mr President, to use this to release Asia Bibi”, the MEPs write in their letter to the president. The letter was sent at the initiative of Rachida Dati (EPP, France) and Pavel Svoboda (EPP, Czech Republic) and underlines that this move would contribute “significantly to strengthening relations between Pakistan and the EU”.
The MEPs, from 17 countries and from all parliamentary groups, hope “that the Pakistani judicial system will assess [Bibi's case] carefully”. “You cannot ignore the fact that Asia Bibi has become a symbol of the state of human rights in Pakistan”, they add. The MEPs think that the Pakistani government wants “to respect the human rights of all religious minorities, of all Pakistanis, of everyone”. “Abrogation of the law on blasphemy would be an important first step in achieving this objective”, they continue.
The MEPs also reiterate their resolution of 27 November 2014 (see EUROPE 11226), which calls on Pakistan to abrogate its legislation on blasphemy as regards life imprisonment sentences and death sentences that can result from such a condemnation. (Camille-Cerise Gessant)