Pakistan

Old kinship: Now a Muslim, she wants protection from her relatives

Uzma embraced Islam after being won over by the attitude of Muslims around her.

Obaid Abbasi April 07, 2011

ISLAMABAD:

Uzma Irfan, who recently converted to Islam, is seeking police protection after she received threats from her relatives.

The 26-year-old Irfan, who is currently living in a katchi abadi in G-8/1, filed a writ petition in the Islamabad High Court requesting police protection against her relatives.

“I was living with my husband Haroon Masih and my three-year-old daughter Manahil in Sailkot, but on December 5, 2010, I embraced Islam,” she told the court. She said she was impressed with the attitude of the Muslim community living in her neighbourhood.

“After accepting Islam I invited my husband to embrace it, but he refused and started threatening me. He even took away my daughter and it was impossible to live there,” she added.

Her counsel Fasial Iqbal Khan said that after facing such persecution she moved to Islamabad and got married to Mohammad Irfan on March 25, who had also converted to Islam. But the couple is now being threatened by their family members.

“They even submitted a false application against her in Sialkot just to harass her,” Khan told the court.

Uzma told the court that she had submitted several applications to the police requesting protection, without much success. “I have no other option but to knock at the court’s door,” she said.

Chief Justice Iqbal Hameedur Rehman issued a notice to the Senior Superintendent of Police Tahir Alam Khan to respond by April 14.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 7^th, 2011.

COMMENTS (16)

Abu Abdullah | 13 years ago | Reply @dr pakhtun: Jazak Allah for such an elaborate reply, Quoting from the first para of your comment " That community was surrounded by enemies and many people who had become muslims apostatized and re-joined the enemies of the nascent state of Madina. They took away many secrets with them. There was the possibility that people would join Islam just to weaken the muslim community and then re-convert after accomplishment of their nefarious objectives- as some had already done that. In this case , apostasy was tantamount to treason. Thus to discourage such political conversions and treason, the punishment of death was instituted .." I just have one question, can this not happen in todays age and time? As for the interpretation of the Aiyah you have mentioned in the second para of your comment, i will do a bit of research at my end and revert. Wassalm

dr pakhtun | 13 years ago | Reply @Abu Abdullah Early muslim community was totally based on religion and apostasy was tantamount to treason . There was no difference between the political and the religious as the Prophet (pbuh) himself was both the political as well as the religious head of the community. That community was surrounded by enemies and many people who had become muslims apostatized and re-joined the enemies of the nascent state of Madina. They took away many secrets with them. There was the possibility that people would join Islam just to weaken the muslim community and then re-convert after accomplishment of their nefarious objectives- as some had already done that. In this case , apostasy was tantamount to treason. Thus to discourage such political conversions and treason, the punishment of death was instituted. This law , to me , had therefore very limited application and is not applicable to current time. If we take its application as general then we are going against many Quranic verses… For instance, it is said: Proclaim, O Prophet, O mankind the Truth has indeed come to you from your Lord. Then whoso follows the guidance, follows it only for the good of his own self, and whoso errs does so only to his own detriment. I am not appointed a keeper over you (10: 109). Here the Holy Prophet, peace be on him, has been commanded to proclaim to mankind that perfect truth has been presented to them in the Holy Quran in the form of the teachings of Islam. He who accepts it does so only to his own good" and he who goes astray does so only to his own loss. The Holy Prophet is commanded to proclaim that he is not responsible for the people. They them- selves have to provide for their own good, or to earn the wrath of God Almighty. This is not his business. Every soul must bear this responsibility for itself. It is pointed out that every path that guides to the pleasure of God Almighty has been described in the Holy Quran. It is the business of man to tread along them of his own free will, or to turn away from them of his own will. The Holy Prophet, peace be on him, bears no responsibility in that behalf, nor would he exercise any compulsion in respect of it. Again it is said: Proclaim O Prophet: This is the truth from your Lord; then let him who will, believe, and let him who will, disbelieve. We have prepared for the wrongdoers a fire which covers them like a canopy (18:30).

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67676 | 13 years ago | Reply

“I was living with my husband Haroon Masih and my three-year-old daughter Manahil in Sailkot, but on December 5, 2010, I embraced Islam,” she told the court. She said she was impressed with the attitude of the Muslim community living in her neighbourhood.

Appears to be a Husband and Wife feud. She knows how easy it is to use religion in Pakistan to suppress the opposition. Strange she suddenly discovered the good behaviour of Muslims in her neighbourhood after 26 years. Sounds like a made up text book story. I think she has problem with her husband and wants custody of her child. What better way to achieve this then to make the momineens believe that this Muslim sister of theirs wants to raise her children as Muslim instead of allowing them to remain non-Muslim while with their father.

Disco Molvi | 13 years ago | Reply What about ‘Love Jihad’? It’s the practice where Muslim men pretend to be in love with non Muslim women and want them to covert to Islam for the sake of marriage, but the real motive of such men is just to convert the women into Muslims so that they may earn ‘sawab’ for making a ‘kafir’ accept Islam. Once the women finds the true intention behind their lovers, they are trapped and cannot covert back to their former religion, for if they do so they end up being labeled as ‘apostates’ and ‘wajib ul qatal’.

Abu Abdullah | 13 years ago | Reply If the punishment for murder and espionage (also known as high treason) is death, then what should be the punishment for the one who disbelieves in the Lord of mankind and despises and rejects His religion? Is espionage or shedding blood worse than leaving the religion of the Lord of mankind and rejecting it? This is the ruling of Allaah and His Messenger, as the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "Whoever changes his religion, kill him." (reported by al-Bukhaari, al-Fath, no. 3017). By leaving Islaam, the apostate opens the way for everyone who wants to leave the faith, thus spreading apostasy and encouraging it. As it happed in the time of Prophet S.A.W, when the Munafiqeen of Madina would embrace Islam by day and become Murtid (or quit Islam) by Night, saying that we have tried this religion and it is not any good hence returning back to the religion of our forefathers and would in a way entice others to do so too. However, the apostate is not to be killed without warning. Even though his crime is so great, he is given a last chance, a respite of three days in which to repent. If he repents, he will be left alone; if he does not repent, then he will be killed. Above all the state has to be an Islamic state and not every muslim has the right to kill apostates. Its better to clarify this to avoid people taking the laws into their hands, or people wrongly accusing others of apostacy and then killing them.

Agha Ali Raza | 13 years ago | Reply Mr. Kumar, no one forced Uzma and Irfan to accept. It was the good manners and attitude of Muslims, which compelled them to convert to Islam. In Pakistanis, minorities enjoy full amenities.

Abbottonian | 13 years ago | Reply @kumar: same to you

Haris Farooq | 13 years ago | Reply Dear Kuamr, please be realistic all Pakis are crticizing her not supporting her.

kumar | 13 years ago | Reply Well done,pakis. Keep beating on the minorities when they are down & out.

John | 13 years ago | Reply @Sumair: I started with the same thoughts as many have commented, but things do not add up. Rule1: Women who flee persecution will always take their children with them, at all cost. Rule 2: Those who flee persecution from a husband do not marry so soon, let alone in Pakistan. Rule 3: Those who flee persecution try not to be in lime light. Rule 4. Women who flee persecuting husband go to mom,sister, brother,or friend. If you were her, and if you get a first chance to go to court, with liitle money you have, what would you ask, your child or your comfort? I am not saying that she is not threatened by her old hubby. But her story that " she was so impressed by her neighbors faith ( please, my muslim friends do not jump on me, I am just arguing my case here) that she moved enough to convert" is a kindergarten story. Had she married a non convert it is very likely believable. Since both of them are new converts and the old hubby knew where she went, it is very likely all the parties know each other before. Can you find a lost person in a city within 3 months without some clues of whereabout? Having said that, it does not mean what she did was wrong. Women should leave a persecuting husbands. They will never change. But the story is fishy, that is all. PS: All the kidnap, forced conversion events are known, and I agree with all of you who commented on that aspect.

Unknown | 13 years ago | Reply @abdul sami: Dude i agree with every word you say. What about the protection required by ex muslims. What about the punishment of death for apostasy. Why doesn't islam give the freedom to leave. I think ex muslims are in more danger than ex 'any other religion''. I believe atheists and agnostics in pakistan have as much right to live peacefully in this country. They live their life in misery and fear knowing that if they come out they'll die.

Sumair | 13 years ago | Reply @ John, Why are you creating a fantasy story from it? Might she would have tried for mediation or something with her former husband and probably must have tried to gain her child back but we never know.

arsalan chandio | 13 years ago | Reply Hindu girls in sindh are being kidnapped,then raped & forced to convert to islam & marry their rapists.This has been going on for more than a decade & only a few newspapers have had the courage to report this atrocious way of spreading islam. A religion should be spread by setting new examples which people of other religions want to follow,not by raping their women who then have no choice but to marry their rapist as no other man would now want to marry them.

John | 13 years ago | Reply Am I the one smelling a rat in this story? Left her previous husband and child on persecution on dec 2010 and came to Islamabad and married in march 2011, now she is again persecuted by the family. Did she get a divorce from her previous husband so soon? What are the odds of a woman who just left her husband and child in Sailkot and meeting a new man in Islamabad within 3 months, and both of them also happen to be new converts. She just eloped with her new husband lover, for whatever reason and using the religion card here. Strange she did not ask for custody of her child from the persecuting husband. Remember Solomon's verdict story?

mikail irfan | 13 years ago | Reply The stories of ex-muslims who've become christians,hindus or jews should also be covered.These people face a real threat to their lives as the maulvis regard them as heretics & apostates who have to be killed immediately to save islam. Whenever there is even a perceived case of blasphemy all the people ,bearded & cleanshaven run out to prove to each other who the better muslim is by being the first to slice off the head of the blasphemer.This mentality of judging how good a muslim you are by killing others is what has led our soicety to the horrific condition it is in right now.

abdul sami | 13 years ago | Reply tribune,what about the thousands of people who are under threat & have actually been killed by their family,friends or mohalla wallahs when they stopped being muslims?? other religions give the freedom to leave them & don't force people to remain under duress & coercion in a particular religion.Why is it that a person who was born a muslim but during his life becomes an agnostic or athiest has to be killed for leaving the fold of islam???? why can't a muslim leave his/her religion & why is the threat of having his/her head chopped off like a goat always hanging over his head?? Athiests & agnostics have as much right to live a peaceful,happy life in pakistan as the muslims,christians & hindus have. This persecution of "Apostates" has to end.

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