Another case of blasphemy

A 16-year-old Christian boy in Karachi has been charged with blasphemy after allegedly sending blasphemous texts.

It seems that when it comes to matters of faith in our country, common sense and compassion disappear into thin air, with only senseless rage — bent upon destroying the perceived wrongdoer without taking into account the accompanying circumstances — prevailing. In the latest such incident, a 16-year-old Christian boy in Karachi has been charged under the blasphemy law after allegedly sending blasphemous text messages to residents of his area. According to some reports, the boy later explained that he had received the messages from someone else and had forwarded them without having read them first. It is clear, however, that his explanation fell on deaf and prejudiced ears.

Despite there being a healthy possibility that the youngster had no intention of committing blasphemy, the enraged people of the area, led by clerics, stormed his house, ransacked it and burned his furniture. Fortunately, the boy and his family had already left the neighbourhood or we might have had a bigger tragedy at hand. It is clear, however, that the teenager’s life has been turned upside down and from now on, he will face a constant threat to his life. Quite inexplicably, his mother has been suspended by her employers.

The hold that the clergy has on our people — encouraging them to take the law into their hands, even egging them on to take lives — points to a highly dangerous, deep-seated societal disease that afflicts us. Countless blasphemy cases over the years provide evidence that the blasphemy law has been blatantly misused, having often been employed to settle personal scores or as a means to give vent to feelings of prejudice against minority communities. Despite multiple calls to reform this law, it seems that the dream that we can one day become a nation where tolerance and compassion guide our actions and beliefs — and not blind hatred and a senseless adherence to a bigoted clergy — remains distant. We can only hope that the boy will be given protection, a thorough investigation which considers all the circumstances of the case will be conducted, strict action will be taken against those who ransacked his home and the reason behind his mother’s suspension from work will also be brought to the fore. It remains to be seen, however, whether sense and justice will prevail.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 16^th, 2012.