Death sentence for blasphemy
August 7, 2003 - 4:47PM

A judge in Pakistan has sentenced a 60-year-old
man to death after finding him guilty of making
derogatory remarks about Islam and its prophet,
Muhammad, a police official said today.

Chaudary Bashir was convicted yesterday under
Pakistan´s controversial blasphemy laws, said
local police official Hamid Mukhtar.

He was accused in 2001 by Maulana Mohammed Qasim,
a cleric in Bhawalnagar, 190 kilometres southwest
of Multan, in the eastern province of Punjab.
Qasim claimed that Bashir was preaching his own
version of Islam and saying he had the same status
as the prophet.

The conviction will automatically be appealed
against in the high courts.

Under Pakistan´s blasphemy law, it is an offence
punishable by death to offend Islam, its prophet
or its holy book.

The laws have been criticised by international and
Pakistani human rights groups. They say that they
are easily abused and that the burden of proof is
on the accused to prove their innocence. Only the
word of an accuser is needed to prosecute a
suspect on blasphemy charges.

Hundreds of people are believed to be in Pakistani
jails under the blasphemy laws.

AP- http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/08/07/1060
145788160.html