An anti-terrorism court in central Pakistan on Saturday sentenced a
man, aged 30, to death for posting blasphemous content on social media.
The judge conducted the judicial proceedings in the high-security
prison in the city of Bahawalpur, prosecutor Mohammad Shafiq Qureshi
told VOA.
The prosecutor explained that the court found Taimoor Raza guilty
of using Facebook and WhatsApp to “disseminate" or "upload" hate
material, including "offensive pictures and comments” against Prophet
Mohammad and his companions. Raza has the right to appeal the verdict.
Qureshi said the Facebook account Raza was running had more than 3,500 friends, or followers.
The defense counsel was not immediately available for comments on the allegations against his client.
Counterterrorism forces arrested Raza about a year ago and police
records showed the man had confessed he was working for outlawed
Sipah-e-Muhammad, which is a Shi’ite militant group.
The organization has been locked in a deadly rivalry with militants
from Pakistan’s majority Sunni Muslim population. The years of
sectarian conflict has killed thousands of people around the country.
Pakistani authorities have been cracking down on social media
activists suspected of disseminating blasphemous content through their
accounts.
Dozens of activists have been detained or questioned in recent
weeks in Pakistan, prompting harsh criticism from rights defenders.
Opposition parties have alleged the crackdown in the name of
religion is mainly aimed at silencing political dissent and deterring
critics who are calling for accountability of the country’s powerful
military institution, along with its alleged intervention in political
matters.
Pakistani officials deny the charges.
Insulting Prophet Mohammad can carry a death penalty in Pakistan.
Earlier this week, the country's Supreme Court exonerated a man
sentenced to life imprisonment by a lower court on allegations of
desecrating the Holy book of Quran.
The ruling noted that the lower courts "appeared to have not conducted a fair trial of the case" before awarding the punishment.
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This does not help the dispelling of stereotypes about islam.
Whether or not he is guilty of terrorist activities the condemnation for 'blasphemy' is a joke and tactic used to repress and control the population.
It was used extensively before in western society during a period we call the Dark Ages by another 'religion' as it has been used by 'religions' from time immemorial and obviously it's use is still being attempted today in lesser societies.
Also this method will have the opposite effect as it has every time throughout the ages - it breeds terrorists not prevent them, so if he was a terrorist or not there will be one (or more) that are because of this.
