Two months ago, after Governor Salmaan Taseer's murder and the jubilant support for the policeman who killed him, religious scholars in Pakistan told us that since common people don't know enough about religion they should leave it to those who do – basically anyone with a beard.Everyone thought it made a cruel kind of sense. So everyone decided to shut up: the Pakistan Peoples party (PPP) government because it wanted to cling to power, liberals in the media because they didn't want to be the next Taseer. The move to amend the blasphemy law was shelved.It was an unprecedented victory for Pakistan's mullah minority. They had told a very noisy and diverse people to shut up and they heard back nothing but silence. After Pakistan's only Christian federal minister, Shahbaz Bhatti – the bravest man in Islamabad – was murdered on Tuesday, they were back on TV, this time condemning the killing, claiming it was a conspiracy against them, against Islam and against Pakistan. The same folk who had celebrated one murder and told us how not to get murdered were wallowing in self pity.In a very short span of time, Pakistan's mullahs and muftis have managed to blur the line between what God says and what they say. The blasphemy law debate was about how to prosecute people who have committed blasphemy against the prophet Muhammad and the Qur'an. Since repeating a blasphemy, even if it is to prove the crime in a court of law, is blasphemous, no Pakistani has a clear idea what constitutes blasphemy. Taseer had called the blasphemy law "a black law" and was declared a blasphemer. The line between maligning the Holy Prophet and questioning a law made by a bunch of mullahs was done away with. What would come next?During the last two months sar tan se juda (off with their heads) has become as familiar a slogan as all the corporate songs about the Cricket World Cup. Banners appeared all over Karachi and Islamabad last week demanding death for a Pakistani writer. The only problem is that nobody quite knows what she has written. Her last book came out more than eight years ago and, if it wasn't so scary, it would be ironic that it is called Blasphemy. It was a potboiler set mostly in religious and spiritual leaders' bedrooms. The banners condemning her say that not only she has insulted the prophet, she has insulted religious scholars.So now disagreeing with anyone who has a beard and armed bodyguards can get you killed. The PPP government has tried to appease this lot by silencing the one-and-a-half liberal voices it had. What it didn't realise is that you can't really appease people who insist their word is God's word, their honour as sacred as the Holy Prophet's. In Pakistan, silence is the mother of all blasphemies. Most Pakistanis are committing that blasphemy and being punished for it.Mohammed Hanif is a journalist and author of the novel A Case of Exploding Mangoes
Taseer's killer, media and the Muslim majority By MIKE GHOUSE Published: Jan 11, 2011 19:39 Updated: Jan 11, 2011 19:39
DALLAS, Texas: The responsibility to perpetuate the truth falls squarely on each one of us, indeed, we have to maintain a balance and build cohesive societies. We cannot let nations, societies and communities come apart over divisive issues, whether we are Muslims, Christians, Hindus, Jews, Sikhs or others, we cannot let the statistically insignificant few to represent us, neither our silence should be construed as an endorsement of the views of the few.Malik Mumtaz Qadri shot the very person he was to guard; Punjab Gov. Salman Taseer. The governor was faulted by him for speaking out against the blasphemy laws, a few men have welcomed this killing and have hailed Qadri as a "Hero" for defending the honor of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and showered him with rose petals, a cultural symbol of honor.An appeal was circulated seeking justice for blasphemy-accused Asia Bibi of Pakistan, of the thousands on my list, three wrote, "Do you know what are you are going to lose — both the worlds perhaps?" Another one writes, "Islamically, insults and abuses against the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) count as acts of war and rebellion against a justly created Islamic entity. The Qur'an commands terrible punishment for such acts of war. "Finally, the third one writes, "Salman Taseer was a shame on Islam".Islam forbids killing anyone, unless it is in self-defense and it is indeed a morbid sin to commit suicide. This statement breeds an enormous confusion among a few Muslims and non-Muslims, they want to know what to believe, what the radicals are doing in the name of Islam or the ones who say they are misrepresenting it.There is an old saying, "evil thrives in the world unchecked because good people do nothing about it" and the purpose of writing this article is to invoke the goodness in people to speak up.An overwhelming majority of people in every faith get their religion right; it is a divine instrument that teaches one to be truthful to oneself and bring about a balance within and with what surrounds; life and matter and live in harmony with the creation (the word is 'follow' for Christians, 'surrender' for Hindus, and 'submit' to the will of Allah for Muslims). The prophet was called "Amin" the truthful and the trustworthy. The core value of all religions is expressed in terms of the Golden rule; treat others as you would want to be treated to create orderly societies so everyone can live without the fear of others.The silent majority needs to speak out at crucial times like this where the murderer Qadri is being hailed as a hero in defending the very Prophet who was a mercy to mankind. This entire sordid affair started when Bibi, a Christian woman was denied the water by a few senseless individuals.One of the many things you can do as "speak out" is to organize conferences on blasphemy where differing views are listened and understood. You can also sign the petition to express that Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) was indeed Rahmatul-Lil-Alameen; the man who brought mercy to humanity. http://www.petitiononline.com/Asiabibi/petition.htmlUnfortunately, the media mirrors the stories generated by less than 1/100th of 1% of population and dumps on the rest of the population as though it is 'their' story, and the public on the other hand has not demonstrated their support for scrutiny and good news.We cannot accept statistically insignificant number of people to represent any group. The right-wingers among Muslims, Christians, Hindus and Jews have become a fodder for each other. The left on the other hand shouts that we have to declare a war on right-wingers. Mahatma Gandhi had aptly said an eye for an eye will make the whole world blind.The public is as guilty as the media when it comes to what gets currency; it is a vicious circle and has to be consciously chucked. Qadri should be treated as disloyal criminal for murdering the very person he was to guard and not fall to hysteria generated by the few.As people of faith, also known as peacemakers, we cannot cause people in conflict to dig in their heels and stick with unamenable positions, we have to mitigate conflicts and nurture goodwill for the ultimate good of all. Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) applied that method in many of his examples. His wisdom comes as guiding light; follow the middle path. Everyone has a God given space, if we can learn to respect that, conflicts fade and solutions emerge.As moderates we are an overwhelming majority in every society whichever way you classify them, we can express our support to the middle path and ask the extremists to study the life and examples of the Prophet, the ultimate peacemaker and spread kindness and goodness invoking his name.— Mike Ghouse is committed to building cohesive societies through America Together Foundation and the Foundation for Pluralism championing the idea of co-existence through respecting and accepting the otherness of other and is committed to nurturing the pluralistic ideals embedded in Islam through the World Muslim Congress. He an be contacted at MikeGhouse@aol.com. Blasphemy laws have no religious grounding, none whatsoever. Instead of murdering in the name of God and the prophet, it is time for reflection. God and the Prophet will not only reject, but condemn human sacrifices in their names.
To kill a human is like killing the whole humanity, Quraan prohibits killing unless it is in self defense, and even then, if the offender backs off, a Muslim is required to withdraw the revengefulness and forgive the opponent. Suicide is condemned in Islam.
Quraan is abundantly clear about no compulsion in matters of faith; you cannot compel one to believe against his or her will. Quraan calls for civility and move on with life; to you is your belief and to me is my belief.
The Blasphemy law is a game of the politicians; it was initiated by the rulers in the past to appease the religious fanatics and to keep a lid on their subjects. It was done by the English Kings, and it is done by the Republicans to appease the religious right in America today, and it was done to do the same in Pakistan; to appease the religious right who has morphed into Talibans.
Governor Taseer was a Muslim, and the Minister for Minority Affairs Shahbaz Bhatti was a Christian, both were shot dead for asking to bring about the reforms in the Blasphemy laws.
Think about it, neither the killers of Taseer nor Bhatti are evil; it is the damned silence of Pakistanis that is evil for doing nothing about it. It takes just a few boys in the class room to stand up to the bully from beating them up and the bullies will flee. The Tunisians, the Egyptians, the Libyans are standing up against the bullies, the Pakistanis can do it too to bring about a change they really want, but have to show the moral courage. If you let extremism prevail, you won't be able to run from it and will sink in the quick sand.
Mike Ghouse is committed to building cohesive societies and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. More about it at; www.blasphemylaws.com/ Evil exists in a given society because good people do nothing about it. Obviously everyone is scared of speaking up and as long as you are scared, those few will establish that Islam is their religion and a religion of punishment, oppression and coercion. Sadly, that is their understanding, one of the many ways to change that perception is to speak up, they need to know that there is a different view and most Muslims do not subscribe to their view. The least you can do, particularly the Pakistani Americans is to speak up and show the support to those gutsy men and women like Sherry Rahman and Prof. Hoodbhoy who are not scared. As he alludes, Zardari has a choice to leave a legacy of goodness for his country and live in peace or run for his life. Please visit the site www.BlasphemyLaws.com a variety of articles are being posted to increase our own understanding of it. Arab News Qadri and Muslim Majority.
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