Pakistani court postpones hearing on appeal of Asia Bibi's blasphemy conviction

March 26, 2014

An appeal in the case of Asia Bibi, the Pakistani woman who was convicted on unsupported blasphemy charges, has been postponed, after her accuser failed to appear in court, the Fides news service reports.

Attorneys for Bibi, who has been jailed since 2009 when neighbors accused her of blaspheming the Muhhamad, were prepared to argue for her release at a March 26 hearing in Lahore High Court. But because the Muslim who submitted the original legal complaint against her was not present, the judges postponed the hearing.

“We remain very confident, from a legal point of view,” the lawyers for Bibi told Fides. Supporters of the Christian woman, who was sentenced to death after her conviction, have welcomed the opportunity to put the case before the appeals court, arguing that lower courts have been intimidated by Muslim extremists.

 

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Further information:

• Asia Bibi, the appeal has been postponed due to the "counterparty’s use of tactics" (Fides)
• Pakistan: appeals court considers case of Asia Bibi (CWN, 3/17)