US wants repeal of anti-Ahmadi, blasphemy laws

Society Religion & Philosophy
1

It is time to UNDO what should have never been done in the first place. And, time to pay up! Make raparations & pay damages for life & property lost & destroyed in the name of Islam.

**A resolution has been introduced in the House of Representatives of the United States urging Pakistan to repeal blasphemy law and the provisions that declare Ahmadis non-Muslim. **

The resolution was introduced on February 14th, on the eve of President General Pervez Musharraf’s US visit. The House referred it to the Committee on International Relations.

It says that under the Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, `everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.’

**It also says that under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, `no one shall be subject to coercion which would impair his freedom to have or adopt a religion or belief of his choice.’

The resolution maintains that the freedom of thought, conscience, religion, or belief is inextricably linked to the exercise of other rights, including the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association, the right to freedom of association with others, and the right to freedom of statement, and the recognition that all persons are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to the equal protection of the law, including in employment. **

It observed that the Department of State’s annual reports on religious freedom and human rights have documented numerous instances of legal and government discrimination in Pakistan based on religion or belief, in the context of the Blasphemy Law. It also mentions the Martial Ordinance XX of 1984 that declares Ahmadis as non-Muslims.

**The resolution observed that General Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan explained that his “view is of a tolerant Islam, Islam in the true sense, and not an Islam, which is manipulated for political gains. Islam is a `deen’, a way of life. I am a believer in taking Islam in its real, progressive form, a much broader futuristic view rather than a dogmatic and retrogressive one.” **

So, the resolution urged President General Pervez Musharraf to repeal the Blasphemy Law. It also calls for repealing the Martial Ordinance XX, and appealed President General Musharraf to release prisoners jailed under Ordinance XX and the Blasphemy Law.

The resolution also urged the president to repeal the 8th Amendment to the Constitution of Pakistan declaring Ahmadis `non-Muslims’ under the law. It encourages General Musharraf to eliminate the requirement to declare one’s religion when applying for a passport or swear to exclusive statements regarding religion, admission to an educational institution, obtaining the national identity card, or employment.

The resolution also called upon the US president and the secretary of state to raise violations of the freedom of thought, conscience, religion, or belief, at every appropriate level with representatives of the government of Pakistan, including during discussions regarding terrorism and nuclear proliferation; and include experts on religious liberty on United States delegations to Pakistan and to appropriate regional and international meetings.
http://jang.com.pk/thenews/index.html
Monday 18, 2002

2

will someone put this in simpler words…
i dont really get what it says…

is the US now trying to tell us who the muslims r and who the disbelievers r

http://www3.pak.org/gupshup/smilies/confused.gif

“Our Lord! forgive us our sins and anything we may have done that transgressed our duty; establish our feet firmly and help us against those that resist faith.” Quran(3:147)

3

remember what jinnah siad goverment has no business in interfering religious beliefs.

4

is the US now trying to tell us who the muslims r and who the disbelievers r <<

Nope. I think the US is telling the Pak Govt. NOT to tell who is a Muslim and who is a disbeliever.
Since Pakistan plays to the tune of HMV(His Master's Voice) it will immediately do what's wanted!!

5

Pakistan is a signatory to the Universal Human Rights code and that means Pakistan has to ensure & protect those rights which it has never done:

“Freedom of thought, conscience, religion, or belief inextricably linked to the exercise of other rights, including the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association, the right to freedom of association with others, and the right to freedom of statement, and the recognition that all persons are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to the equal protection of the law, including in employment.”

By adopting the Sharia’h system of governance gave the Prime Ministers & Mullahs of Pakistan and all Islamic world “new definitions” of Human Rights.

The religious mullahs/clergies decides who enjoys what rights and what freedom and not by the criteria of Universality or everyone is equal before the eyes of the law.

6

Good

http://www3.pak.org/gupshup/smilies/ok.gif

too bad it took Uncle Sam’s arm twisting to get it done.

There is No Spoon

7

People are under the misaprehension that Pakistan first declared the Ahmadis non-muslim. But in fact it was the Rabita council of the whole Muslim ummah meeting in Jeddah who first declared them non-Muslim. Pakistan and other countries passed laws only after this Ijma ruling of the ummah. US congress cannot get this decision reversed whatever it does because it was a religious decision just like any religious rulings passed by the Vatican.

8

instead of telling Pakistan what to do, I think the US needs to be told to check the people who falsely classify themselves as muslims and hence lead towards the wrong portrayal of Islam and Muslims....

Ahmedis shud be declared non-Muslims around the world and it shud be made sure they call themselves AHmedis or Qadiaanis or whatever but not Muslims....

"Our Lord! forgive us our sins and anything we may have done that transgressed our duty; establish our feet firmly and help us against those that resist faith." **Quran(3:147)

9

*ISLAMABAD, Feb 19 (PNS): The Musharraf government says it has no intention either to amend the Constitution for the purpose of doing away with the provisions that declare Ahmadis (Qadianis) non-Muslim or repeal the blasphemy laws. *

A senior government spokesman told PNS here on Monday that these were the settled issues, which the government did not want to re-open yet to create another controversy. The spokesman was asked whether the government was considering amending the constitution to undo the provision about Ahmadis or repealing the blasphemy laws.

The spokesman said there was consensus in Pakistan on these sensitive issues though Islamabad had been consistently facing pressure from abroad to repeal the blasphemy law and also to do away with the constitutional provisions that declared Ahmadis non-Muslims.

A resolution has lately been introduced in the House of Representatives of the United States urging Pakistan to repeal blasphemy law and the provisions that declare Ahmadis non-Muslim. The resolution, introduced on February 14th, on the eve of President General Pervez Musharraf's US visit, was referred to the Committee on International Relations.

When referred to the apprehension that this introduction of the resolution in the US legislator was a prelude to a renewed pressure on Pakistan by Washington to undo both the steps taken decades back, the spokesman said: "Pakistan cannot control the thought process of non-Pakistani individuals."

The spokesman said that the provision of declaring Ahmadis as non-Muslims in the constitution was included in the document during Zulfikar Ali Bhutto's tenure following a consensus between all political parties.

Besides the sensitivity involved in these issues, the spokesman said that the Supreme Court of Pakistan had also prohibited the government from introducing any amendment of fundamental nature in the constitution.

President Musharraf, the spokesman said, had also said time and again that the government would not touch the basic issues in the constitution of Pakistan. The President had once, over a year back, indicated only of changing the procedure for the registration of cases under the blasphemy law to ensure that the law was not misused but the government had to withdraw even from there following a strong reaction from religious groups and parties in the country. Article 260 of the constitution envisages the definitions of both the Muslims and the non-Muslims.

**Clause (3)(a) of the Article says: "Muslim means a person who believes in the unity and oneness of Almighty Allah, in the absolute and unqualified finality of the Prophethood of Muhammad (PBUH), the last of the Prophet, and does not believe in, or recognise as a prophet or religious reformer, any persons who claimed or claims to be a prophet, in any sense of the word or of any description whatsoever, after Muhammad (PBUH)."

The clause (3)(b) of the Article 260 defines the non-Muslims. It reads as: "Non-Muslim is a person who is not a Muslim, and include a person belonging to the Christian, Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist or Parsi community, a person of the Qadiani group or the Lahori group (who call themselves Ahmadis or by any other name) or a Babai, and a person belonging to any of the scheduled class."**

A Foreign Office spokesman told the newsmen during a regular briefing that no action was contemplated on the basis of the motion presented in the US House of Representatives.

"Our Lord! forgive us our sins and anything we may have done that transgressed our duty; establish our feet firmly and help us against those that resist faith." **Quran(3:147)

10

Last week (February 13, 2002), during his speech at the Woodrow Wilson Center for International Scholars in Washington, D.C., President Gen. Pervez Musharraf was asked a question specifically concerning the treatment of Ahmadis in Pakistan. The audio of the speech is available at:
http://www.ceip.org/files/events/events.asp?EventID=458 (the question and answer are at the end of the speech at 1:04:54)…

Suffice it to say, Musharraf evaded the question posed, but offered some hope in the way of treatment of religious minorities. You may read the entire transcript of the speech at:
http://www.ceip.org/files/events/2002-02-12-musharraf-tscript.asp (note, the transcript erroneously writes “Hermudi” instead of “Ahmadis”)…

11

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN (for herself, Mr. ROHRABACHER, Mr. CROWLEY, Mr. PITTS, Mr. BROWN of Ohio, and Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia) submitted the following resolution;
which was referred to the Committee on International Relations.
*
RESOLUTION
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives with respect to violations in Pakistan of the freedom of individuals to profess and practice religion or belief.

Whereas under Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, `Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance';

Whereas under Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, `No one shall be subject to coercion which would impair his freedom to
have or adopt a religion or belief of his choice';

Whereas freedom of thought, conscience, religion, or belief is inextricably linked to the exercise of other rights, including the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association, the right to freedom of association with others, and the right to freedom of expression, and the recognition that all persons are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to the equal protection of the law, including in employment;

Whereas the Department of State's annual reports on religious freedom and human rights have documented numerous instances of legal and government discrimination in Pakistan based on religion or belief;

Whereas Pakistani Christians face tremendous persecution under that country's Blasphemy Law, which is applied arbitrarily upon the accusation of insult to the Prophet Mohammed or the Holy Koran and can carry the death penalty;

Whereas minority Muslim groups in Pakistan also face oppression, as some have been declared `not Muslims' in the eyes of the law and their practice of elements of Islam is therefore considered blasphemous;

Whereas under current Martial Ordinance XX of 1984, everyday life of an Ahmadi Muslim has been turned into a crime, and quotidian religious observances, such as the traditional Muslim greeting `peace be upon you' and the call to prayer are criminal acts punishable with imprisonment when practiced by members of the Ahmadiyya community;

Whereas Church of Pakistan Bishop Alexander John Malik has described the Blasphemy Law as a `license to harass, enslave and eliminate minorities and legalize religious persecution';

Whereas while the blasphemy laws remain in place, Pakistan's religious minorities are defenseless against opportunism and malice; and

Whereas General Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan explained that his view is of a tolerant Islam, Islam in the true sense, and not an Islam which is manipulated for political gains . . . Islam is adeen', a way of life . . . I am a believer in taking Islam in its real, progressive form--a much broader futuristic view rather than a dogmatic and retrogressive one': Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That the House of Representatives--

(1) calls on General Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan to repeal the Blasphemy Law, which has become an instrument of repression;

(2) urges General Musharraf to repeal Martial
Ordinance XX which is in conflict with international law and the basic human right of freedom of religion;

(3) appeals to General Musharraf to release prisoners jailed under Ordinance XX and the Blasphemy Law;

(4) asks General Musharraf to repeal the 8th Amendment to the Constitution of Pakistan declaring Ahmadis `not Muslims' under the law;

(5) encourages General Musharraf to eliminate the requirement to declare one's religion when applying for a passport or swear to exclusive statements regarding religion, admission to an educational institution, obtaining the national identity card, or employment; and

(6) calls upon the President and the Secretary of State to--

(A) raise violations of the freedom of thought, conscience, religion, or belief, at every appropriate level with representatives of the Government of Pakistan, including during discussions regarding terrorism and nuclear proliferation; and

(B) include experts on religious liberty on United States delegations to Pakistan and to appropriate regional and international meetings.*

12

well said armughal and Jibreel

13

It appears that my e-mails to the members of Congress did not fall on deaf ears. I should have asked for a BMW.

14

JUst out of curiosity. Who is to declare Ahmadis as heretics ‘LEGALLY’. As far as I know, there is no Pope in Islam!!

So is it upto individual countries to persecute them? Or did other ‘Islamic’ countries appeal to Saudi Arabia to stop camel racing with Kid jockeys and give attention to this?

http://www3.pak.org/gupshup/smilies/biggrin.gif

http://www3.pak.org/gupshup/smilies/biggrin.gif

By the way Perveez

http://www3.pak.org/gupshup/smilies/crying.gif

http://www3.pak.org/gupshup/smilies/crying.gif

Mushraaf said he didn’t give any attention to the issue when some Pakistani asked him about anti-Ahmadi laws in his press conference in Washington D.C. !!

15

Andhra,,,where did you hear that there is no Pope in Islam? Man, there are at least 20 Popes in my neighborhood in Lahore, they even have their own printing presses, and they issues 42 Decrees every day, sometimes a little less, sometimes a little more.

16

Oh I see. My advice is ..

Too Many Popes SPoil An Ahmadi Lynching!!

http://www3.pak.org/gupshup/smilies/biggrin.gif

http://www3.pak.org/gupshup/smilies/biggrin.gif

So it is better to have one Pope!!

17

<< People are under the misaprehension that Pakistan first declared the Ahmadis non-muslim. But in fact it was the Rabita council of the whole Muslim ummah meeting in Jeddah who first declared them non-Muslim. Pakistan and other countries passed laws only after this Ijma ruling of the ummah. US congress cannot get this decision reversed whatever it does because it was a religious decision just like any religious rulings passed by the Vatican. >>

So is this makes another decision by a council legal when they declare MUSLIMS of MECCA not Muslims and started calling them SAABI. They alse changed the name of Hazur SAW, I'll not mention that here.

You another one, How about the decision of religious leader PILOT regime, they condemmed Jesus PBUH to death.

Now the same Rabita council also declared some other sects non-muslim to, now what happened with that decision?

18

johnD,

There was never a Rabita or Dabita council of Wahabi Saudia involved; majority pakistanis are hanafi and of the sufi barelvi genre. The decision was a 'made in Pakistan' one facilitated by constitutional amendments.

The Vatican decisions only involves the Catholic christians and hardly ever infringe individual human rights whereas the Islamic clergies decisions always, ALWAYS impunes upon one groups rights to exist with full rights as equal citizens.

Today's world is a global community dictated by common bonds of universal human rights and Orthodox Islam negates this UNIVERSAL rights code and as such is not acceptable. If you do not like to co-exist with all as equals then that is just too bad.

[This message has been edited by faceup (edited February 20, 2002).]

19

Bottom line is that All Ahmadies , Qadiyanies and Lahori are non Muslim..

As far as my information is concerned no Non muslim has been ill trated in Pakistan so far. No ahmadi has been badly treated in Pakistan. Infact Ahmadies are enjoying Good poss, money in Pakistan. and majority of ahmadies are in CANADA...

so whats the problem???

so why US Govt is interfring in this mutually decided law ? which was accepted all the muslims of PAkistan and this fact is also supported by Muslims all over the world.

Dont think "you can" know "you can"
.::. ¢¼ ﷲ ﻼﺃ ﷲﺃ ﻶ ¢¼ .::.

20

faceup sir I regret to say but you are wholly incorrect on both assertions.

There was a Muslim Rabita council conference that declared the Qadianis non-muslim. The World Muslim League held its annual conference at Makkah, Saudi Arabia from 14th to 18th April 1974 in which 140 delegations of Muslim countries and organizations from all schools of thought and from all over the world participated. The Conference unanimously adopted a resolution declaring Qadianism out of the fold of Islam. It was only after this decision that governments in Pakistan, Yemen, middle East and Africa moved legislation to officially declare these people non-muslim.

Your second point about the christian churches is also mistaken. The roman catholic and protestant churches have over the years declared movements like the mormons and scientoligists non-christians. Following on from these decisions governments in Germany and France have moved legislation to restrict the activities of these groups.