Pakistan court frees Christian on death row

ISLAMABAD — A Christian woman who spent eight years on death row under Pakistan’s blasphemy law was acquitted and released Wednesday by the country’s top court, a ruling that raised fears of violence by religious extremists who held angry protests over the verdict.

After she was freed, Asia Bibi was taken to an undisclosed location for her safety, and her lawyer said she would soon leave the country. France and Spain have offered asylum to the 54-year-old mother of five, who is a Roman Catholic.

Chief Justice Mian Saqib Nisar, who had received death threats, announced the landmark verdict that fully overturned her 2010 conviction to a packed courtroom amid increased security.

Thousands of supporters of the Tehreek-e-Labbaik party, led by firebrand cleric Khadim Hussain Rizvi, took to the streets in protests, demanding Bibi’s public execution. Rizvi has turned out tens of thousands of supporters before, often forcing authorities to bow to his demands on religious matters.

Hundreds of Islamists blocked a road linking the city of Rawalpindi with the capital, Islamabad, and protests were held in Karachi, Peshawar and other cities. In the eastern city of Multan, police arrested several demonstrators after clashes.

Security forces moved quickly, deploying outside churches to protect minority Christians and urging demonstrators to disperse peacefully. Commandos were sent to protect Nisar and the other two judges of the high court after a cleric in the eastern city of Lahore urged religious extremists to kill them.

The outburst over the divisive blasphemy law prompted Prime Minister Imran Khan to go on national TV to guarantee their safety and criticize those who made verbal attacks on Pakistan’s institutions, including his government.

“They are not serving Islam, but trying to increase their vote bank,” Khan said of the clerics. “They are doing their politics.”

The verdict was seen as a hopeful sign by Christians in Pakistan, where the mere rumour of blasphemy can spark lynchings. Religious minorities, who have been repeatedly targeted by extremists, fear the law because it is often used to settle scores and to pressure minorities.

Salman Taseer, the governor of Punjab province, was shot and killed by one of his guards in 2011 for defending Bibi and criticizing the misuse of the law. The assassin, Mumtaz Qadri, was hanged for the crime, but later was hailed by religious hard-liners as a martyr, with millions visiting a shrine set up for him near Islamabad. Shahbaz Bhatti, Pakistan’s minister for minorities, was killed later that year after demanding justice for Bibi.