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The tension between the right of freedom of expression and the desire among many Muslim majority
countries to prohibit blasphemous speech has become a focal point of conflict between Western and
Muslim worlds. The proponents of blasphemy laws advocate that such laws maintain social and
religious cohesiveness in a society, while the opponents highlight the underlying cause of dissent; the
breach of human rights by suppressing religious minorities and hindering freedom of speech. There
are three reasons that keep unassailable blasphemy laws a powerful charge in Pakistan. First and
foremost, is the close relationship between Islam and State so that any religious offence will easily be
construed as a state offence as evident in Article 2 and Article 31 of Islamic Republic Of Pakistan’s
Constitution. Secondly, the extreme reverence Muslims possess for their religious beliefs and rightly
so. Lastly, how such beliefs are often exploited for political gains. Blasphemy laws not only exist in
Pakistan but also are present in majority of the Muslim countries including Afghanistan, Iran, Somalia,
Saudi Arabia and Nigeria having the same death penalty. This treatise will explore the historical
context of blasphemy laws in Pakistan, its potential abuse targeted at individuals for personal enmity
and the theoretical perspectives on the issue of human rights in context of blasphemy laws. It must be
acknowledged that blasphemy laws in Pakistan are here to stay due to the country’s religious
environment. Hence, the only viable solution is to discourage the laws being used as a potent tool for
malicious abuse and punish the true culprits of the crime.
Mariam Haider Syed. (2020) PAKISTAN’S BLASPHEMY LAWS: A CONCERN FOR MCCARTHYISM, Journal of the Research Society of Pakistan, Volume 57, Issue 1.
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