Lahore, Sep. 18, 2007 (CWNews.com) - In Pakistan, a Christian man who was jailed on blasphemy charges in September 2006 has been released on orders from an appeals court, the AsiaNews service reports.
Shahid Masih was released after the appeals court found him "totally innocent" of having desecrated the Qu'ran. His defenders had charged that the young Christian man was accused by Muslim neighbors because of a personal dispute.
In a related development reported by the Fides news service, the Pakistani bishops' justice-and-peace commission has urged the country's foreign ministry not to promote the blasphemy law abroad. The Catholic hierarchy has repeatedly called for changes in the law, citing the vast potential for abuse, and particularly false charges. In the past 20 years more than 800 people have been reported on blasphemy charges, and Fides reports that in many causes local courts did not investigate before meting out punishment.